How to Say ‘Excuse me, ma'am, may I ask you a question?’ in Mexican Spanish
Disculpe, señora, ¿le puedo hacer una pregunta?
dees-KOOL-peh seh-NYOH-rah leh PWEH-doh ah-SEHR OO-nah pre-gun-tah
[dees-KOOL-peh seh-NYOH-rah leh PWEH-doh ah-SEHR OO-nah pre-gun-tah]
Phrase Breakdown
Disculpe, señora,
dees-KOOL-peh seh-NYOH-rah
Excuse me, ma'am,
'Disculpe' is the polite, formal way to say 'excuse me'. In 'señora', the 'ñ' sounds like the 'ny' in 'canyon'.
Disculpe, señor, ¿qué hora es?
Excuse me, sir, what time is it?
Words in this phrase
Disculpe
[dees-KOOL-peh]
excuse me
A polite formal expression used to get someone's attention, apologize lightly, or ask for help.
Disculpe, ¿dónde está el baño?
Excuse me, where is the bathroom?
señora
[seh-NYOH-rah]
ma'am / madam
A polite way to address an adult woman directly, often used without her name.
Pase, señora.
Come in, ma'am.
¿le puedo hacer
leh PWEH-doh ah-SEHR
can I ask you
This is the formal 'can I ... you'. Remember the 'h' in 'hacer' is silent.
¿Le puedo hacer una invitación?
Can I extend you an invitation?
Words in this phrase
le
[leh]
to you
Indirect object pronoun meaning to you in a polite/formal way.
Le propongo pagar lo que marca el taxímetro.
I propose paying what the meter shows to you.
puedo
[PWEH-doh]
can I
Polite way to ask 'can I,' useful for offering something in a friendly way.
¿“puedo” pedirte una bebida?
Can I order you a drink?
hacer
[ah-SEHR]
to do / to make
A very common verb used for doing or making something.
Necesito hacer la tarea hoy.
I need to do the homework today.
una pregunta?
OO-nah pre-gun-tah
a question?
Raise your voice at the end, because it's a question. Stress 'GUN'.
Es una pregunta fácil.
It's an easy question.
Words in this phrase
una
[OO-nah]
a (feminine)
Indefinite article (feminine singular) used before “llamada”.
¿Podemos agendar Una revisión rápida y luego una llamada?
Can we schedule a quick review and then a call?
pregunta
[pre-gun-tah]
Question
A sentence worded or expressed to elicit information.
Tengo una pregunta para ti.
I have a question for you.
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