You: Comparing Tú and Usted

Spanish has four ways to say you. Tú/vosotros is the familiar form and is used among friends, relatives, professional colleagues or when addressing a child or pet. Usted/ustedes -- abbreviated as Ud./Uds. or Vd./Vds. -- are the formal ways to say you and is generally used to show respect when addressing anyone not in the informal tú/vosotros category.

In English, we use the same word you to refer to one person or a group of people. Spanish distinguishes between singular (tú, usted) and plural (vosotros/vosotras, ustedes).

So, Spanish speakers have to choose between four words for you, depending on the number of people and the level of familiarity:

Tú is used when speaking with one, and vosotros/vosotras when speaking with more than one: friends, co-workers, employees, children or pets. Using tú or vosotros/vosotras to speak to someone is called tutear:

• Tutéame, por favor. = Please speak to me with the familiar form (use tú or vosotros).

Usted is used when speaking with one, and ustedes when speaking with more than one: your boss, doctors or other degreed professionals, police officers, clients, acquaintances, strangers or anyone with higher social standing or in authority; in short, any  one or more of these people must be addressed with usted or ustedes.


Vosotros or Ustedes?

One important point to note is the absence of the vosotros form in Latin America, where it is substituted with ustedes:

• I want you to listen to me.
  Spain: Quiero que vosotros me escuchéis.
  Latin America: Quiero que ustedes me escuchen.

When speaking with Spaniards who are friends, co-workers, employees or children, use vosotros. With everyone else, ustedes. When speaking to a group that includes people whom you would address as vosotros and others to whom you would say ustedes, then use ustedes.

When speaking with Latin Americans, whether they are friends, co-workers, employees, children, your boss, doctors or other degreed professionals, police officers, clients, acquaintances, strangers or anyone of higher social standing or with authority -- in short, any group of two or more people -- always use ustedes.

Remember: when in doubt, use usted/ustedes. Because English does not have equivalents of tú and usted, some English speakers do not realise the importance of this aspect of the Spanish language and commit the error of using tú as a first choice. Do not make this mistake; you are far less likely to offend someone by being extra-polite than you are by speaking in an inappropriately informal manner.