Más Despacio: Asking Someone to Speak Slowly
Más despacio asks for a useful change in pace, not simpler ideas. Combine it with por favor and a listening signal to keep the exchange collaborative.
Learning objective
Request slower speech politely and show that you are still listening.
Más despacio, por favor means More slowly, please. Más means more, and despacio is an adverb meaning slowly. An adverb describes how an action happens. The phrase requests a change of pace, not simpler ideas and not a different language.
For a complete respectful question, say ¿Puede hablar más despacio, por favor?, meaning Can you speak more slowly, please? Hablar is the infinitive to speak after puede. Informal singular address uses ¿Puedes hablar más despacio? Choose the address form according to the relationship and local expectations.
Show that you remain engaged after making the request. Look toward the speaker when culturally and personally appropriate, listen for a keyword, and say Ahora sí, gracias when the new pace works. Ahora sí means Now, yes or Now I can follow; it gives useful feedback without pretending everything was understood.
Natural speaking speed varies among individuals and regions, and fast speech is not careless speech. A person may slow down only partly or may be unable to continue. Pairing a specific, courteous request with patience makes the interaction collaborative rather than turning an accent or normal pace into a fault.
Examples
Más despacio, por favor.
More slowly, please.
This compact request is useful under listening pressure.
¿Puede hablar más despacio?
Can you speak more slowly?
Puede frames respectful singular address here.
¿Puedes hablar más despacio?
Can you speak more slowly?
Puedes addresses one person informally.
Ahora sí, gracias.
Now I can follow, thank you.
The response confirms that the adjusted pace helps.
Common mistake
- Instead of
- ¿Puede más despacio?
- Try
- ¿Puede hablar más despacio? / Más despacio, por favor.
Puede normally needs an infinitive to complete the action in this question, so add hablar, to speak. If pressure makes a full sentence difficult, use the established short request más despacio, por favor rather than leaving puede without a clear action.
Practice
Try it yourself
Build a three-turn pace negotiation. Speaker A gives a fast fictional room number. Speaker B asks for slower speech with a complete question. Speaker A repeats, and Speaker B signals that the new pace works.