Voices en Español

When you learn a foreign language you are frequently told by teachers not to translate phrases and expressions word-for-word. Such translations often are imprecise or potentially embarrassing.

Fortunately, there are a few idiomatic Spanish phrases and expressions that are very close to their English equivalents.  Below is a random list I put together for my ReVerb Spanish Twitter feed. These are phrases that if you didn’t know the Spanish idiomatic expression and happened to translate the English phrase exactly to Spanish, you wouldn’t be too far off the mark.  (You can get more details about the origin of some of these phrases as well as and some example sentences here.)

Al pie de la letra: to the letter (to do something exactly as it is said or written)

Apretarse el cinturón: to tighten one’s belt (to cut costs, to reduce one’s expenses)

Armarse hasta los dientes: Armed to the teeth (fully prepared for anything)

Con las manos en la masa: With the hands in the dough (American English: Hands in the cookie jar, i.e. to get caught doing something you shouldn’t be doing.)

Cuando el gato no está, los ratones bailan: When the cat’s away, the mice will play

Estar en el séptimo cielo: to be in 7th heaven (to be extremely happy)

Matar dos pájaros de un tiro: to kill 2 birds with 1 stone

Más vale pájaro en mano que ciento volando: A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.

Meterse (a alguien) en el bosillo: to have someone in your back pocket, to have someone wrapped around your little finger. (To have someone under your control or influence.)

Ser la gallina de los huevos de oro: to be the goose that laid the golden eggs (to be a source of infinite wealth)

Ser la oveja negra: to be the black sheep

Ser el brazo derecho: to be someone’s right hand (to be an essential assistant to someone)

Tener corazón: to have a heart (to be kind)

Tener estómago: to have a stomach (to be strong)

Tener sangre azul: to have blue blood (to be descended from royalty)

Tirar la toalla: to throw in the towel (to give up)

Tomar algo con un grano de sal: to take something with a grain of salt (to be skeptical)

Want more details and example sentences using these phrases in Spanish? Get a more in-depth explanation for all of the above phrases by reading what I posted on Twitter on Dec. 6 and Dec. 7 over here.