Have you ever listened to a conversation between native Spanish speakers and felt like something was missing from what you learned in class? You probably caught words like o sea, pues, or bueno popping up every few sentences — words that don't quite fit the grammar rules and weren't in your textbook. Well, those are filler words in Spanish, and learning them might just be the key to taking your Spanish to the next level.
Filler words — known in Spanish as muletillas (literally "little crutches") — are words and short phrases that native speakers use constantly in everyday conversation. They help speakers pause and think, connect ideas, react to what they hear, clarify what they mean, and keep the listener engaged. In short, they're the glue that holds natural conversation together.
You won't find muletillas in most Spanish textbooks, and yet you'll hear them all the time in real speech. That's exactly why learning them is so valuable: they'll help you both understand native speakers better and sound more natural when you speak.
Let's start with the filler words you'll use when you need a second to think or when you're figuring out how to respond.
Pues is one of the most common filler words in Spanish. You can throw it at the beginning of a sentence when you're uncertain or just need a beat to think.
Pues… no sé, tengo que pensarlo. (Well… I don't know, I have to think about it.)
¿Te apetece un café? — Pues sí. (Do you fancy a coffee? — Well, yes.)
Yo, pues, la verdad ya no podría...
I, well, honestly, then I couldn't...
Caption 72, Otavalo Matrimonio
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Pues... pues no, Alguacil, usted dijo que todo el mundo tenía su precio y...
Well... well, no, Sheriff, you said that everyone had their price, and...
Caption 9, Pablo Escobar, el patrón del mal Capítulo 1 - Part 11
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Bueno works similarly to pues and is great for starting a thought, transitioning between topics, or wrapping something up. Drawn out — bueeno — it can even express doubt or mild frustration.
Bueno… lo tengo que pensar un poco más. (Well… I have to think about it a bit more.)
¿Te gustó la película? — Bueeno… la verdad es que no mucho. (Did you like the movie? — Well… honestly, not much.)
Eh... is probably the most natural and instinctive filler sound in Spanish — you'll hear it constantly in everyday speech across all Spanish-speaking countries. Just like the English "uh," it buys the speaker a split second to think without leaving an awkward silence.
Eh… no sé qué decirte. (Uh… I don't know what to tell you.)
¿Qué tienes para mí hoy? Eh... Pues,
What do you have for me today? Uh... Well,
Captions 40-41, Extr@: Extra en español Ep. 9: Trabajos para los chicos - Part 7
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Bueno, pues, eh... impresionante.
Well, then, uh... impressive.
Caption 51, El Club de los Cinéfilos Muertos Mel Gibson - Part 15
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Use a ver when you're checking something, thinking something through, or about to explain yourself.
A ver… ¿qué podemos hacer esta noche? (Let's see… what can we do tonight?)
A ver, no quiero decir que no sea una buena idea. (Look, I'm not saying it's not a good idea.)
La quiero. A ver... está fuera de sus posibilidades, pero...
I want it. Let's see... it's beyond your means, but...
Captions 3-5, Cortometraje Triunfadores - Part 3
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Este is another Spanish equivalent of "um" or "uh." The final vowel is often stretched out: esteee…
Este… creo que no era así. (Uh… I don't think that was it.)
Este... pues, estamos dispuestos a enseñar a todo mundo
Um... well, we're willing to teach everyone
Caption 49, Costa Azul Surf Shop Hablando con los Empleados Del Surf - Part 2
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These are the filler words you'll reach for when you want to explain yourself better, correct what you just said, or rephrase your point.
O sea is one of the most common filler words in Spanish. Use it to clarify or add nuance to what you just said.
O sea, no era una crítica, solo una observación. (I mean, it wasn't a criticism, just an observation.)
In real speech, filler words rarely appear alone, and native speakers often use several in the same sentence without even thinking about it. Check out this clip:
Bueno, y toda la... la... la... la... la gastronomía eh... gira en torno a lo que es pescado, marisco... o sea, que es un sitio, Barbate, que no os podéis perder.
Well, and all the... the... the... the... the cuisine, um... revolves around fish, seafood... I mean, it's a place, Barbate, that you can't miss.
Captions 47-49, Adriana y Laura Cádiz
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Digo comes from the verb decir (to say) and is used to correct yourself mid-sentence.
La fiesta empieza a las nueve — digo, a las diez. (The party starts at nine — I mean, at ten.)
Perdón, perdón... digo... no, mejor te vas,
Sorry, sorry... I mean... No, you'd better go.
Caption 43, Muñeca Brava 2 Venganza - Part 4
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A great filler word when you need to explain or justify something, especially when politely declining or disagreeing.
¿Por qué no quieres ir? — Es que estoy muy cansado. (Why don't you want to go? — It's just that I'm really tired.)
