| Spanish idioms |
Literal translation |
English equivalent |
Picture representation |
| nadar entre dos aguas |
to swim between two waters |
to sit on the fence |
|
| Que barbaridad |
What madness, atrocity |
Goodness me / I can't believe it |
|
Más majo que la mar salada
|
Nicer than the salty sea |
Incredibly nice |
|
| Criarse en buenos pañales |
To be raised in good nappies |
To be born with a silver spoon in your mouth |
|
| Pagar los platos rotos |
To pay for the broken plates |
To carry the can |
|
| Criarse en buenos pañales |
To be raised in good nappies |
to be born with a silver spoon in your mouth |
|
| No tiene ni padre ni madre ni perrito que le ladre |
he doesn't have a father or a mother or a little dog to bark for him |
He is all alone in the world |
|
| Estar endeudado hasta las cejas |
To be up to your eyebrows in debt |
to be up to your eyes in debt |
|
No me des la lata
|
don ʼt give me the tin
|
Leave me in peace
|
|
| No estar para fiestas |
To be in no mood for parties |
To be in no mood for having fun |
|
| Cuéntaselo a tu abuela |
Tell that to your grandmother |
Pull the other one |
|
| poner los cuernos a alguien |
to put horns on somebody |
to cheat on somebody |
|
| parece mentira que |
it seems a lie that |
I can't believe that |
|
| no tener nombre |
not to have a name |
to be unspeakable, despicable |
|
| Unos cardan la lana y otros cobran la fama |
Some card the wool and others gain the glory |
Some do all the work and others take all the credit |
|
| Se me puso la piel de gallina |
I got chicken skin |
I got goose bumps |
|
| me suena a chino |
it sounds like Chinese to me |
it`s all Greek to me |
|
| Poner a alguien por las nubes |
To put somebody in the clouds |
To praise someone highly |
|
| Hacer dedo |
To do thumb |
To hitch-hike |
|
| Fulminar a alguien con la mirada |
To strike somebody with lightning with a look |
To give someone the daggers look |
|
| beber como un esponja |
to drink like a sponge |
to drink like a fish |
 |
| Saber la biblia en verso |
To know the bible in verse |
To know absolutely everything |
 |
| No es santo de mi devoción |
He is not a saint of my devotion |
He`s not my cup of tea |
 |
| Bailar el agua a alguien |
To dance the water to somebody |
To suck up to somebody |
 |
| Borron y cuenta nueva |
Crossing out and a new sum |
Let`s make a fresh start |
 |
| Hastas las tantas |
Until the so many |
Until all hours - very late |
 |
| Atan los perros con longaniza |
They tie up dogs with sausages. |
The streets are paved with gold. |
|
| Chupar camara |
To suck the camera |
To seek a lot of media attention |
|
| Estar entre la espada y la pared |
To be between the sword and the wall |
To be between the devil and the deep blue sea |
|
| Disfrutar como un enano |
To enjoy yourself like a dwarf |
To have a brilliant time |
 |
| Cargar con el muerto |
To carry the dead man |
To carry the can |
|
| Ser el ojo derecho de alguien |
To be somebody's right eye |
To be the apple of someone's eye |
|
| En el quinto infierno |
in the fifth hell |
In the back of beyond |
|
| Mi media naranja |
My half orange |
My better half (partner) |
 |
| Aburrirse como una ostra |
To be as bored as an oyster |
To be bored rigid. |
|
| Bailar al son que tocan |
To dance to the tune they`re playing |
To toe the line |
|
| Saber de letras |
To know letters |
To be an egghead |
|
| Contigo ni a China me voy |
I'm not even going to China with you |
I want nothing to do with you. |
|
| Tener madera |
To have wood |
To have what it takes |
 |
| Esta por el suelo |
It`s down on the floor |
It`s the pits |
|
| Tener los codos pelados |
To have the elbows peeled |
To be tired from studying |
|
| Poner el cascabel al gato |
To put the bell on the cat. |
To stick one's neck out |
|
| Por querer saber, la zorra perdio la cola |
Wanting to know the fox lost his tail |
Curiosity killed the cat |
|
| Tener un cacao en la cabeza |
To have a cocoa in the head |
To be confused, mixed up. |
|
| Venderse como pan caliente |
To sell like hot bread |
To sell like hot cakes |
|
| Irse por las ramas |
To go through the branches |
To beat around the bush |
|
| Hablar como un loro |
To talk like a parrot |
To be a chatterbox. To talk nineteen to the dozen. |
|
| Amor con amor se paga |
Love with love pays for itself |
One good turn deserves another. |
|
| Hacer su agosto |
To make one's August |
To make a killing. |
|
| Pueblo chico infierno grande |
Small town great fire |
Living in a small town can be hell |
|
| Poderoso caballero es Don Dinero |
Mighty gentleman is Don Money |
Money makes the world go round / Money is power, power is money |
 |
| Ser uña y carne |
To be fingernail and flesh. |
To be bosom buddies. |
 |
| Buscarle las pulgas a alguien |
To look for someone`s fleas |
To irritate someone. To provoke |
 |
| Seguir en sus trece |
To keep in one`s thirteen |
To persist. To stick to one`s guns. |
 |
Siempre me toca bailar con la más fea.
