How to say how far?

Question

Hi,

Can someone help me out with how to say "How far" in spanish? I asked a native speaker today (in Peru) and he said "Cuan lejos esta...". I had never heard the word "cuan" and can't find any reference to "cuan lejos" so I'm not sure if this is widely used, or if it's one of those phrases that's only used in Peru (or only one part of Peru), or what. Spanishdict says "hasta qué punto" but also says that this may not be correct. So what is correct?

Thanks.

Answer 1

"¿A cuánto queda?" , or "¿Cómo de lejos?" is better.

I have heard this used before. - 003487d6, Jul 6, 2010

Answer 2

cuan/cuán

Answer 3

How about ¿Qué tan lejos?

I have heard this used before too. - 003487d6, Jul 6, 2010

Answer 4

Can someone help me out with how to say "How far" in spanish? I asked a native speaker today (in Peru) and he said "Cuan lejos esta...".

I believe that the "Cuán" is a shortened version of the word "Cuánto" = how much, how many. (I've discovered that many native speakers of Spanish drop the endings of Spanish words when they speak.)

lejos = far away

So, I believe the person was telling you to say:

Cuánto lejos está . . . = How far away is ....located

Maybe someone else has a better explanation than I have.

I didn't realize it; but, apparently "cuán" is a real Spanish word, as dandi mentions in her comment below.

Therefore:

"cuán" = how

"Cuán lejos está" = How far away is ... (located).

It's a real word actually - 003487d6, Jul 6, 2010

Thank you, dandi! You're right! I just looked it up in my dictionary! - Pajaro44, Jul 6, 2010

:) - 003487d6, Jul 6, 2010

Answer 5

How do you say how far?

The man you asked would most likely have said something like:

¿Cúan lejos está ?** = **How far is it?

(Cuan is sometimes used by natives instead of cúanto)

More common ways of saying it could include:

¿A cúanto queda? = How far is it?

¿A qué distancia? How far is it?

¿A cúanto queda de aquí la estacíon de servicio más cercana? = How far is it from here to the nearest Service station?