# one of each



## kayokid

Hello.

 Imagine the following scenario:

I am at a Mexican restaurant. On the menu is a meal that consists of 3 enchiladas. You can select any combination of beef, chicken or cheese fillings.

The waiter comes to take my order. I say: Voy a tomar/Quisiera, etc. 3 enchiladas, por favor.
He asks: De res, de pollo o de queso?
I say:* I would like one of each*. Quisiera una de cada uno/una. ??? What does the uno/una refer to? El res? El pollo? El queso? The word for 'filling'? (No idea how to say that either!) What if 'barbacoa' was a choice? That's a feminine noun, right? What if all the fillings were feminine in gender? Would you only say 'una'? Help!!


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## horsewishr

Edit: never mind.  I was just guessing


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## Gabriel

"Filling" = "Relleno"

I'd say it's "una de cada una"
The first "una" is obviously "una enchilada", so no doubt with that I guess.
I don't have a specific reason for the second "una". Maybe iit's "una de cada enchilada" or "una de cada variedad".

But I concede that for each feminine noun that I find for the second "una" you can find a masculine noun for a "uno":
Una de cada sabor/relleno/tipo...

I'm just wild-guessing that, when one desn't know what to use, one tends to use the same gender for both sides: Uno de cada uno / una de cada una.
If what the second uno/una menas is perfectly clear, then of course you must use the corresponding gender. Examples:

- ¿Quieres una chocolate? Tienes blanco y negro.
- ¿Puedo tomar una de cada uno?

- ¿Quieres una galletita? Tienes de chocolate y de vainilla.
- ¿Puedo tomar una da cada una?

- Por favor, trae dos piezas de lote que entró ayer.
- Ayer entraron dos lotes. ¿De qué lote quieres que tome las dos piezas?
- Trae una de cada uno.
However, I'd say that in these cases we tend to be more specific:
- Trae una (pieza) de cada lote.

Please note that all what I'm saying is just a matter of (my) usage, and not gramatical rules or something.


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## Cleotis

Hi all!!

Well, I just wanted to point out that what I would answer to the question of your example is just "una de cada", without the last "uno/una". In the same sense that in English you say "one of each", and not "one of each one". 

So the conversation would be something like this: 

- Camarero: Buenos días, qué van a tomar? 
- Cliente: Quisiera una enchilada, por favor. 
- Camarero: De carne, de pollo o de queso?
- Claiente: Tráigame una de cada, por favor. 

For me the expression "una/uno de cada uno/una" it's not very idiomatic, although I don't think it's incorrect. It just doesn't sound usual to me. I would rather use just "una/uno de cada" in all the examples Gabriel gave to you.


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## kayokid

Many thanks for all the good information!


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## fenixpollo

You could also say it a different way:
- Camarero: Buenos días, qué van a comer? 
- Cliente: Quisiera una enchilada, por favor. 
- Camarero: ¿De carne, de pollo o de queso?
- Claiente: Tráigame un *surtido*, por favor.


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## kayokid

fenixpollo said:


> You could also say it a different way:
> - Camarero: Buenos días, qué van a comer?
> - Cliente: Quisiera una enchilada, por favor.
> - Camarero: ¿De carne, de pollo o de queso?
> - Claiente: Tráigame un *surtido*, por favor.




Thanks. Nice option.


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## inib

My first thought coincides with Cleotis' version. I would say "una de cada". I'm not sure if it's grammatical or too colloquial, but that's what you hear around here.


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## kayokid

inib said:


> My first thought coincides with Cleotis' version. I would say "una de cada". I'm not sure if it's grammatical or too colloquial, but that's what you hear around here.



Thanks inib!


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## Moritzchen

Una de cada una.
*cada**2**.*
(Del lat. _cata_, y este del gr. κατά, según, conforme a).
*1.* adj. U. para establecer correspondencia distributiva entre los miembros numerables de una serie, cuyo nombre singular precede, y los miembros de otra. _Dos libros a cada alumno. El pan nuestro de cada día._ U. t. con nombres en pl. precedidos de un numeral cardinal. _Paga mil pesetas cada tres meses.
Real Academia Española © Todos los derechos reservados_


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## duvija

inib said:


> My first thought coincides with Cleotis' version. I would say "una de cada". I'm not sure if it's grammatical or too colloquial, but that's what you hear around here.



Colloquial, totally colloquial. I wouldn't use it, unless I go to the bar often and the waiter knows me. Then, again,  why not use it? they would understand.


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## Cleotis

duvija said:


> Colloquial, totally colloquial. I wouldn't use it, unless I go to the bar often and the waiter knows me. Then, again, why not use it? they would understand.



