Formal vs informal register

Explanation

Formal kit: usted + conditional/imperfect softeners (quisiera consultar, ¿podría indicarme...?), titles (señor, doctora, ingeniero, widely used in Bolivia), and full greetings before business.

Informal kit: tú/vos, imperatives, diminutives, fillers. Mismatch costs: too formal sounds distant among friends; too informal with officials or elders can stall your paperwork.

Register is a whole package, not just the pronoun: the formal kit pairs usted with conditional/imperfect softeners (quisiera consultar, ¿podría indicarme…?), titles (señor, doctora, ingeniero, heavily used in Bolivia), and a full greeting before any request; the informal kit runs on tú/vos, imperatives, diminutives, and fillers. Getting it wrong costs you, too formal sounds cold among friends, too informal can stall your paperwork with officials.

Examples

Related rules

• Tú, vos, or usted: picking the right 'you'
• The politeness toolkit: por favor, disculpe, con permiso
• Written vs spoken Spanish: the register gap