Tú vs Usted - How to use formal and informal Spanish

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Irem Cohantimur

In many languages, we have two words for "you", one for formal and the other one for informal conversation. English is actually an exception, because we say always "you". Compare this:

Tú eres María. You are Mary.

Usted es María. You are Mary.

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In the first case, María could be my friend or my sister. In the second case, it is an unknown person or a mere acquaintance, and I am showing respect and putting some distance using "usted". If you know how to speak other languages, you will notice that this is a very common feature not only in Europe, but also in the East. In languages like Japanese or Korean, it is a serious insult to address some people informally, and in some European countries, like Germany, you need to ask for permission if you want to address a person using the informal equivalent to “you”.

Going back to Spanish, notice that we say "tú eres" but "usted es", so you need to change the verbal form (this is called "conjugation"). Whenever you conjugate a verb, you do it in this way:

  • Yo soy
  • Tú eres
  • Él, ella, usted es
  • Nosotros, nosotras somos
  • Vosotros, vosotras sois
  • Ellos, ellas, ustedes son

As you can see, we have a form for "tú" and a different one for "él, ella, usted". This happens with any verb. For example, "hablar" (to speak):

  • Yo hablo
  • Tú hablas
  • Él, ella, usted habla
  • Nosotros, nosotras hablamos
  • Vosotros, vosotras habláis
  • Ellos, ellas, ustedes hablan

Another thing to remember is that "tú" carries an accent, because if you write "tu" without an accent, it means "your". Look at this example:

  • Tú y tu hermana. You and your sister.
  • Tú y tu perro. You and your dog.
  • Of course, I can switch the phrase and say:
  • Tu hermana y tú. Your sister and you.
  • Tu perro y tú. Your dog and you.

So, “tú” means “you” and it is a personal pronoun, whereas “tu” is a possessive adjective meaning “your”.

We also need to consider the plural, when we are talking with more than one person. In this case, the informal “you” is “vosotros, vosotras” and the formal one is “ustedes”, as you can see here:

Use of Formal and Informal Spanish

YOU

Singular

Plural

Informal

vosotros, vosotras

Formal

usted

ustedes

 

How to use formal and informal Spanish with Examples

Notice the difference!

How are you?

Talking to a friend

¿Cómo estás?

Tú estás

How are you?

Talking to some friends

¿Cómo estáis?

Vosotros estáis

How are you?

Talking to a teacher

¿Cómo está?

Usted está

How are you?

Talking to some teachers

¿Cómo están?

Ustedes están

But to do things a little more complicated, we use “vosotros, vosotras” only in some areas of Spain, but not in Andalucía, which is in the South, in Canarias and in Latinamerica. In all these regions, we only use “ustedes”, either for formal and informal conversations.

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Last but not least, remember that Spanish is the official language in 21 countries, so we speak in many ways. In some countries, like Argentina and Uruguay, nobody uses "tú". They use an alternative form, "vos". The good news is that they will understand you when you say "tú" anyway.

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Irem Cohantimur
Content Specialist at FindTutors
Irem is a Content Specialist with experience in digital marketing, specialising in SEO and UK market trends. Originally from Turkey, now based in Barcelona, where she completed her Master's in Marketing. Fluent in Turkish and English, and currently improving her Spanish, Irem is passionate about marketing trends. With a strong background in both organic and paid marketing strategies, she enjoys crafting engaging digital content through her expertise in content development and data-driven insights.
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