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com/spanish/blog/spanish-idioms/
Its loud, but you can make out what people are saying.
You hear a fellow drinker talking about throwing a house through a window
You do a double take and scratch your head, wondering why you can translate the words, but not their context or
meaning.
Idioms are essential for speaking a language like a native, and Spanish is no exception.
There are hundreds of Spanish idioms, and while some are common to many Spanish language speakers, others are
only used in one or a handful of countries in the Spanish-speaking world. There are even Spanish idioms that are
only spoken in specific regions.
In this post, weve compiled some of the most useful Spanish idioms that youre likely to come across.
Tomar el pelo literally means to take the hair, and is used when someone is tricking or making fun of someone
else, but in a good-natured way.
The literal translation of ser pan comido is to be bread eaten, and it means that something is very easy to do. It is
the English equivalent of saying something is a piece of cake.
For example:
El trabajo es pan comido.
(The job is a piece of cake.)
Estar como una cabra is a commonly used Spanish idiom for when somebody is doing something bizarre or a little
out of the ordinary. The literal translation is to be like a goat, and the English equivalent is saying someone is a little
nuts or crazy. So if a friend has had too much to drink one evening, and he or she gets up and dances on a table, you
might say:
The literal translation of no tener pelos en la lengua is not to have hairs on your tongue. This Spanish idiom means
that someone is a straight shooter and will always speak their mind.
For example:
Tirar la casa por la ventana is literally translated as to throw the house through the window, and it means that no
expense has been spared or that money is no object.
For example:
Quedarse de piedra is literally to stay like a stone, and it means to be amazed. In other words, you are so stunned
by something that you stay like a stone.
For example:
Another idiom to express surprise and astonishment is quedarse con la boca abierta, literally to stay with the mouth
open.
Lo dijo de labios para fuera is literally translated as he said it from the lips outwards, and it means that a person
didnt mean what they said.
For example:
8. Estar hecho un aj
Estar hecho un aj is literally translated as to be made a chili, and it means to be hopping mad (very angry) about
something.
For example:
Empezar la casa por el tejado is literally to start the house by the roof, and it means to put the cart before the
horse, or to have things in the wrong order.
For example:
Si empezramos la construccin sin los fondos, estaramos empezando la casa por el tejado.
(If we started construction without the funds, wed be putting the cart before the horse.)
Estar ms sano que una pera is literally translated as to be healthier than a pear. The English equivalent is to be
as fit as a fiddle, and it means that someone feels great and is very healthy.
For example:
5. Ser ua y carne
The literal translation of ser ua y carne is to be fingernail and flesh, and it means to be bosom buddies.
For example:
Tenemos un humor de perros is literally translated as to have a mood of dogs, and it means to be in a bad mood.
For example:
Se me hace agua la boca is a common Spanish idiom translated as it makes my mouth water, meaning that an
item of food or a meal is so delicious it makes the saliva flow in a persons mouth.
For example:
Tiene ms lana que un borrego translates as he has more wool than a lamb, and it means that a person is loaded
with cash. Lana is slang for cash.
For example:
Echar agua al mar is literally translated as to throw water into the sea, a Spanish idiom used in some Spanish-
speaking regions to mean that something is pointless.
For example:
9 ridiculously useful Spanish expressions: Great post that also includes embedded sound files.
These are just a handful of the many Spanish idioms that you are likely hear. Commit them to memory and start
casually throwing them into conversations. They will help you to speak Spanish more naturally and to sound less
foreign to Spanish ears.
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