Spanish: Idioms That Make No Sense Literally
30 Spanish idioms that sound absurd word for word. Front: the Spanish idiom. Back: the literal translation and what it actually means.
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#1
Q:ser pan comido
- A:Lit. "to be eaten bread" → to be a piece of cake
#2
Q:estar en las nubes
- A:Lit. "to be in the clouds" → to be daydreaming
#3
Q:tomar el pelo
- A:Lit. "to take someone's hair" → to pull someone's leg
#4
Q:no tener pelos en la lengua
- A:Lit. "to have no hairs on your tongue" → to speak your mind
#5
Q:estar como una cabra
- A:Lit. "to be like a goat" → to be nuts
#6
Q:me importa un pepino
- A:Lit. "it matters a cucumber to me" → I couldn't care less
#7
Q:ponerse las pilas
- A:Lit. "to put your batteries in" → to get your act together
#8
Q:costar un ojo de la cara
- A:Lit. "to cost an eye from your face" → to cost an arm and a leg
#9
Q:ser uña y carne
- A:Lit. "to be nail and flesh" → to be inseparable
#10
Q:dar calabazas
- A:Lit. "to give pumpkins" → to turn someone down
#11
Q:meter la pata
- A:Lit. "to put your paw in" → to put your foot in it
#12
Q:estar hasta las narices
- A:Lit. "to be up to your nostrils" → to be fed up
#13
Q:tirar la casa por la ventana
- A:Lit. "to throw the house out the window" → to splurge
#14
Q:no hay mal que por bien no venga
- A:Lit. "there's no bad that doesn't come for good" → every cloud has a silver lining
#15
Q:ir al grano
- A:Lit. "to go to the grain" → to get to the point
#16
Q:echar leña al fuego
- A:Lit. "to add wood to the fire" → to add fuel to the fire
#17
Q:buscarle tres pies al gato
- A:Lit. "to look for three feet on the cat" → to overcomplicate things
#18
Q:ser un ratón de biblioteca
- A:Lit. "to be a library mouse" → to be a bookworm
#19
Q:más vale tarde que nunca
- A:Better late than never
#20
Q:a otro perro con ese hueso
- A:Lit. "take that bone to another dog" → Tell it to someone else, I don't buy it
#21
Q:quedarse de piedra
- A:Lit. "to be turned to stone" → to be stunned
#22
Q:dormir como un tronco
- A:Lit. "to sleep like a log" → to sleep deeply
#23
Q:llover a cántaros
- A:Lit. "to rain pitchers" → to rain cats and dogs
#24
Q:tener mala pata
- A:Lit. "to have a bad paw" → to have bad luck
#25
Q:estar como pez en el agua
- A:Lit. "to be like a fish in water" → to be in your element
#26
Q:hablar por los codos
- A:Lit. "to talk through your elbows" → to talk nonstop
#27
Q:se me hace agua la boca
- A:Lit. "my mouth turns to water" → my mouth is watering
#28
Q:en boca cerrada no entran moscas
- A:Lit. "flies don't get into a closed mouth" → silence is golden
#29
Q:estar sin blanca
- A:Lit. "to be without a white (old coin)" → to be broke
#30
Q:ser la leche (España)
- A:Lit. "to be the milk" → to be amazing — or too much