Especially common among younger speakers in Spain, en plan works similarly to the English "like."
Estábamos allí en plan descansando cuando llegó Miguel. (We were there, like, relaxing when Miguel arrived.)
Son las líneas, eh... en plan, son justo la once y la doce y la diez. O sea que hay doce líneas de metro, entonces, justo las tres... -Mm-hm. -más...
They are the lines, um... like, they're precisely the eleven and the twelve and the ten. I mean, there are twelve subway lines, so, just the three... -Mm-hmm. -[that are] most...
Captions 46-48, Isabel y Paula contigo Transporte público en Madrid - Part 1
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These are the filler words that help you move a conversation forward and link one idea to the next.
Entonces is both a formal connector and a handy everyday filler. You'll hear it constantly at the beginning of sentences.
Entonces, ¿qué hacemos ahora? (So, what do we do now?)
Similar to entonces, así que introduces a result or conclusion.
Así que al final lo dejamos para mañana. (So in the end we left it for tomorrow.)
Así que, ya sabéis eso que dice ese clásico refrán:
So, now you know what the classic saying says:
Caption 89, Luis Guitarra Somos transparentes
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Use total to cut to the chase or sum up a story.
Total, que no apareció nadie. (So, in the end nobody showed up.)
Total que las dos actrices empiezan a pelear arriba,
So, the two actresses start to fight up above,
Caption 55, El teatro. Conversación con un doble de acción.
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These filler words show you're listening, help you react, and keep the other person engaged.
Ya signals that you're following along and understanding what the other person is saying.
Ya, ahora lo entiendo mejor. (Right, now I understand it better.)
te dejo. -Ya. -Voy a seguir con mi rutina, ¿OK? -Ya.
I'll leave you. -Right. -I'm going to continue with my routine, OK? -Right.
Caption 55, Otavalo Ejercicios
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A very natural way to agree or validate what someone just said.
Claro, eso tiene mucho sentido. (Of course, that makes a lot of sense.)
¡Pues, claro!
Well, of course!
Caption 64, Confidencial: Broma pesada Capítulo 3 - Part 12
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Use mira to introduce an explanation or reaction, and oye to get someone's attention.
Mira, te lo explico en un segundo. (Look, I'll explain it in a second.)
Oye, una cosa, ¿puedes mañana? (Hey, one thing — can you make it tomorrow?)
¡Ah mira, qué maravilla!
Oh, look, how wonderful!
Caption 40, Víctor en España Mercado de la Boquería de Barcelona
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These little tags are used constantly to involve the listener and check that they're following.
Es complicado, ¿sabes? (It's complicated, you know?)
No es tan fácil, ¿me entiendes? (It's not that easy, you get me?)
Es raro, ¿no? (It's weird, right?)
Here's a handy summary of all the muletillas covered in this lesson.
• Pues — Well / So — to ease into an answer or buy time
• Bueno — Well / Okay — to start a thought or transition between topics
• Eh... — Uh... — to fill a pause while thinking
• A ver — Let's see / Look — to think something through or introduce an explanation
• Este... — Um... — to hesitate while searching for a word
• O sea — I mean / In other words — to clarify or rephrase what you just said
• Digo — I mean — to correct yourself mid-sentence
• Es que — It's just that — to explain or justify something
• En plan — Like / Kind of — to describe something in a casual, informal way
• Entonces — So / Then — to link ideas or move the conversation forward
• Así que — So / Therefore — to introduce a result or conclusion
• Total — So / Anyway — to cut to the chase or sum up
• Ya — Right / Got it — to show you're following along
• Claro — Of course / Sure — to agree or validate what someone said
• Mira — Look — to introduce an explanation or reaction
• Oye — Hey / Listen — to get someone's attention
• ¿Sabes? — You know? — to keep the listener engaged
• ¿Me entiendes? — You get me? — to check if the other person is following
• ¿No? — Right? — to invite the listener to agree
If you've ever felt like native speakers talk too fast or use too many words you can't find in a dictionary, muletillas are probably a big part of the reason. Learning the most common filler words in Spanish will help you:
• Follow real conversations more easily
• Understand unscripted content like podcasts, reality shows, and vlogs
• Sound more natural and fluent when you speak
• Buy yourself time when you need to think — without resorting to English fillers
Now that you know what to look for, you're going to start hearing muletillas everywhere. Pay attention next time you watch a Spanish show or listen to a podcast — you'll be surprised how often pues, o sea, and bueno come up. The more you hear them in context, the more naturally they'll start coming out when you speak.
We'd love to hear which filler words you've come across in your Spanish learning journey! Drop us your questions and comments. ¡Hasta la próxima!
