How to Say How Do You Say in Spanish (Cómo Se Dice)

How do you say…? in Spanish is ¿cómo se dice? — arguably the most powerful phrase a learner can own, because it lets you build vocabulary in real time from any native speaker. Point at something, say ¿cómo se dice esto? (“how do you say this?”), and you’ve turned the world into a free dictionary. Pair it with ¿cómo se llama? (“what’s it called?”) and you can name anything you don’t have a word for yet.

The main way to say it

¿Cómo se dice? — pronounced KOH-moh seh DEE-seh.

The pronunciation details that matter:

• Cómo is two syllables, stress on the first: KOH-moh. The accent on có marks it as the question word “how.”
• Se is a quick, unstressed “seh.”
• Dice is DEE-seh, stress on the first syllable. In Mexican Spanish the c before e is an “s” sound, so it’s DEE-seh (never the Spain “th”).

To ask for a specific word, tack it on:

• ¿Cómo se dice “apple” en español? = how do you say “apple” in Spanish?
• ¿Cómo se dice esto? = how do you say this? (holding something up)
• ¿Cómo se dice ___ en inglés? = how do you say ___ in English? (asking the reverse)

The se here is impersonal — “how does one say it” — which is exactly the vague “you” English uses in “how do you say.” You’re not asking about a specific person.

Variations

Phrase	Meaning	Register
¿Cómo se dice?	How do you say (it)?	Universal
¿Cómo se dice esto?	How do you say this?	Universal
¿Cómo se dice ___ en español?	How do you say ___ in Spanish?	Universal
¿Cómo se llama esto?	What’s this called?	Everyday
¿Cómo le dicen a esto?	What do they call this? (local word)	Casual, Mexican
¿Cómo se escribe?	How do you spell/write it?	Useful follow-up
¿Qué es esto en español?	What’s this in Spanish?	Casual
¿Existe una palabra para…?	Is there a word for…?	Conversational

A very Mexican variant is ¿cómo le dicen a esto? (“what do they call this?”) — great for asking about regional or slang names for something, since Mexico has plenty of words that differ from “textbook” Spanish. And once you’ve got the word, the natural follow-up is ¿cómo se escribe? (“how do you spell it?”) so you can write it down and keep it.

Hear it in context

Learning a new word on the spot (learner-friendly):

— Oye, ¿cómo se dice “straw” en español? — Popote. Aquí en México le decimos popote. — ¿Popote? ¿Y cómo se escribe? — P-O-P-O-T-E. En España le dicen “pajita.”

Hey, how do you say “straw” in Spanish? — Popote. Here in Mexico we call it popote. — Popote? And how do you spell it? — P-O-P-O-T-E. In Spain they say “pajita.”

Asking what something is called (everyday):

— ¿Cómo se llama esta fruta? Nunca la había visto. — Es un mamey. Está buenísimo, pruébalo. — ¿Mamey? Qué rico. ¿Cómo se dice en inglés? — Uf, no sé, creo que no tiene traducción.

What’s this fruit called? I’d never seen it. — It’s a mamey. It’s delicious, try it. — Mamey? So good. How do you say it in English? — Ugh, I don’t know, I don’t think it has a translation.

Common mistakes

• Dropping the “se.” ¿Cómo dice? means “how does he/she say it?” or “what did you say?” — not “how do you say.” You need the impersonal se: ¿cómo se dice?.
• Confusing “dice” and “llama.” ¿Cómo se dice? asks for the word (“how do you say it”). ¿Cómo se llama? asks for the name of a thing or person (“what’s it/he/she called”). Both are useful; don’t blur them.
• Using the Spain “th” for “dice.” In Mexico, dice is DEE-seh with an “s.” The lisped DEE-theh is Castilian.
• Forgetting “en español.” If it’s not obvious which language you want, add it: ¿cómo se dice ___ en español?. Otherwise a native might answer in the wrong direction.

Mexico vs Spain notes

The phrase itself, ¿cómo se dice?, is universal — it works identically everywhere.

• Pronunciation: Mexico says DEE-seh; Spain says DEE-theh (the c before e lisps). Both understand each other perfectly.
• The words you’ll learn differ: ask ¿cómo se dice? about the same object in Mexico and Spain and you may get different answers — popote (Mexico) vs pajita (Spain) for “straw,” carro vs coche for “car.” That’s exactly why the phrase is so handy for travelers.
• ¿Cómo le dicen? (with the le) is a Mexican/Latin American flavor for asking the local nickname of something; Spain leans on ¿cómo se llama?.

Related phrases

Building vocabulary is a loop of asking and confirming — line these up:

• How to say what does that mean in Spanish — the flip side: decoding a word you just heard.
• How to say I don’t understand in Spanish — your safety net when the answer goes too fast.
• Keep collecting essentials with our guide to common Spanish phrases.

FAQ

What’s the difference between “¿cómo se dice?” and “¿cómo se llama?” ¿Cómo se dice? asks how to say a word (“how do you say ‘apple’”). ¿Cómo se llama? asks the name of something or someone (“what’s this called,” “what’s your name”). Use dice for translations, llama for names.

Why is there a “se” in the phrase? The se makes it impersonal — “how does one say it” — matching English’s vague “you” in “how do you say.” Without it, ¿cómo dice? changes the meaning.

How do I ask how to spell the word after? Say ¿cómo se escribe? (“how is it written / spelled”). It’s the natural follow-up once you’ve heard a new word.

How do I specify Spanish or English? Add en español or en inglés: ¿cómo se dice “table” en español? or ¿cómo se dice “popote” en inglés?.

Is “dice” pronounced with a “th” like in Spain? Not in Mexico. Mexican Spanish uses an “s” sound: DEE-seh. The lisped “th” (DEE-theh) is Castilian Spanish from Spain.