How to Answer “¿Grande o Pequeño?” — Coffee Sizes in Spanish
You've ordered your coffee — now the barista asks your size. This is the exact moment the demo café coach drills in a live first session: one question, two options, no way to get lost. Here are the size phrases, plus the iced and black coffee variants learners ask for most.
Quick answer
Grande, por favor. / Pequeño, por favor.
Large, please. / Small, please.
The barista asks "¿Grande o pequeño?" (GRAHN-deh oh peh-KEH-nyoh) — you just pick one and add "por favor".
1. The size question
| Spanish | English | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| ¿Grande o pequeño? | Large or small? (the barista asks you) | GRAHN-deh oh peh-KEH-nyoh |
| ¿Qué tamaño? | What size? (open version — rarely asked at a café) | keh tah-MAH-nyoh |
2. Picking your size
| Spanish | English | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| Grande, por favor. | Large, please. | GRAHN-deh, pohr fah-VOHR |
| Pequeño, por favor. | Small, please. | peh-KEH-nyoh, pohr fah-VOHR |
| Un café grande, por favor. | A large coffee, please. | oon ca-FÉ GRAHN-deh, pohr fah-VOHR |
3. Iced and black coffee
| Spanish | English | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| Un café con hielo, por favor. | An iced coffee, please. | oon ca-FÉ kohn YEH-loh, pohr fah-VOHR |
| Un café solo, por favor. | A black coffee, please. (also: espresso-strength) | oon ca-FÉ SOH-loh, pohr fah-VOHR |
| Un café americano, por favor. | An Americano (black, diluted), please. | oon ca-FEH ah-meh-ree-KAH-noh, pohr fah-VOHR |
4. Extras (milk)
| Spanish | English | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| ¿Con leche o solo? | With milk or black? (the barista asks you) | kohn LEH-cheh oh SOH-loh |
| Con leche, por favor. | With milk, please. | kohn LEH-cheh, pohr fah-VOHR |
Common mistakes English speakers make
Answering "sí" to "¿Grande o pequeño?"
It's an either/or question — answer with the option itself: "Grande" or "Pequeño". Saying "sí" leaves the barista waiting.
Translating "small" as "pequeno" without the ñ
The ñ matters: "pequeño" (peh-KEH-nyoh). Without it you're saying "pequeno", which isn't a Spanish word.
Asking for "un café helado" expecting an iced coffee
"Helado" alone means ice cream. For iced coffee say "un café con hielo" (coffee with ice) — or "un café helado" works in some cafés, but "con hielo" is the safe phrase.
Watch a beginner do it — live
In the live session the coach asks exactly one question at a time — watch the size moment and how the beginner handles it. Tap for sound.
The moment it clicks: one question, two options
The coach never asks open questions in a first session. When it's time for size, the coach asks "¿Grande o pequeño?" — exactly two options. You can't freeze, because you can't get it wrong. That's by design: retrieval with training wheels.
Un café grande con hielo, por favor. — A large iced coffee, please.
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