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How to Say ‘He gave us quite a scare’ in Spain Spanish

Nos dio un buen susto

nos dyoh oon bwen SOOS-toh

[nos dyoh oon bwen SOOS-toh]

💬 Usage Tip: dar un susto is "to give a scare", and buen here means "quite a" rather than "good". Same twist in un buen lío "quite a mess".

Phrase Breakdown

Nos dio

nos dyoh

He/she/it gave us

'Nos' (us) comes before 'dio', the past tense of 'dar' (to give). 'Dio' is one syllable: 'dyo'.

Example

Nos dio las llaves.

He gave us the keys.

Words in this phrase

Nos

[nos]

Pronoun used to indicate a group including the speaker.

Example

Nos invitaron a la fiesta.

They invited us to the party.

dio

[dyoh]

gave

Preterite of 'dar', he/she/it gave.

Example

Me dio un regalo.

He gave me a present.

un buen susto

oon bwen SOOS-toh

quite a scare

'Dar un susto' means to scare someone. 'Buen' here means 'big' or 'real'. Stress 'SUS-to'.

Example

¡Qué susto me has dado!

What a fright you gave me!

Words in this phrase

[oon]

An article used before a masculine singular noun.

Example

Busco un lugar donde me sienta valorado.

I’m looking for a place where I feel valued.

buen

[bwen]

good / quite a (long)

Short form of 'bueno' before a masculine noun; with 'rato' it means 'quite a while'.

Example

Hace un buen día.

It's a nice day.

susto

[SOOS-toh]

fright, scare

Masculine noun for a sudden shock; 'dar un susto' means to scare.

Example

¡Qué susto!

What a fright!

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