Download Spanish idioms Literal translation English equivalent Picture

Spanish idioms Literal translation
English equivalent
Rascarse la barriga
To scratch your belly
To sit on your backside and do nothing
Ahogarse en un vaso de
agua
To drown in a glass of water
To make a mountain out of a molehill.
Estar hecho un Adán
To be like Adam
To look a mess
Un hombre de pelo en
pecho
A man with hair on his chest
A real man
Picture representa
Beber los aires por
alguien
To drink the breezes for
somebody
To be madly in love with someone
Estar hasta las narices de To be up to the nostrils with
algo
something
Fed up to the back teeth with something
Mientras que en mi casa
estoy, rey soy
While in my house I am king
A man`s home is his castle
Llevar a alguien por la
calle de la amargura
To lead somebody down misery To make somebody`s life a misery
street
Sobre gustos no hay
nada escrito
About taste there is nothing
written down
There is no accounting for taste
Tener la cabeza como
una bola de billar
To have a head like a billiard
ball
To be as bald as a coot
Tener cara de pascua
To have an Easter face
To be grinning broadly
Estar mas sano que una
pera
To be healthier than a pear
To be as fit as a fiddle
Hacer las cuentas de la
lechera
To the milkmaid`s sums
To count your chickens before they are
hatched
No estar bien sentado
To be a backside that can't sit
still
To have ants in your pants
Ni de aquí a Lima
Not from here to Lima
Not by a long chalk. There is just no
comparison
Tener cara de pascua
To have an Easter face
To be grinning from ear to ear
Las mentiras tienen patas Lies have short legs
cortas
The truth will out (lies won't get you very
far).
Entre col y col, lechuga
Between cabbage and
cabbage, lettuce.
Variety is the spice of life
Esto no tiene mucha
ciencia
This doesn`t have a lot of
science
There is nothing difficult about it
Untar la mano de alguien To grease somebody`s hand
To grease somebody`s palm. To influence
someone by giving them money.
Ser mas fuerte que un
roble
To be stronger than an oak tree To be as strong as an ox
Al pie de la letra
To the foot of the letter
Las vacas gordas
The fat cows
The boom years
Lo saben hasta las
piedras
Even stones know that
Everyone knows that
Tener buen diente
To have a good tooth
To have a healthy appetite
To the letter, or exactly
Tener a alguien entre
ojos
To have somebody between
your eyes
To have it in for someone
Se armó la de San
Quintín
What happened at San Quintin all hell broke out
broke out
Estar mas loco que una
cabra
To be madder than a goat
To be as mad as a hatter
Meter la cuchara
To put in your spoon
To stick your oar in
Poner toda la carne en el To put all the meat on the
asador
barbecue
Pull out all the stops
Cambiar el chip
To change one`s chip
To change your way of thinking
Eso está hecho
That`s done
It`s a sure thing (promise)
No saber ni papa de
Not to know even a potato
about
To know nothing about
Alzarse con el santo y la
limosna
To take off with the saint and
the alms.
To clear off with everything
Hacer algo volando
To do something on the fly
To do something quickly
Préstame la guitarra
Lend me the guitar
Let me get a word in
Meterse en el sobre
To put oneself in one`s
envelope
To go to bed, to hit the sack
A jalones y estirones
at pulls and stretches
Kicking and screaming / with lots of effort
Rascarse el bolsillo
To scratch the pocket
Spend money unwillingly
Estoy que me caigo
I am about to fall
I am not feeling well
Quemar las naves
To burn one`s shipd
To burn one`s bridges
Tener mucha cuerda
To have a lot of chord
To have a lot of life left in them.
Bajar a todos los santos
To get all the saints down.
To try everything when you are up against
it.
Echar leña al fuego
To add fuel to the fire
To make things worse
Lanzar un rollo
To throw a roll
To start a long story
Que si patatín que si
patatán
And so on and so on
blah, blah, blah, blah
Mírate en ese espejo
Look at yourself in that mirror
Let that be a lesson to you
Navegar con bandera de
inocente
To sail with the flag of an
innocent
To play dumb. To pretend to be innocent
but have a motive for it.
Ni corto ni perezoso
Neither short nor lazy
Doing it right away. Without losing any
time
Liso y llano
Smooth and flat, as a road
A piece of cake. Easy.
