# I would like = Querría / Quisiera



## Alicia08

I have had several Spanish teachers; one told me the correct Spanish for 'I would like' is Querrìa (i.e. the conditional tense; which seems obvious). But another told me to use 'Quisiera'; this also seems to be in many phrase/grammar books, but it is the imperfect tense. Confused! Context - e.g. in restaurants; 'Querrìa / Quisiera una botella de vino... etc'.
Thanks for any help.


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## Peterdg

Both ared correct and used. "Quisiera" has a flavour of being a little bit more polite.


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## adrs

I would like... = me gustaría/quisiera/querría....


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## Alicia08

Muchas gracias!


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## Quiensepa

Alicia08 said:


> I have had several Spanish teachers; one told me the correct Spanish for 'I would like' is Querrìa (i.e. the conditional tense; which seems obvious). But another told me to use 'Quisiera'; this also seems to be in many phrase/grammar books, but it is the imperfect tense. Confused! Context - e.g. in restaurants; 'Querrìa / Quisiera una botella de vino... etc'.
> Thanks for any help.



Según lo que aprendí, "quisiera" no es el imperfecto sino el subjunctivo del pasado. El imperfecto sería "quería". Y el uso de "quisiera" en lugar del condicional es un costumbre muy común. Tiene un matiz más cortés y amable que "quería". (Y no es "querría" sino "quería".) No soy experto en la gramática (ni del español ni del inglés), pero así lo entiendo. Ojalá esto le ayude.


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## Peterdg

Quiensepa said:


> Según lo que aprendí, "quisiera" no es el imperfecto sino el subjunctivo del pasado. El imperfecto sería "quería". Y el uso de "quisiera" en lugar del condicional es un costumbre muy común. Tiene un matiz más cortés y amable que "quería". (Y no es "querría" sino "quería".) No soy experto en la gramática (ni del español ni del inglés), pero así lo entiendo. Ojalá esto le ayude.


En este caso, es "querría" con "rr". Es el condicional. "Quería" es el indicativo imperfecto y no tiene nada que ver en este caso. "Quisiera" es el subjuntivo imperfecto.


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## dexterciyo

Peterdg said:


> En este caso, es "querría" con "rr". Es el condicional. "Quería" es el indicativo imperfecto y no tiene nada que ver en este caso. "Quisiera" es el subjuntivo imperfecto.



*Quería* (el imperfecto) también tiene que ver con este caso, pues se usa igualmente en estos contextos. En este caso tiene valor de cortesía.

Ejemplo: *Quería* un café con leche, por favor.


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## micafe

Without adding more confusion, the correct way would be "querría", but "quisiera" has been very commonly used for many years, so now they're *interchangeable*. 

"Quisiera" has already been accepted by the RAE.


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## Peterdg

dexterciyo said:


> *Quería* (el imperfecto) también tiene que ver con este caso, pues se usa igualmente en estos contextos. En este caso tiene valor de cortesía.
> 
> Ejemplo: *Quería* un café con leche, por favor.


Sí, claro. No quise añadir a la confusión ya que la pregunta original trataba de "querría" y "quisiera" y la repuesta anterior pretendió que  "querría" no era correcto.


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## Milton Sand

Hi,
These are my thoughts: When expressing what a person would like to have/eat, we use the polite "quisiera (_I would like_)" instead of "querría (_I would want_)". Ojo: The senses are different, they are not fully interchangeable.

_Imaginé que *querrías* tomar café  
—> _Not an actual conditional expression. It's the c__onditional tense used as "the future of the past"._

_Imaginé que *quisieras* tomar café 
_—> No sense._

_Quisiera tomar café. = I would like to drink some coffee.
_Me gustaría tomar café. = I would like to drink some coffee.
_Quería tomar café. = I would like _(or _have been wishing_)_ to drink some coffee.
—> _Not actual conditional expressions. We can use "quisiera" to express kind of a "future of the past" since the imperfect tenses don't express a completed action. Therefore, indicative "quería" works fine too but meaning a wish/intention you have been feeling like but haven't fulfilled._

_Querría tomar café. = I would want to drink some coffee.
—> C_onditional, an action depending on a condition (If I were sleepy...)._

Regards,


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## Alicia08

Gracias a todos... español me parece mucho más complicado que inglés o francés...!


