como cómo (like how)

Question

Is it okay to use "como cómo" for "like how"?

For example:

If you have more questions (like how to cook cake), feel free to ask me.

Si tienes más preguntas (como cómo cocinar pastel), me las haces sin dudas.

Answer 1

Webdunce:

Grammatically your prhase is good, excepting "dudas --> dudar". But of course, there are a lot of other correct ways for saying this, like Galsally noted.

Si tienes más preguntas como... ¿cómo cocinar pastel?, me las haces sin dudar.

If you want to express this in this form, you need to control very well the stress and intonation in order to the phrase can be understood clearly.

Si tienes más preguntas como... ¿cómo cocinar pastel?, me las haces, sin dudar.

.......unfinishing sentence tone, pause ¿high-low-very high? pause ......little pause......end.

Hmmm....okay....what if it isn't a question, though. (Please see my other post). - webdunce, Oct 9, 2010

I agree cogu, in spoken English we would pause between 'like' and 'how' but it doesn't look so good when written. :) - galsally, Oct 10, 2010

Answer 2

Cogumela,

Thank you for your answer, but what if it wasn't a question? I think the intonation would be different, but it would still be correct, right?

For example:

I want to know several things: like how to cook cake or how to make cookies, for example.

Quiero saber varias cosas: como cómo cocinar pastel o cómo hacer galletas, por ejemplo.

Or would Spanish avoid these constructions?

I think it would be better if the como were simply omitted and the o replaced by y. - lorenzo9, Oct 9, 2010

Answer 3

Por ejemplo is the appropriate way... and the way in which I would phrase the sentence... But como can be used this way also. It's just a little less formal.

It's not cómo, however.. that means "how".

Well, the phrase in English is "like how"....thus "como cómo"...I'm asking if it's okay to say como como when the first como means like and the second one means how. See? - webdunce, Oct 9, 2010

Answer 4

Re: como cómo:

I don't know for certain webdunce, but I suspect it doesn't sound good... to me, it doesn't sound good in English either, I would say....

If you have more questions (for example, how to cook cake),

So maybe in Spanish it would be okay to say....

Si tienes más preguntas (por ejemplo, cómo cocinar pastel),

¿Qué piensas?

Answer 5

I would say "No dudes en preguntarme". "Me las haces sin dudas" sounds wierd, but I can't say if it's technically wrong or not since I'm not native. Maybe "No dudes en preguntarmelas" if you really want to hit the questions. Gracias....

Since your answer, I have edited both the title and question. It was terribly unclear as originally written. Sorry. - - webdunce, Oct 9, 2010

I have often seen "hacer preguntas" for "to ask questions"...so I had assumed if one had already said "preguntas" (las), one could say "hacerlas" for "to ask them" and "hacérmelas" for "to ask me them." - webdunce, Oct 9, 2010

Answer 6

I'm sorry, I was really unclear...my focus here is on "como cómo" for "like how."

If you have more questions (like how to cook cake)...

Si tienes más preguntas (como cómo cocinar pastel)...

I'm assuming it's okay to string two or "comos" together if they make sense.

Oddly, the como como como thread was asked at the same time I was thinking about this (although that thread has a different focus).