La procesión va por
dentro
The procession goes on the
inside
Bottling it all up.
Por un tubo
Through a pipe
Abundantly.
Mirar los toros desde la
barrera
To look at the bulls from behind To stay out of harm`s way
the barrier
Ya tener una pata allí
To now have a paw in there
To have a foot in the door
Estar como pez en el
agua
To be like a fish in water
To be in one`s element. To enjoy your own
comforts.
Tapando el sol con un
dedo
Covering the sun with a finger
Covering things up.
Hijos de muchas madres
Children of many mothers
All kinds of people. A diverse group of
people.
Pintarse solo para una
cosa
To paint oneself alone for
something
To be very skillful at something
Pisarle los callos a
alguien
To step on someone`s
callouses
To bother someone without reason
Sin cruzar palabra
Without crossing word
Without saying a word
Que lo haga Rita
Let Rita do it
Let someone else do it
La flor y nata
The flower and whipped cream Upper crust. Highest social class.
Pagar por sustos
To pay in frights
To buy on credit
Los gajes del oficio
The matters of the trade.
Part and parcel of the job. Occupational
hazards.
Tener a alguien en el
alma
To have someone in one's soul To feel for someone who is having
problems. To want to help
Llover a cántaros
To rain tanks/pitchers
Raining buckets
Tener buen diente
To have good tooth
To be a big eater. To have a hollow leg
Fresco
Fresh
Cool as a cucumber. Not worried
Estar muy potable
To be very drinkable
To look attractive
Partirse de la risa
To split with laughter
To crack up with laughter
Dar en el clavo
To strike home
To be spot on. To hit the nail on the head.
Mucho ojo, que la vista
engaña
Much eye, the sight deceives
Appearances are deceptive
Darle lata a alguien
To give someone tin can
To give someone a hard time. To upset
someone.
Quedarse para vestir
santos
To stay dressing saints
To remain an old maid
Llevar la batuta
To carry the baton
To have great influence. To call the shots.
Big shot.
A mí, me importa un pito
lo que pienses
To me, I give a damn what you I don't give a toss what you think
think
Tirarse los trastos a la
cabeza
To throw junk at the head
to have a blazing row.
Para dar y tomar
To give and take
In abundance. To burn. ex. money
Bailar en la cuerda floja
To dance on the tightrope
To try to do many things at once
Tener los nervios de
punta
To have one's nerves standing
To have one's nerves on edge
Hacer San Lunes
Make Saint Monday
To skive off work on Mondays
Sufrir un ataque de
cuernos
To suffer an attack of horns
To go into a jealous rage
Estar colgado
To be hung, suspended
To be in love. To have a crush
Hay ropa tendida
There is clothing hung out to
dry
The coast is not clear. Be careful
De buenas a primeras
From good ones to first ones
On the spur of the moment
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 I always get the short end of the stick / I
ugliest girl.
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 It will do just fine. One thing is as good as
are fine.
another.
Para 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 To backfire. To have the opposite result
of the rifle
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 la torre
To give in the tower
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.
Más 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 perdió 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 corazón de
acero
To have a heart of steel
To have a heart of stone
Confundir la gimnasia con To confuse gymnastics with
la magnesia
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 It will do just fine. One thing is as good as
are fine
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 ahí 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
Come down to earth
Put your feet on the ground
La sopa boba
Crazy soup
Life on Easy Street
El día 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 From the frying pan into the fire
the coals
La despidada de soltero
Sending off of the single man
Stag party
Darle a uno una buena
lejía
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
Bájale 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
Encendérsele 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 más del campo que
las amapolas
To be more from the country
than the poppies
To be a hick
Estar entre la espada y la To be between the sword and
pared
the wall
To be caught between a rock and a hard
place
Como pez en el agua
To be in one`s element
Like a fish in the sea
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 To pass the buck
else
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 ojo de la cara
To cost an eye of the face
To cost an arm and a leg
Aquello fue llegar y besar That was arriving and kissing
el santo
the saint
It was like taking candy from a baby
Andar caminando sobre
huevos
To walk stepping on eggs
To tread on thin ice
Venir con músicas
To come with music
To tell tall tales
Reír 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