Survival Spanish: asking for what you need
Ask for things with *¿Me da...?* — "will you give me" — rather than *quiero*. *¿Me da un café, por favor?* works in a shop, a bakery or a market stall. Pair it with the handful of fixed phrases that cover the rest: *¿Cuánto cuesta?*, *¿Dónde está el baño?*, *soy alérgico a*, and *permiso* to get past someone.
Draft copy. Every claim needs a native-speaker check before publishing — the byline is what makes this citable, so it has to be earned.
The frame that does most of the work
Course books teach quiero — I want. It is understood everywhere and nobody will be offended, but it is not what you hear across a counter in Lima. What you hear is:
¿Me da…? — literally “will you give me”.
- ¿Me da un café, por favor?
- ¿Me da un jugo de papaya?
- ¿Me da la cuenta, por favor?
Sitting down in a restaurant, ¿Me trae…? — will you bring me — does the same job. For something larger or more formal, quisiera is the polite step up: quisiera reservar una mesa.
One frame, three verbs, and you can ask for almost anything without conjugating anything.
Three ways to say “excuse me”, and they are not interchangeable
This is the distinction that marks you out fastest, and it takes ten seconds to learn.
| Word | When |
|---|---|
| permiso | You need to get past someone, or to leave |
| disculpe | You need a stranger’s attention — to ask a question |
| perdón | You did something — trod on a foot, bumped an arm |
Disculpe, ¿dónde está el baño? is the correct opening. Perdón, ¿dónde está el baño? sounds like you have apologised for needing one.
The phrases worth knowing by heart
- ¿Cuánto cuesta? — how much is it (one item)
- ¿Cuánto es? — how much is it altogether (at the till)
- ¿Dónde está el baño? — where is the bathroom
- ¿Qué hora es? — what time is it
- Tengo un problema. — I have a problem
- Soy alérgico a los mariscos. — I’m allergic to shellfish. A woman says alérgica
- No puedo. — I can’t. A complete, polite refusal on its own
- No, gracias. — no thank you, and you do not owe an explanation
- Ayuda — help. ¿Me puede ayudar? is the usable version
Food and drink
- Meals: el desayuno, el almuerzo, la cena
- Meat: el pollo, la res, el cerdo, el cordero, el pescado
- On the plate: el arroz, la ensalada, la sopa, el pan, el queso
- To drink: el agua, el jugo, el café, el té, la cerveza
- On the table: la sal, el azúcar, el vaso
Four Peruvian notes. Jugo, never zumo. Palta, never aguacate. Rico is the word for “delicious” — está rico, not es rico. And el menú in Peru is the cheap fixed-price lunch, not the list of dishes; the list is la carta. Asking for el menú in a small place will get you today’s set lunch, which is usually what you wanted anyway.
Paying
- ¿Aceptan tarjeta? — do you take cards
- En efectivo. — in cash
- ¿Tiene sencillo? — do you have small change. Sencillo is the Peruvian word, and you will be asked for it constantly
Try it
How would you say each of these?
- Ask a stranger where the bathroom is.
- Ask for a chicken soup.
- Tell a waiter you cannot eat fish.
- Squeeze past someone on a crowded bus.
→ 1 Disculpe, ¿dónde está el baño? · 2 ¿Me da una sopa de pollo, por favor? · 3 No puedo comer pescado (or soy alérgico al pescado) · 4 Permiso.
Topics Getting aroundFood and marketsPeruvian Spanish
Asking for things in Peru
Seven situations from a counter, a bus and a restaurant. The wrong options are all things learners say that work but mark them out.
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1You are at a counter in Lima and you want a coffee. The most natural way to ask:
Answer
¿Me da un café, por favor? — *¿Me da...?* is the everyday request frame in Peru. *Quiero* is understood but sounds like a statement rather than a request, and *dame* is for friends only.
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2You need to squeeze past someone on a packed combi. You say:
Answer
Permiso. — *Permiso* is the word for getting past or getting out. *Perdón* apologises for something already done, which is not what you are doing yet.
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3You want to stop a stranger in the street to ask a question. You open with:
Answer
Disculpe, — *Disculpe* is how you ask for a stranger's attention. *Oye* is informal and would be rude to someone you have not met.
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4In a small Peruvian restaurant, asking for *el menú* will usually get you:
Answer
today's fixed-price lunch — In Peru *el menú* is the cheap set lunch — soup, main and a drink. The list of dishes is *la carta*.
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5Which one asks for the total at the till?
Answer
¿Cuánto es? — *¿Cuánto es?* asks what the whole thing comes to. *¿Cuánto cuesta?* asks the price of one item, and *¿cuánto cobra?* is what you ask a taxi driver.
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6A woman telling a waiter she is allergic to fish says:
Answer
Soy alérgica al pescado. — An allergy is what you are, so it takes *ser*, and the adjective agrees with the speaker — *alérgica*. Note *a + el* contracting to *al*.
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7In Peru, *¿tiene sencillo?* is asking whether you have:
Answer
small change — *Sencillo* is the Peruvian word for coins and small notes. You will be asked for it constantly, especially in taxis and small shops.