Well, then it´s maybe a question of different usages in each side of the ocean, because I think in Spain this is the way most of the people would say it, even when they don´t know the waiter (or in the shop, etc.)... Maybe "una de cada una" is gramatically more correct, I'm not going to say the contrary, because I'm not sure; but it's not, for sure, what you would hear from a Spanish (from Spain) in a normal situation.


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## blasita

Hello.

To me _una de cada_ is perfectly correct and fine in this context.

Would you say 'one of each _one/enchilada_' in English? You wouldn't repeat that, would you? No need to repeat _una_. Do you think it's the same case?

_Una de cada_ is what I'd usually use here (in formal and informal contexts), but I can also use _una de cada una_. After reading this thread I think we can say that there may be a regional preference.

Un saludo.


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## Lancelot366

blasita said:


> Hello.
> 
> To me _una de cada_ is perfectly correct and fine in this context.
> 
> Would you say 'one of each _one/enchilada_' in English? You wouldn't repeat that, would you? No need to repeat _una_. Do you think it's the same case?
> 
> _Una de cada_ is what I'd usually use here (in formal and informal contexts), but I can also use _una de cada una_. After reading this thread I think we can say that there may be a regional preference.
> 
> Un saludo.



I´m the same opinion than blasita, anyway "una de cada", is coloquial; no doubt "una de cada una", is gramatically more correct but maybe less usual, it´s has a little more familiar but never coloquial


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## Gabriel

blasita said:


> Hello.
> 
> To me _una de cada_ is perfectly correct and fine in this context.
> 
> Would you say 'one of each _one/enchilada_' in English? You wouldn't repeat that, would you? No need to repeat _una_. Do you think it's the same case?
> 
> _Una de cada_ is what I'd usually use here (in formal and informal contexts), but I can also use _una de cada una_. After reading this thread I think we can say that there may be a regional preference.
> 
> Un saludo.



There must be a strong regional preference, I agree, because around here "uno/a de cada" would be extremely informal and not what one would say most of the times, not even in you usual informal context. For example, not in your everyday conversation with your family: you don't want your children to learn to speak wrongly.

Actually, I intuitively feel it is wrong, as if in Spanish "cada" required a noun or equivalent after it. The fact that in English "each" does not require the noun is no proof in my opinion, since there are so may differences of this kind between both languages.

That said, I really don't know if it's correct or not. It's just a feeling which is obviously influenced by years of usage.
It would be nice to have an authoritative word explaining if its correct or not and why. The dictionary of the RAE and the DPD were of no help.


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## Cleotis

> The dictionary of the RAE and the DPD were of no help.



I've been trying to look for an explanation about it, but I couldn't find anything. Let's see if someone can clarify it and show us if it's just a matter of usages and both are correct or if one of them is incorrect and why.


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## Quique Alfaro

Hola:

Yo creo que si en España es *de uso habitual* ese _cada_ suelto... entonces es correcto. Aunque por acá nos suene fatal. Cada región tiene sus variantes.


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## blasita

Thanks for your thoughts, Gabriel, and for everyone's comments.

I agree that _cada_ is not normally used as a pronoun or with a tacit noun nowadays. But please have a look (from the Nueva gramática de la lengua española. RAE. 2009):


> [...] se emplean en la lengua conversacional de algunos países expresiones como *uno de cada* o _dos de cada_ en el sentido de 'uno o dos de cada clase o de cada tipo': _Lo importante no es el nombre de las cosas, sino que solo haya una de cada, es decir, un pensamiento único y una neurona única_ (Millás, _Articuentos_).



It's used in spoken language and in this case it's correct.


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## Gabriel

blasita said:


> But please have a look (from the Nueva gramática de la lengua española. RAE. 2009):


I've tried to! Is the NGLE available on-line?

Thanks for the quote of the NGLE. Issue settled! (I'll keep saying "uno de cada uno", though  )


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## blasita

I'm not sure, Gabriel, but I don't think so. I've got the two big books, but I think there's a manual version. By the way, _uno de cada uno_ is just fine.

Thanks for your comment, Quique. I agree with you (cada región tiene sus variantes, y a mí me parece estupendo).


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## LibertadySutileza

¡Hola a todos! 

Ambos formas perfectamente correctas, *uno de cada uno *un poquito más formal, pero igualmente correcto que *uno de cada.
*
La verdad que cuando hablas la lengua no te das cuenta de estas diferencias y sale de forma natural cualquiera de las dos.
Un saludo


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## blasita

fenixpollo said:


> - Cliente: Tráigame un *surtido*, por favor.


If you don't mind, I'd like to make a comment on this, Fenix.