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## XiaoRoel

Para pedir algo en un establecimiento hotelero son totalmente intercambiables (depende del idiolecto de cada uno) *querría* (es la que más uso), _quisiera, quería_ y _quiero_. También se usa mucho _voy a querer_.
Ningunó es más "cortés" que otro. Ninguno es agramatical. Es un mero problema de estilo personal o dialectal.


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## ChocolateLover

Hola:

¿Se puede decir así?

-¿En qué puedo servirl?/¿Qué le gustaría/quisiera/querría/quiere comer?
-Quería un sándwich, por favor

Gracias


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## Milton Sand

ChocolateLover said:


> Hola:
> 
> ¿Se puede decir así?
> 
> -¿En qué puedo servirle?/¿Qué le gustaría/quisiera/querría/quiere/quería comer?
> -Quería un sándwich, por favor.
> 
> Gracias.


Hi,
This is my perception: The only option I would not use in this case is "querría (_I would want_)" since it seems to depend on another action. 

"Quiere _(you want)_" is quite direct and—with the right intonation—even rude. With that same intonation, "quisiera" can sound sarcastic.

"Quería _(you were wanting)_" tries to find out if your client still wants something.

The answer with "quería" doesn't really make it clear whether you still want the sandwich or not, but it works fine.

Regards,


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## ChocolateLover

Thank you very much

To ask "what would you like?" could you use "¿Qué quería?" the first time you see the person?

(al entrar)
-¿Qué le gustaría/quería?
-Quería...

Thank you


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## Milton Sand

Hi,
Maybe, but with some evident courtesy. We even may say "¿Qué buscaba la señora? (_What was the lady looking for?_)"—think of a lady entering a shoe store—.

Anyway, it seems "quisiera" and "gustaría" are mainly used for someting to enjoy (food, drink, travel, dance, kiss, caress, etc.)

Regards,


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## micafe

ChocolateLover said:


> Thank you very much
> 
> To ask "what would you like?" could you use "¿Qué quería?" the first time you see the person?
> 
> (al entrar)
> -¿Qué le gustaría/quería?
> -Quería...
> 
> Thank you



"¿Qué le gustaría tomar?" is correct and used.

"¿Qué quería tomar?" is wrong in this context. It would be  used only in case they were talking about something that happened before. 

You must notice that the two verbs are not in the same tense. 'Gustaría' is conditional and 'quería' is imperfect.

"Querría" is the conditional of querer, so the correct question would be "¿Qué querría tomar?..


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## Milton Sand

Hi,
Micafe, imagine you are in a store in Bogotá looking for some nice shoes and seeming you can't make a decision and nobody has come closer to help you, then you hear the shop assistant's voice asking with a polite smile: "¿Qué quería la señorita?". Well, it is not really a formal way to ask a customer what she wants, but you may remember this style is used to mean, "If you were looking for something, you need to look no further: I will help you".

He could also ask that —with imperfect "quería"—if he realizes you are about to leave the shoe store. And the manager could ask the same question to the shop assistant who should lknow by now what you were looking for—but didn't find there—.

