Who's the one with curly hair? in Spanish
Two people at a birthday party discuss an unfamiliar guest in Spanish. 8 phrases that the conversation is made of: «Oye, ¿quién es ese del pelo rizado?» — Listen, who is that one over there with the curly hair?; «Es Carlos, un compañero de trabajo de mi hermana.» — It's Carlos, a coworker of my sister's. Every line can be played right on the page. The conversation is predictable: few lines, and almost all of them repeat from one exchange to the next.
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: two people at a birthday party discuss an unfamiliar guest. The conversation is short and predictable — which is exactly what makes it good for a first try: few lines, and almost all of them repeat from one exchange to the next.
- Oye, ¿quién es ese del pelo rizado?Listen, who is that one over there with the curly hair?
- Es Carlos, un compañero de trabajo de mi hermana.It's Carlos, a coworker of my sister's.
- Parece muy serio, no ha hablado con nadie.He seems very serious, he has not spoken to anyone.
- Qué va, es tímido al principio, pero tiene un sentido del humor increíble.Not at all, he's shy at first, but he has an incredible sense of humor.
- Mi hermana dice que es muy trabajador y de fiar.My sister says he's very hardworking and reliable.
- Sí, y además es generoso: siempre paga él la primera ronda.Yes, and besides he's generous: he always pays the first round.
- Menos mal. El de la barba de al lado es un poco grosero.Thank goodness. The bearded one next to him is a bit rude.
- Ese es su cuñado. Habla por los codos y encima cotillea.That is his brother-in-law. He talks a mile a minute and gossips on top of it.
Lines one by one
| Spanish | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Oye, ¿quién es ese del pelo rizado? | — | Listen, who is that one over there with the curly hair? |
| Es Carlos, un compañero de trabajo de mi hermana. | — | It's Carlos, a coworker of my sister's. |
| Parece muy serio, no ha hablado con nadie. | — | He seems very serious, he has not spoken to anyone. |
| Qué va, es tímido al principio, pero tiene un sentido del humor increíble. | — | Not at all, he's shy at first, but he has an incredible sense of humor. |
| Mi hermana dice que es muy trabajador y de fiar. | — | My sister says he's very hardworking and reliable. |
| Sí, y además es generoso: siempre paga él la primera ronda. | — | Yes, and besides he's generous: he always pays the first round. |
| Menos mal. El de la barba de al lado es un poco grosero. | — | Thank goodness. The bearded one next to him is a bit rude. |
| Ese es su cuñado. Habla por los codos y encima cotillea. | — | That is his brother-in-law. He talks a mile a minute and gossips on top of it. |
How to prepare for a conversation like this
Memorizing the lines is not enough: the other person will say their own thing, not what is written. What helps more is catching the key words by ear and keeping three rescue phrases ready: “I don't understand”, “repeat, please”, “slower”.
And one more thing phrasebooks do not mention: awkwardness gets in the way more than not knowing the words.
- Fear of making mistakes gets in the way of learning a language, and it gets in the way badly. It is one of the most reliably measured findings in the entire field.checked many timesTeimouri, Goetze & Plonsky, 2019, Studies in Second Language Acquisition 41(2) · 19,933 participants from 23 countries; correlation with results r = −0.36.
- That fear can be dealt with — the methods have been tested and they work.checked many timesXiong et al., 2024, Journal of Language and Social Psychology · 37 studies, anxiety reduced by −0.61. Of the seven conditions examined, only age turned out to matter.
Frequently asked
How do you start a conversation in Spanish in this situation?
“Oye, ¿quién es ese del pelo rizado?” — Listen, who is that one over there with the curly hair?. The first line in such a conversation is almost always the same, and that is the one worth learning: the other person will carry it from there.
What if you did not understand the reply?
Say “I don't understand” and “repeat, please” — both are in the rescue set. Admitting your language is still shaky almost always makes the other person more patient.
Should you memorize the dialogue?
No. It is more useful to catch the key words by ear: the other person will say their own thing, and a memorized line will not always fit their reply.