How do you say "how much" in Spanish? In this lesson, you will learn to say "how much" in Spanish in both questions and statements as well to formulate some more specific "how much" questions and answers that you might be eager to learn!
The simplest answer to this question is that, while there may be additional ways of saying "how much" in Spanish in particular contexts, the word cuánto is the most common way to say "how much" in Spanish and the one we will focus on today. Let's take a look at this word in action:
Ay, papá, para que se dé cuenta cuánto
Oh, dude, so that you realize how much
vamos a ganar con este negocio;
we are going to earn with this business;
Caption 11, Tu Voz Estéreo - Laura
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While, in the example above, the word cuánto functions as a adverb meaning "how much" in Spanish, the word cuánto can also act as an adjective. In such cases, it will need to agree with the noun it modifies in terms of number and gender. Let's take a look at some examples of the word cuánto in its singular/plural and masculine/feminine forms:
Quiero, quiero, quiero ver cuánto amor a ti te cabe
I want, I want, I want to see how much love fits in you
Caption 40, Luis Fonsi ft. Daddy Yankee - Despacito
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Escúchame, ¿cuántos frigoríficos necesitáis?
Listen to me, how many refrigerators do you guys need?
Caption 46, 75 minutos - Del campo a la mesa - Part 2
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¿Cuánta harina le agrego?
How much flour shall I add to it?
Caption 72, Ricardo - La compañera de casa
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¿Cuántas palabras sabes en español?
How many words do you know in Spanish?
Caption 1, El Aula Azul - Adivina qué es
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Now that you know how to say "how much" in Spanish, let's look at some of the most searched-for English phrases including the words "how much" that many people want to learn how to say in Spanish:
As one of the most common things one might associate with the words "how much" is money. You might be curious about how to say "how much money" in Spanish, which is simple: Add the singular masculine form of the adjective cuánto to the word for money, dinero, which is masculine and singular as well:
¿Cuánto dinero se puede sacar? Perras.
How much money can one get? Coins [colloquial].
Caption 48, 75 minutos - Del campo a la mesa - Part 5
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Now that we're talking about money, the abilty to ask the question, "How much does it cost?" in Spanish might come in extremely handy when traveling to a Spanish-speaking country. So, how do you say "How much does it cost?" in Spanish?
As it turns out, there are a number of ways to say "How much does it cost?" in Spanish. Most literally, as the verb costar means "to cost" in Spanish, "¿Cuánto cuesta?" and "¿Cuánto cuestan?" mean "How much does it cost?" or "How much do they cost?" respectively, with the verb conjugated in the third person singular or plural depending upon whether what is being asked about is singular or plural. In these cases, the word cuánto functions as an adverb meaning "how much" in Spanish and is thus always masculine and singular.
¿Cuánto cuesta esta billetera?
How much does this wallet cost?
¿Cuánto cuesta esta cartera?
How much does this purse cost?
Captions 32-33, Ana Carolina - Salir de compras
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¿Y cuánto cuestan las lecciones?
And how much do the lessons cost?
Caption 21, Costa Azul Surf Shop - Hablando con los Empleados Del Surf
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¿Cuánto vale este coche?
How much does this car cost?
Este coche vale nuevo treinta y seis mil euros.
This car costs new thirty-six thousand euros.
Captions 60-61, 75 minutos - Gangas para ricos - Part 18
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¿A cuánto sale más o menos el botecito?
How much does the little jar cost, more or less?
Caption 29, 75 minutos - Del campo a la mesa - Part 6
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¿Cuánto era, dos zoquitos? Eh. -No sé si...
How much was it, two zoquitos? Yeah. -I don't know if...
Caption 26, 75 minutos - Gangas para ricos - Part 5
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To continue on our money theme, you might need to ask a waiter, for example, "How much do I owe you?" in Spanish. The Spanish verb for "to owe" is deber, as illustrated in the following sentence:
si debés más, pues, multiplicado,
if you owe more, well, multiplied,
te daría una deuda mucho mayor.
it would give you a much bigger debt.
Caption 47, Cuentas claras - Sobreviviendo enero
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Even though this might be an unpopular question in some circles, many people are curious to know how to say "How much do you weigh?" in Spanish. Since the verb pesar means "to weigh," it can be paired with cuánto to ask about a person's weight as follows:
¿La madre, cuánto puede pesar, Jesús?
The mother, how much can she weigh, Jesus?
Caption 81, Animales en familia - Un día en Bioparc: Cachorro de leopardo
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Although our focus today has been how to translate English questions with "how much" into Spanish using the word cuánto and its variants, we should take a moment to mention that two of the most common Spanish questions that employ this word are not literally translated as "how much" or "how" many" in English. Let's take a look:
You have probably heard the very common Spanish questions: "¿Cuántos años tienes?" or "¿Cuántos años tiene?"
¿Tú cuántos años tienes, Mariano?
How old are you, Mariano?
Yo, treinta y cinco. -¿Estás casado, tienes niños?
Me, thirty-five. -Are you married; do you have kids?
Captions 69-70, 75 minutos - Del campo a la mesa - Part 6
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Although the Spanish phrase "cuánto tiempo" literally means "how much time," this is most commonly expressed in English as "how long."
Para ese momento ¿ustedes cuánto tiempo llevaban de novios?
At that time, how long had you been girlfriend and boyfriend?
Caption 27, Tu Voz Estéreo - Feliz Navidad
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¿Tu marido trabaja
Your husband works
de domingo a domingo. ¿Cuánto? -Demasiado trabaja.
from Sunday to Sunday. How much? -He works too much.
Captions 29-30, 75 minutos - Del campo a la mesa - Part 19
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Bueno, sé un poquito pero no mucho.
Well, I know a little bit but not much.
Caption 3, Arume - La Vida Escolar
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To wrap up today's lesson on "how much" in Spanish, allow us to ask: ¿Cuánto aprendiste? (How much did you learn?). We hope that the answer is "very much" and look forward to your suggestions and comments.