Spanish Phrase
¿Con quién hablo?
Meaning
Literally, “With whom do I speak?” It is the standard way to ask the identity of the person you are currently talking to, whether on the phone, at a reception desk, or when you walk into a room and hear a conversation.
When to use
Use this phrase when you need to know who is on the other end of a conversation. It works in formal and informal settings, but in very polite contexts you might add a courtesy word like ‘disculpe’ before it.
✦Grammar Breakdown
¿Conquiénhablo?
Con (preposition)
‘Con’ means ‘with’ and is used before a person or thing to indicate accompaniment or instrument.
Quién (interrogative pronoun)
‘Quién’ asks for the identity of a person; it always carries an accent when used in a question.
Hablo (present of hablar)
‘Hablo’ is the first‑person singular present of ‘hablar’ – ‘I speak / I am speaking’.
Word order in questions
In Spanish, the preposition ‘con’ comes before the interrogative pronoun, so the correct order is ‘Con quién…’.
🗨In Conversation
¿Con quién hablo?
Who am I speaking with?
Habla con María, la directora del proyecto.
You’re speaking with María, the project director.
✕Common Mistakes
¿Con quien hablo?
The interrogative pronoun must have an accent: ‘quién’. Without it the sentence is grammatically wrong.
¿Hablo con quién?
While understandable, the natural order in a question is ‘Con quién hablo?’ not ‘Hablo con quién?’
Con quien hablo?
Missing opening inverted question mark makes the sentence look like a statement in Spanish.
↔Alternatives
¿Quién está al otro lado?
Who is on the other side?
¿Con quién estoy hablando?
Who am I talking to?
¿Puedo saber con quién hablo?
May I know who I’m speaking with?
Cultural Tip
In many Spanish‑speaking countries it is considered courteous to start with a brief apology or greeting (e.g., “Disculpe, ¿con quién hablo?”) especially when calling a business. The accent on ‘quién’ is mandatory; omitting it changes the word to the relative pronoun ‘quien’, which would be grammatically incorrect in a question.