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"Hey" is a form of "hey", an interjection which is often translated as "oye". "What" is a form of "what", a pronoun which is often translated as "qué". Learn more about the difference between "hey" and "what" below.
hey()
An interjection is a short utterance that expresses emotion, hesitation, or protest (e.g., Wow!).
1. (colloquial) (used to attract attention)
A word or phrase that is commonly used in conversational speech (e.g., skinny, grandma).
a. oye (informal) (singular)
A word or phrase used to refer to the second person informal “tú” by their conjugation or implied context (e.g., How are you?).
A word or phrase that is singular (e.g., el gato).
Hey! What's wrong with you?¡Oye! ¿Qué te pasa?
b. oiga (formal) (singular)
A word or phrase used to refer to the second person formal “usted” by their conjugation or implied context (e.g., usted).
A word or phrase that is singular (e.g., el gato).
Hey! You can't park there.¡Oiga! Ahí no se puede estacionar.
e. ole (Colombia)
Regionalism used in Colombia
Hey, don't talk to me like that!¡Ole! ¡No me hables así!
f. hala (Colombia)
Regionalism used in Colombia
Hey, don't feed the dog!¡Hala! ¡No le des comida al perro!
g. momentito (Argentina)
Regionalism used in Argentina
Hey, don't cut in line!¡Momentito! ¡No te cueles!
2. (greeting)
what()
A pronoun is a word that stands in for a noun (e.g., she).
An adjective is a word that describes a noun (e.g., the big dog).
An interjection is a short utterance that expresses emotion, hesitation, or protest (e.g., Wow!).
