Asking about someones family: Asking about someone's kids and their ages

💬 niño and niña are "boy" and "girl" by age, while hijo and hija are "son" and "daughter" by relationship. Parents use either for their own young kids.

💬 ¡Qué...! plus a describing word makes a quick reaction. Swap it: ¡Qué padre! "How cool!", ¡Qué lindo! "How sweet!".

💬 Spanish says you "have" years rather than "are" an age, using tener. For one child: ¿Cuántos años tiene?.

💬 años can't be dropped the way "years old" can in English. Saying just tienen ocho sounds unfinished.

💬 ¿Y...? plus a person is a handy way to ask about the next one without repeating the question. Try ¿Y la niña? or ¿Y su esposo? "And your husband?".

💬 Adding -ito makes a word small or affectionate: años becomes añitos. It's how people talk about a toddler's age, and the same ending gives chiquito.

💬 el más plus a describing word makes "the most": el más grande "the oldest/biggest". For a girl it's la más chiquita.

💬 A question can keep normal sentence order; rising tone does the work. Usted tiene hijos said flat is a statement.

💬 The h in hija is silent and the j is a breathy h: (EE-hah).

💬 Tiene doesn't say who, so "she" comes from context. The z in diez sounds like s: (dee-ES), never th.

🇲🇽 ¡Ay! is used constantly in Mexico for warm surprise, not just pain. An expressive reaction here sounds friendly and engaged.

💬 tengo que plus an action means "I have to": tengo que trabajar "I have to work". The me can also go on the end: tengo que irme.

🇲🇽 Opening with Bueno signals you're wrapping up, which softens leaving. Goodbyes in Mexico tend to take a moment, so don't rush off right after saying it.

💬 Literally "may it go well for you"; le is the usted form. To a friend, say ¡Que te vaya bien!.

🇲🇽 A very common, warm parting line in Mexico. The usual reply is Igualmente or Gracias, a usted también "Thanks, you too".