Regards,


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## micafe

Milton Sand said:


> Hi,
> Micafe, imagine you are in a store in Bogotá looking for some nice shoes and seeming you can't make a decision and nobody has come closer to help you, then you hear the shop assistant's voice asking with a polite smile: "¿Qué quería la señorita?". Well, it is not really a formal way to ask a customer what she wants, but you may remember this style is used to mean, "If you were looking for something, you need to look no further: I will help you".
> 
> He could also ask that —with imperfect "quería"—if he realizes you are about to leave the shoe store. And the manager could ask the same question to the shop assistant who should lknow by now what you were looking for—but didn't find there—.
> 
> Regards,



Milton Sand, in the case you're talking about the verb "quería" is correct... if you pay attention to what I wrote in my previous comment, "quería" refers to something in the past, I* had* been looking for a pair of shoes.. the clerk sees me and asks me about what I "wanted" .. what I "was" looking for. Imperfect in Spanish.

However... if I go to the shoe store and someone comes to me right away and asks "what would you like?" it would be "¿Qué querría/le gustaría?" It wouldn't be "¿Qué quería/le gustaba?"..

¿Estamos?


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## Sikaranista

Milton Sand said:


> _Quisiera tomar café. = I would like to drink some coffee.
> _Me gustaría tomar café. = I would like to drink some coffee.



I have a question regarding these: 

The way I have used these phrases, I use "quisiera..." as a request, and "me gustaría..." as a statement.

(request)
Mesero:  "¿Qué quería beber?"
Yo: "Quisiera tomar café."

(statement)
Madre: "¿Vayas a salir?"
Yo: "Sí, mamá.  Me gustaría tomar café."

Is this a proper understanding?  Or am I reading too much in to it?


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## Milton Sand

Hi,


Sikaranista said:


> (request)
> Mesero: "¿Qué quisiera usted de beber?" _<—As a polite question from a waiter._ = "¿Qué le gustaría *a* usted de beber?"
> Yo: "Quisiera tomar café".
> 
> (statement)
> Madre: "¿Vas a salir?"
> Yo: "Sí, mamá. Me gustaría tomarme un café". *=* "..Quisiera tomarme un café".


 
Yes,  I think you are reading too much in to it:

(Request)
—¿Qué quisiera _[or _le gustaría_]_ de beber, señor?
—Quisiera tomar café.

(Statement)
—¿Vas a salir?
—Sí, mamá. Me gustaría _[or_ quisiera_]_ tomarme un café.



micafe said:


> Milton Sand, in the case you're talking about the verb "quería" is correct... if you pay attention to what I wrote in my previous comment, "quería" refers to something in the past, I* had* been looking for a pair of shoes.. the clerk sees me and asks me about what I "wanted" .. what I "was" looking for. Imperfect in Spanish.
> 
> However... if I go to the shoe store and someone comes to me right away and asks "what would you like?" it would be "¿Qué querría/le gustaría?" It wouldn't be "¿Qué quería/le gustaba?"..
> 
> ¿Estamos?


_Más o menos_ . The "querría" doesn't sound appropriate to me there; it sounds like English; it seems the shop assistant is going to add, "..en el caso de que _+condición._":

¿Qué color de zapatos querría en el caso de que su vestido fuera de claro?

That's different from:
¿Qué color de zapatos querría en el caso de que su vestido fuera de claro?

Saludos,


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## micafe

Sikaranista said:


> I have a question regarding these:
> 
> The way I have used these phrases, I use "quisiera..." as a request, and "me gustaría..." as a statement.
> 
> They mean exactly the same. You can use them in both questions or statements.
> 
> (request)
> Mesero:  "¿Qué quería quisiera/querría beber?"
> Yo: "Quisiera tomar café."
> 
> (statement)
> Madre: "¿Vayas a salir?" wrong sentence. Do you mean "¿Vas a salir?
> Yo: "Sí, mamá.  Me gustaría tomar café."
> 
> Is this a proper understanding?  Or am I reading too much in to it?


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## micafe

Milton Sand said:


> _Más o menos_ . The "querría" doesn't sound appropriate to me there; it sounds like English;



The fact that it doesn't sound right to you doesn't mean it's wrong. That's perfect Spanish grammatically speaking. The thing is, it's not commonly used. In Spanish we'd normally say "¿Qué desea?" or "¿Qué se le ofrece?" _[ or "a la orden" which is a very Colombian expression"_] but that was not the question, and we need to answer the questions as they come.