|
I always have to dance with the ugliest girl. |
I always get the short end of the stick / I always draw the short straw. |
 |
| Salir por la ventana |
To leave through the window |
To sneak out the back door. |
|
| Tengamos la fiesta en paz. |
We have the peace party. |
Let`s have some peace and quiet. |
 |
| Revolver el gallinero |
To stir the chicken |
To put the cat among the pigeons. |
 |
| A falta de pan, buenas son tortas. |
Where there is no bread, cakes are fine. |
It will do just fine. One thing is as good as another. |
 |
| Parar parar un tren |
To stop a train |
In large quantities. Tons of |
 |
| Salir el tiro por la culata |
To have the shot go out the butt of the rifle |
To backfire. To have the opposite result from what was anticipated. |
 |
| Empezar la casa por el tejado |
To begin the house with the roof |
To put the cart before the horse |
 |
| Atar cabos |
To tie ends |
To put two and two together |
 |
| Tonto de capirote |
Idiot chief |
Dope of dopes. Really stupid |
 |
| Tiene un humor de perros |
He`s in a dog mood |
He`s in a foul mood |
 |
| Para colmo de desgracias |
For the culmination of misfortunes |
To top it all off |
 |
| Un clavo saca otro clavo |
One nail takes out another nail. |
One problem overshadows another. |
 |
| Estar como agua para chocolate. |
To be like water for chocolate. |
To be at boiling point (anger or passion) |
 |
| Echar flores |
To throw flowers |
To pat on the back. To compliment |
 |
| Dar en el madre |
To give in the mother |
To hit hard. To hurt someone where they are vulnerable |
 |
| Un hotel de mala muerte |
a hotel of bad death |
A grotty hotel |
 |
| Correr como un galgo |
To run like a greyhound |
To run like a gazelle |
 |
| Valer su peso en oro |
To be worth its weight in gold |
To be worth a fortune |
 |
| Acostarse con las gallinas |
To go to bed with the chickens |
To go to bed early |
 |
| Aflojar la cuerda |
To loosen the cord |
To take a breather |
 |
| Poner en las nubes |
To put in the clouds. |
To praise to the skies. To highly praise. |
 |
| Estar metida en un rollo |
To be put in a roll |
To get into a bind. To get into hot water. |
 |
| En boca cerrada no entran moscas |
In a closed mouth flies don`t enter. |
Loose talk can get you into trouble. |
 |
| El hijo de papá |
Daddy`s child |
Rich kid. Kid who has everything provided for them. |
 |
| Mas loco que una cabra |
Crazier than a she-goat |
Mad as a hatter |
 |
| Reparar en migajas |
To notice crumbs |
To split hairs. To pay attention to unimportant things instead of the bigger issues. |
 |
| No dar pie con bola |
To not hit the ball with one`s foot |
To not be correct. To make a mess of things. To not do things right |
 |
| Donde el diablo perdio el poncho |
Where the devil lost his poncho |
In a god-forsaken spot |
 |
| Meterse en el sobre |
To put oneself in the envelope |
To hit the sack. To go to bed |
 |
| Meter la cuchara |
To put in the spoon |
To put in one`s two penny worth |
 |
| Chiste rojo |
Red joke |
Dirty joke |
 |
| No calentar el asiento |
To not warm the seat |
To not last long |
 |
| Tener un corazon de acero |
To have a heart of steel |
To have a heart of stone |
 |
| Confundir la gimnasia con la magnesia |
To confuse gymnastics with magnesia |
To mix apples and oranges |
 |
| Montar un número. |
To put on a number. |
To make a scene. |
 |
| Llevar en palmas |
To carry palm trees |
To treat like a king. To pamper. |
 |
| Comer a dos carrillos |
To eat with two cheeks |
To serve two masters. To work for two people. |
 |
| Tomar el pelo a alguien |
To pull someone`s hair |
To pull someone`s leg, to make fun of |
 |
| El vivo retrato de alguien |
The living portrait of someone |
The spitting image of someone |
 |
| Flotar como el corcho en el agua |
To float like cork in water |
To come out on top, come out well despite adversity |
 |
| No dar el brazo a torcer |
To not give one`s arm to twist |
To be stubborn |
 |
| Cortado por la misma tijera |
Cut by the same scissors |
Very similar, chip off the old block |
 |
