How to Say What Does That Mean in Spanish (Qué Significa)

What does that mean in Spanish is ¿qué significa? — the single most useful phrase for anyone actually learning the language, because it turns every confusing word into a lesson. Right next to it is ¿qué quiere decir? (“what does it mean,” literally “what does it want to say”), which sounds a touch more conversational. Master both and you can keep any conversation going instead of nodding and hoping.

The main way to say it

¿Qué significa? — pronounced keh sig-nee-FEE-kah.

The pronunciation details that matter:

• Qué is one syllable: keh, with a short “eh.” The qu- is a hard “k”; the u is silent, as always in Spanish que/qui.
• Significa has the stress on the FEE: sig-nee-FEE-kah. Four syllables, evenly clipped.
• The accent on qué marks it as the question word “what.” It carries a small extra push in the voice.

To ask about a specific word or phrase, add eso (“that”) or the word itself:

• ¿Qué significa eso? = what does that mean? (pointing at something just said)
• ¿Qué significa “órale”? = what does “órale” mean?
• ¿Qué quiere decir esa palabra? = what does that word mean?

¿Qué quiere decir? is the everyday twin of ¿qué significa?. They’re interchangeable in almost every situation; significa leans slightly more “dictionary definition,” quiere decir slightly more “what are you getting at.”

Variations

Phrase	Meaning	Register
¿Qué significa?	What does it mean?	Universal
¿Qué significa eso?	What does that mean?	Universal
¿Qué quiere decir?	What does it mean?	Everyday, conversational
¿Qué quiere decir eso?	What does that mean?	Everyday
¿Qué es eso?	What is that?	Casual
¿A qué te refieres?	What do you mean? (what are you referring to)	Conversational
¿Cómo?	What? / Come again?	Casual, asking to repeat
¿Qué quisiste decir?	What did you mean (by that)?	Conversational, past

There’s an important split hiding here. ¿Qué significa? asks for the definition of a word. ¿A qué te refieres? asks what a person means by what they just said — you understood the words but not the intent. If a friend says something cryptic, ¿a qué te refieres? (“what do you mean by that?”) is the phrase, not ¿qué significa?.

Hear it in context

Asking about an unfamiliar word (learner-friendly):

— Ese lugar está bien chido. — Perdón, ¿qué significa “chido”? — Ah, quiere decir “cool,” “padre.” Que está muy bueno. — Ah, ¡ya entendí! Gracias.

That place is really “chido.” — Sorry, what does “chido” mean? — Ah, it means “cool,” “great.” That it’s really good. — Oh, I get it now! Thanks.

Clarifying someone’s intent (conversational):

— Creo que mejor lo dejamos para después. — ¿A qué te refieres? ¿Cancelamos? — No, no. Solo lo movemos al viernes. — Ah, ok, eso sí.

I think we’d better leave it for later. — What do you mean? Are we cancelling? — No, no. We just move it to Friday. — Oh, okay, that works.

Common mistakes

• Saying “qué significa esto/eso” when you mean a person’s intent. For “what do you mean (by that)?” use ¿a qué te refieres? or ¿qué quieres decir?. ¿Qué significa? asks about a word’s definition.
• Pronouncing the “u” in “qué.” It’s silent: qué = “keh,” not “kweh.” The u only exists to keep the q hard.
• Word-for-word “qué hace eso significa.” Spanish doesn’t use a “does” helper. It’s simply ¿qué significa eso? — three words.
• Forgetting the accent on “qué.” In writing, the question word takes an accent: ¿qué significa?. Without it, que is a linking word (“that”).

Mexico vs Spain notes

Both ¿qué significa? and ¿qué quiere decir? are fully standard across the Spanish-speaking world — no regional swap needed.

• The pronunciation is essentially identical in Mexico and Spain; there’s no c/z in significa, so the Castilian lisp never appears.
• In casual Spain you’ll hear a quick ¿qué? or ¿cómo? to ask for a repeat, exactly as in Mexico. Mexicans also use ¿mande? as a polite “come again?” — a very local courtesy you won’t hear in Spain.
• Slang words differ by country, so ¿qué significa? is doubly useful when traveling: it’s your key to decoding chido in Mexico, guay in Spain, or bacán elsewhere.

Related phrases

Asking for meaning is half of staying in a conversation — pair it with these:

• How to say I don’t understand in Spanish — for when a whole sentence, not one word, loses you.
• How to say how do you say in Spanish — the reverse: asking for a word you don’t have yet.
• Keep building with our guide to common Spanish phrases.

FAQ

Is it “qué significa” or “qué quiere decir”? Both mean “what does it mean” and are interchangeable in most cases. Qué significa leans toward a dictionary definition; qué quiere decir is slightly more conversational. Either is safe.

How do I ask what a specific word means? Put the word in quotes or after the phrase: ¿qué significa “órale”? or ¿qué quiere decir esa palabra? (“what does that word mean?”).

What’s the difference between “¿qué significa?” and “¿a qué te refieres?” ¿Qué significa? asks for the meaning of a word. ¿A qué te refieres? asks what a person means by what they said — you understood the words but not the point.

Why is the “u” in “qué” silent? In Spanish, qu before e or i is just a hard “k” sound; the u is a spelling convention and never pronounced. So qué is “keh.”

What’s “¿mande?” in Mexico? It’s a polite Mexican way to say “sorry, what?” or “come again?” when you didn’t catch something. It’s very common and courteous, and specific to Mexican Spanish.