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## ChocolateLover

Thank you very much

¿También se podría decir al entrar en la tienda "Hola, quería..."?

Gracias


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## Milton Sand

Yes, you can, Choc!




micafe said:


> The fact that it doesn't sound right to you doesn't mean it's wrong. That's perfect Spanish grammatically speaking. The thing is, it's not commonly used. In Spanish we'd normally say "¿Qué desea?" or "¿Qué se le ofrece?" _[ or "a la orden" which is a very Colombian expression"_] but that was not the question, and we need to answer the questions as they come.


Oops! I haven't said it's ungrammatical. Anyway, "querría" is used indeed as "quisiera" by some Spanish-speakers; but definitely, it's not common.

Here a useful link:  Consultas - Castellano - La Página del Idioma Español- *quería y querría*.

¡Saludos!,


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## micafe

Milton Sand said:


> Yes, you can, Choc!
> 
> 
> 
> Oops! I haven't said it's ungrammatical. Anyway, "querría" is used indeed as "quisiera" by some Spanish-speakers; but definitely, it's not common.
> 
> Here a useful link:  Consultas - Castellano - La Página del Idioma Español- *quería y querría*.
> 
> ¡Saludos!,



I'm not learning Spanish, my dear Mildton Sand. I speak it very well. Thank you for the link, though. 



Have a very nice day in 'La ciudad Bonita'.


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## ChocolateLover

Thank you very much

El enlace fue muy útil 

Saludos


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## aLexzkter

Milton Sand said:


> Hi,
> You are reading too much into it!  Look, this is how I use them:
> 
> (request)
> Mesero: "¿Qué quisiera usted de beber?" _<—As a polite question from a waiter._ = "¿Qué le gustaría usted de beber?"
> Yo: "Quisiera tomar café".
> 
> (statement)
> Madre: "¿Vas a salir?"
> Yo: "Sí, mamá. Me gustaría tomarme un café". *=* "..Quisiera tomarme un café".
> 
> Regards,




"¿Qué le gustaría usted de beber?" 
  I think you´d missed a letter, the sentence would make sense if we said:


"Qué le gustaría *a* usted de beber? or just "Qué le gustaría a usted beber?  same as in the following question:
 ¿Le _molestaría (a usted)_ que le preguntara de dónde es su esposa?

 not: ¿Le molestaría usted que le preguntara de dónde es su esposa?


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## Milton Sand

aLexzkter said:


> "¿Qué le gustaría usted de beber?"
> I think you´d missed a letter, the sentence would make sense if we said:
> 
> 
> "Qué le gustaría *a* usted de beber? or just "Qué le gustaría a usted beber? same as in the following question:
> ¿Le _molestaría (a usted)_ que le preguntara de dónde es su esposa?
> 
> not: ¿Le molestaría usted que le preguntara de dónde es su esposa?


¡Sí señor! Se me escapó la "a" de complemento directo animado. ¡Gracias! Ya mismo lo corrijo


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## ilias05

Dear people

I heard the next phrase in a movie

Es que yo quisiera que estuviérmos todos juntos mañana.

Is ´Es que yo querría que estuviéramos todos juntos mañana`,also possible?

And if yes, what is the difference in meaning?

Thanks in advance


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## Lnewqban

ilias05 said:


> Dear people
> 
> I heard the next phrase in a movie
> 
> Es que yo quisiera que estuviérmos todos juntos mañana.
> 
> Is ´Es que yo querría que estuviéramos todos juntos mañana`,also possible?
> 
> And if yes, what is the difference in meaning?
> 
> Thanks in advance



"Querría" is also possible, as the meaning is similar, only that it sounds not as good as "quisiera".

Please, see this:
quisiera / querría


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