| No dejar piedra sobre piedra |
To not leave stone upon stone |
To leave nothing standing, to destroy completely |
 |
| Tener alma a acero |
To have a soul of steel |
To have a heart of stone, to be without feelings |
 |
Hacer alharacas
|
To make a fuss |
To make a big deal (of something) |
 |
| Ser plato de segunda mesa |
To be a plate of a second table |
To feel like a second class citizen |
 |
| A falta de pan, buenas son tortas |
Where there is no bread, cakes are fine |
It will do just fine. One thing is as good as another. |
 |
| Quemarse las pestañas |
To burn one`s eyelashes |
To burn the midnight oil. To cram |
 |
| Hijo de la gata, ratones mata |
son of the cat kills rats |
Like father, like son |
 |
| No van por ahi los tiros |
The shots aren`t going that way |
barking up the wrong tree |
 |
| Ni soñarlo |
In your dreams |
No way |
 |
| Fumarse una clase |
To smoke oneself a class |
To skip a class |
 |
| Irsele a alguien la lengua |
To make a slip of the tongue |
Speak without thinking |
 |
| Pon los pies sobre la tierra |
Put your feet on the ground |
Come down to earth |
 |
| La sopa boba |
Crazy soup |
Life on Easy Street |
 |
| El dia de arreglo de cuentas |
The day of settling accounts |
Day of reckoning |
 |
| Llevar en palmas |
To carry with palm trees |
To treat like a king, pamper |
 |
| Con las manos en la masa |
With the hands in the dough |
Red-handed |
 |
| Ponerse las botas |
To put one`s boots on |
To make a killing |
 |
| Huir del fuego y caer en las brasas |
To flee from the fire and fall into the coals |
From the frying pan into the fire |
 |
| La despidada de soltero |
Sending off of the single man |
Stag party |
 |
| Darle a uno una buena lejia |
To give someone a good dose of bleach |
To give someone a good scolding |
 |
| Hacer mil maromas para |
To do a thousand acrobatic tricks in order to |
To go to a lot of trouble to, to spare no effort to |
 |
| Bajale de crema a tus tacos |
Decrease the cream in your tacos |
Don`t exaggerate |
 |
| Estar al loro |
To be at the parrot |
To pay attention, be attentive, be up to date |
 |
| Criado(a) a lo bruto |
raised in a brutish way |
Brought up in a barn |
 |
| Ser plato de segunda mesa |
To be second-table dish |
To play second fiddle |
 |
| Jugar con dos barajas |
To play with two decks |
To cheat, act with duplicity |
 |
| Cantar de plano |
To sing clearly |
To spill the beans |
 |
| Echar agua al mar |
To throw water into the sea |
To be pointless |
 |
| Con los brazos cruzados |
With arms crossed |
Twiddling one`s thumbs |
 |
| Marcando ocupado |
Dialling the busy signal |
Not understanding anything |
 |
| Encendersele el bombillo |
To have the lightbulb turned on |
To get a brilliant idea |
 |
| Más feo que el pecado |
Uglier than the sin |
As ugly as sin |
 |
| Hacer su santa voluntad |
To do one`s holy will |
To do as one pleases |
 |
| Por los buenas o por las malas |
For the good or the bad |
One way or another |
 |
| No saber ni papa de |
Not to know even a potato about |
To know nothing about |
 |
| Caer chuzos de punta |
To rain sharp spears |
To rain cats and dogs |
|
| Tragarle a uno la tierra |
To be swallowed by the earth |
To disappear into nowhere |
 |
| No cerrar la puerta |
To not close the door |
to not cut down on choices/options, or, not to burn one`s bridges |
 |
| Quedar a la altura de su zapatilla |
To remain at the height of one`s slipper |
To be a failure |
 |
| Contigo ni a China me voy |
I`m not even going to China with you |
You`re impossible |
 |
| Andar de Herodes a Pilato |
To walk from Herod to Pilate |
To go from bad to worse |
 |
| Ser un espantapájaro |
To be a scarecrow |
Ugly as sin |
 |
| Tener mal templada la guitarra |
To have one's guitar badly tuned. |
To be in a bad mood |
 |
| Ser del montón |
To be of the heap |
No great shakes, nothing to write home about |
 |
| Llover sobre mojado |
To rain over the wetness |
It never rains but it pours. |
 |
| Ser mas del campo que las amapolas |
To be more from the country than the poppies |
To be a hick |
 |