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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Notice that the translation for the plural forms of the word cuánto, cuántos and cuántas, is "how many."
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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The Spanish expression "¿Cuánto vale?" (literally "How much is it worth?") can also mean "How much does it cost?" in Spanish, with the verb conjugated in singular or plural once again depending on the sentence's subject, which is singular (este coche, or "this car") in this sentence:
¿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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Yet another expression meaning "How much does it cost?" in Spanish is: "¿A cuánto sale?" which might be literally translated as "What does it come out to?" The plural form salen would, of course, be used to ask about more than one noun.
¿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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Just like "How much is it?" is an alternative manner of asking "How much does it cost?" in English, "¿Cuánto es?" is another way of asking "¿Cuánto cuesta?" in Spanish. As an example, you could say "¿Cuánto es esto?" if you want to ask "How much is this?" in Spanish (or "¿Cuánto son estos?" to say "How much are these?"). Let's take a look at this expression in the past imperfect tense:
¿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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Hence the way to ask "How much do I owe you?" in Spanish would be "¿Cuánto te debo?" or "¿Cuánto le debo?" where deber is conjugated in the first person (yo, or "I") and te or le are the indirect object pronouns representing "you" with either tú or usted.
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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"¿Cuánto pesas?" (with tú) or "¿Cuánto pesa?" (with usted) would thus be manners of asking someone "How much do you weigh?" in Spanish.
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 "¿Cuántos años tienes?" literally means "How many years do you have?" this is the English equivalent of "How old are you?" since the Spanish "tener años" (to have years) refers to being a certain age.
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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Now that you know a multitude of questions that include the concept of "how much" in Spanish, it might be useful know a couple of answers! Since one possible response to "How much?" might be "Too much," let's learn how to say "too much" in Spanish, which is most often expressed with the Spanish word demasiado.
¿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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Another common English response to the question of "How much?" in English could be "Not much"! So, how do you say "not much" in Spanish? This one is pretty literal and simple! Let's take a look:
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.
Have you ever heard someone use the expression, o sea? Chances are you have because this is a very popular and useful expression in both Spain and Latin America. Let's see how to use it.
The expression, o sea, is generally used to introduce an explanation or consequence of something one has already said. If you think about it, the meaning is quite literal: The phrase is made up of the disjunctive conjunction, o ("or"), and the word, sea ("would be"), the third person present subjunctive form of the verb, ser ("to be"). Let's look at some examples.
Porque Barcelona no aburre nunca.
Because Barcelona is never boring.
O sea, siempre hay actividades,
I mean, there are always activities,
Captions 41-42, Escuela BCNLIP - Presentación de la directora
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Nos lo hemos pasado muy bien,
We had a great time,
muy bien. -Qué bien, o sea que buenísimas vacaciones.
great. -How nice, I mean, an amazing vacation.
Captions 48-49, El Aula Azul - Conversación: Vacaciones recientes
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You can also think of o sea as an equivalent of the English expression, "in other words":
O sea que ¿el tipo de hoy era Wilson Ríos?
In other words, the guy from today was Wilson Rios?
Caption 33, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa - Capítulo 1
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Sometimes, the word, que ("that"), is added after o sea without altering its meaning:
Sé surfear, ¿no? O sea que tengo una profesión ahora.
I can surf, right? I mean, I have a profession now.
Caption 43, Costa Azul Surf Shop - Hablando con los Empleados Del Surf
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Be careful, however: The combination "o + sea" can sometimes have a totally different meaning, so always pay close attention to the context:
...sea bueno o sea malo.
...whether it's good or whether it's bad.
Caption 34, Club de las ideas - Intuición
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In Latin America, there is another use of o sea that is very popular among upper/middle-class youngsters, some of whom are considered snobby and superficial. In this case, o sea is used as a sarcastic remark that can be translated as "obviously," "duh," "come on," "give me a break," or "I mean," depending on the context. Let's observe that use in action:
¡Ay pues, obvio que va a querer!
Oh well, [it's] obvious that he is going to want to!
¡Porque nadie le dice que no a una chica popular, o sea!
Because no one says no to a popular girl, duh!
Captions 21-22, NPS No puede ser - 1 - El concurso
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You may also notice that in colloquial speech, o sea is sometimes used incessantly among certain groups or individuals as a filler word in the same way that certain English-speakers (e.g. Valley girls, etc.) constantly use the word, “like.”
Finally, keep in mind that the expression, o sea, is written as two words, and it is incorrect to write it as a single word (osea means "bony"!). Furthermore, it is sometimes used as an alternative for the expression o séase, which should be also avoided.
That's all for today. We invite you to incorporate this useful expression into your vocabulary, and don't forget to send us your comments and suggestions.
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