I'm sure that if you say it, it's used that way in some places. In this particular context, it doesn't sound very idiomatic to me. And if I hear 'un surtido', the first thing that comes to mind is not necessarily 'ONE of each' (I mean: _not necessarily_). If I were the waiter, I'd probably ask a follow-up question to the client just to be sure; e.g. _One of each then?_ But, as I say, this is only my usage.

Un saludo.


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## Cleotis

blasita said:


> If you don't mind, I'd like to make a comment on this, Fenix.
> 
> I'm sure that if you say it, it's used that way in some places. In this particular context, it doesn't sound very idiomatic to me. And if I hear 'un surtido', the first thing that comes to mind is not necessarily 'ONE of each' (I mean: _not necessarily_). If I were the waiter, I'd probably ask a follow-up question to the client just to be sure; e.g. _One of each then?_ But, as I say, this is only my usage.
> 
> Un saludo.



I agree on this. I'm not sure if, at least in Spain, someone would understand this in the sense of "one of each". I guess, as Blasita points out, that the waiter would ask a follow-up question, like: do you mean you want "una de cada"?.
For me, a "surtido" is a set of similar products with different flavours, size, ingredients, etc., like for example cookies. A "surtido" of cookies would be a set of cookies of different flavours, sizes, etc. But not necessarily one of each, it can be two chocolate cookies and four vainilla cookies, for example.


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## Gabriel

I agree. "Surtido" means a variety. If you buy "caramelos surtidos" (assorted sweets) you'll get a variety of types of sweets, but not necessarily all types will be included and very likely you will have more than one of some types.

"Tráigame un surtido" is not what you'd use in this case in Argentina either.


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## kayokid

Many thanks to all who have given their input and opinions about this grammar point.

As far as I knew 'cada' needed a following noun or pronoun. All of my grammar books define its usage this way and even the examples in the WR dictionary include a noun or 'uno/a' after 'cada'. Thus my question. Not to mention the agreement with whatever the implied noun was...

To me, the most logical (but probably not the most correct, at least to a native speaker's ear) is to say:
... una de cada uno = ... una de cada uno de los rellenos = one of each filling/of the (possible) fillings

I must admit, if the word 'uno/a' is used I still am in doubt as to why/which gender to use...

Blasita: In AE either: "I would like one of each," or "I would like one of each one," is perfectly fine. Both are said, heard and understood.


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## blasita

kayokid said:


> I must admit, if the word 'uno/a' is used I still am in doubt as to why/which gender to use...


_¿Con (relleno de) pollo, ...?
Una _(enchilada)_ de cada uno _(de cada relleno/tipo)_.

¿De pollo, ...?
Una _(enchilada)_ de cada una _(de las enchiladas_).
_
Como los otros foreros, elegiría el femenino porque lo normal para mí es que se esté uno refiriendo a la enchilada en sí y no al relleno, y me suena mejor en este contexto.  Pero, en general, ambos géneros están bien; creo que depende del contexto y de lo que pueda tener el hablante en la cabeza. No estoy segura de que esta sea una buena explicación, pero bueno, espero que sirva de algo.



kayokid said:


> Blasita: In AE either: "I would like one of each," or "I would like one of each one," is perfectly fine. Both are said, heard and understood.


 Thanks. Same in Spanish of Spain then.


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## kayokid

Thanks blasita!

Your logic mirrors that of Gabriel's in post #3 pretty closely. It kind of depends on what the speaker has in his/her head as to what is being referred to. It is interesting to me that both you and Gabriel naturally think of the antecedent being 'enchilada' whereas I think of what is inside of the enchilada. I guess I have to start thinking like a native speaker! (True when speaking any foreign language!!)


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## Gabriel

kayokid said:


> I must admit, if the word 'uno/a' is used I still am in doubt as to why/which gender to use...



I subscribe to what Blasita said, but I'd like to say that if I were the waiter and you told me any of the following:

Tráigame una de cada
Tráigame una de cada una
Tráigame una de cada uno
Tráigame una de cada tipo
Tráigame una de cada relleno
Tráigame una de cada enchilada
Tráigame una de cada variedad

I would just bringing to you one of each, and I wouldn't even think that there is something odd, like that you are a foreigner, saying something wrong or unnatural, or not very cultured.


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## kayokid

Gabriel said:


> I subscribe to what Blasita said, but I'd like to say that if I was as the waiter and you told me any of the following:
> 
> Tráigame una de cada
> Tráigame una de cada una
> Tráigame una de cada uno
> Tráigame una de cada tipo
> Tráigame una de cada relleno
> Tráigame una de cada enchilada
> Tráigame una de cada variedad
> 
> I would just bringing to you one of each, and I wouldn't even think that there is something odd, like that you are a foreigner, saying something wrong or unnatural, or not very cultured.



Outstanding! Maybe there is some hope for me being able to make an intelligent statement in Spanish yet!


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