¿Cómo que no?

(useful questions)
B1 (¡Ya le agarras la onda!)Used EVERYWHERE 🇲🇽Colloquial 🗯️

🧠 What it means

👉 What do you mean no?! / Of course it is! / Of course I am! This little protest phrase is a VERY MEXICAN way of pushing back when someone makes a negative statement. 💡 It only works if the other person has just said NO (or something NEGATIVE!), and you want to challenge them. So if someone says: No eres bueno para el fútbol. You’re not good at football. You could say: ¿Cómo que no? Metí 3 goles el fin de semana pasado. Of course I am! I scored 3 goals last weekend.

🌪️ When to whip it out

Right after someone says NO, to defend yourself or challenge their opinion:

— Ya no hay tacos.
— ¿Cómo que no? ¡Si vi el trompo ahí afuera!
— There aren’t any more tacos.
— Of course there are! I saw the spit outside!

— No vamos a ir a la playa.
— ¿Cómo que no? ¡Ya tengo mi traje de baño listo y todo!
— We’re not going to the beach.
— What do you mean we’re not going? I’ve got my swimsuit ready and everything!

⚠️ Tone

✅ Informal, everyday Mexican Spanish.

🚫 Not for formal disagreement.

🔁 Similar chunks

¿Cómo que sí?¿Cómo crees?¿Por qué no?¿De qué hablas?Claro que sí¿Cómo de que no?¿Pooooor? (Millennial/Gen Z)¿Ah, no?¿Ah, sí?

🦜 El Rincón del Cotorreo

Checking login…