| Estar entre la espada y la pared |
To be between the sword and the wall |
To be caught between a rock and a hard place |
 |
| Como pez en el agua |
Like a fish in the sea |
To be in one`s element |
 |
| Un viento de mil demonios |
A wind of a thousand demons |
A howling gale |
 |
| Estar de veinticinco alfileres |
To be of twenty-five pins |
To be dressed to kill |
 |
| Tener angel |
To have an angel |
to have charm, to be charming |
 |
| Darle perro a uno |
To give someone a dog |
To stand someone up, to break a date |
 |
| Largar a otro el mochuelo |
To pass the owl on to someone else |
To pass the buck |
 |
| Dar en un hueso |
To hit a bone |
To hit a snag |
 |
| Flipar en colores |
To flip colours |
To be totally amazed |
 |
| Parecerse como dos gotas de agua |
To look like two drops of water |
To look like two peas in a pod |
 |
| Tener un tornillo flojo |
To have a loose screw |
To be crazy |
 |
| El mundo es un pañuelo |
The world is a handkerchief |
It`s a small world |
 |
| Toda va viento en popa |
Everything goes wind at the stern |
All is going well |
 |
| Dejar a uno en la estacada |
To leave someone in the stockade |
To leave someone in the lurch |
 |
| No es cosa del otro mundo |
It`s not anything from another world |
It`s nothing to write home about |
 |
| Decirle a alguien cuatro verdades |
To tell someone four truths |
To give someone a piece of one`s mind |
 |
| Coger a alguien con las manos en la masa |
To catch someone with his or her hands in the dough |
To catch someone red-handed |
 |
| Costar un ogo de la cara |
To cost an eye of the face |
To cost an arm and a leg |
 |
| Aquello fue llegar y besar el santo |
That was arriving and kissing the saint |
It was like taking candy from a baby |
 |
| Andar pisando huevos |
To walk stepping on eggs |
To tread on thin ice |
 |
| Venir con músicas |
To come with music |
To tell tall tales |
 |
| Reir con risa de conejo |
To laugh with the laughter of a rabbit |
To force a laugh |
 |
| Empezar la casa por el tejado |
To start building the house at the roof |
To put the cart before the horse |
 |
| Ir al grano |
To go to the seed |
Get to the point |
 |
| Faltarle a uno un tornillo |
to have a screw missing |
To be nuts |
 |
| Cortar el bacalao |
To cut the codfish |
To rule the roost |
 |
| No hay mal que por bien no venga |
There is not badly that by well come not |
Every cloud has a silver lining |
 |
| Tirar las frutas frescas con las pochas |
Throwing the fresh fruits with the green beans |
To throw the baby out with the bathwater |
 |
| Nadie esta contento con su suerte |
Nobody is content with his luck |
the grass is always greener on the other side |
 |
| A lo hecho pecho |
To it fact chest |
It`s no use crying over spilt milk |
 |
| Mas vale prevenir que curar |
More valuable to prevent than cure |
Better safe than sorry |
 |
| No hay que vender la piel del oso (antes de cazarlo) |
Don't sell the the bear skin before hunting it |
Don`t count your chickens (before they are hatched) |
 |
| Una puntada a tiempo ahorra ciento |
A stitch in times saves hundred |
A stitch in time saves nine |
 |
| Estar hasta en la sopa |
To be even in the soup |
There's no getting away from him |
|
| No hay tiempo como el presente |
|
There's no time like the present |
 |
| Caerse de su burro |
To fall from your donkey |
To admit your mistake |
|
| Hay cuatro gatos |
There are four cats |
There's hardly anyone |
|
| Estar como boca de lobo |
To be like a wolf's mouth |
To be pitch dark |
|
| Darle perro a alguien |
To give someone a dog |
To stand someone up (on a date) |
|
| Cuando las ranas críen pelo |
When frogs grow hair |
When pigs might fly |
|
| No oír ni el vuelo de una mosca |
To not even hear a fly flying |
You could hear a pin drop |
 |
Mas vale pajaro en mano que ciento volando |
A bird in the hand is more valuable than a hundred flying |
A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush |
 |
| A quien madruga Dios lo ayuda |
To whom rises early God helps him |
It`s the early bird that catches the worm.
Early bed early to rise (makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise) |
 |
| mas vale mana que fuerza |
more value brain than strength |
brain is better than brawn |
 |
| No se gano Zamora en una hora |
You don`t win Zamora in an hour
(Zamora is a Spanish town where there was a battle) |
Rome wasn`t built in a day |
 |
| Ojos que no ven, corazon que no siente |
Eyes that don`t see, heart that doesn`t feel |
out of sight, out of mind |
 |
Nunca llueve a gusto de todos
or
Lo que a uno cura a otro mata |
It never rains to the liking of all
or
what to one priest another kills |
One man`s meat is another man`s poison |
 |
| Antes de hablar pensar |
Before speaking think |
Think before you speak |
 |
| Lo que no cuesta dinero,siempre es bueno |
That which costs nothing, always is good |
The best things in life are free |
 |
| El que tiene boca se equivoca |
The one that has mouth is mistaken |
We all make mistakes |
 |
| Lo que siembres cosecharas quien siembra vientos recoge tempestades |
What sowings harvested who sows winds collects storms |
As you sow, so shall you reap |
 |
| Quien a hierro mata, a hierro muere |
Who to iron kills, to iron dies |
They that live by the sword die by the sword |
 |
| Aunque la mona se vista de seda mona se queda |
Although the monkey itself monkey silk view remains |
You can`t make a silk purse out of a sow`s ear |
 |
| Nadie sabe lo que vale el agua hasta que falta |
Nobody knows what is worth the water until he lacks |
You never know what you`ve got till it`s gone |
 |
| En el peligro se conoce el amigo |
In the danger the friend is known |
A friend in need is a friend indeed |
 |
| En boca cerrada no entran moscas |
Flies don`t enter a closed mouth |
If you keep your mouth shut, you won`t put your foot in it |
 |
| lo barato sale caro |
cheap it leaves expensive |
If you buy cheaply, you pay dearly |
 |
| Al perro que duerme, no lo despiertes |
To the dog that sleeps it do not awake
|
Let sleeping dogs lie |
 |
| la nesesidad hace maestros |
the necessity makes teachers |
necessity is the mother of invention |
 |
| Loro viejo no aprende a hablar |
Old parrot does not learn to speak |
You can`t teach an old dog new tricks |
 |
| El que rie ultimo,rie mejor |
He who laughs last, laughs best |
He who laughs last laughs longest |
 |
| El sapo a la sapa tienela por guapa |
The male toad to the female toad is considered good-looking |
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder |
 |
| Hablando del rey de Roma - (y el que se asoma) |
Talking of the king of Rome - (and he appears) |
talk of the devil - (and the devil appears) |
 |
| Mas vale tarde que nunca |
More value late than never |
better late than never |
 |
| Si quieres ser bien servido, sirvete a ti mismo |
If you want to be well served, serve you to you same |
If you want a thing done well, do it yourself |
 |
| El tiempo es oro |
Time is gold |
Time is money |
 |
| Reír con risa de conejo |
To laugh like a rabbit |
To force a laugh |
|
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