Contrast of idioms Spanish vs. English II

Hello folks!

Yes, another week went by! Last month I wrote a very interesting entry on the contrast of idioms between Spanish and English. As I found the contrast fascinating, I'll continue to write another entry on this subject to somehow highlight the differences between both languages and to show that translation is not the most effective method when learning English (or any other language). 

Idioms that are different in Spanish and English

1)            SPANISH                               ENGLISH

  

Zamora no se ganó en una     Rome wasn't built in a day.

hora (Zamora wasn't won

in an hour)

These idioms are used to indicate that  we must be patient and things take time to happen. We can't do things in a rush. In Spanish, the use the example of Zamora, which bravely withstood the siege against it. In English, the prefer the city of Rome and its reshaping. 

2)            SPANISH                    ENGLISH

      

Tirar piedras contra tu              To shoot yourself in the

propio tejado (throw stones      foot. 

at your own roof).

These expressions are used when you inadvertently do something that causes harm to you. In Spanish, you are throwing stones at your own roof, whereas in English you shoot yourself in the foot. Even though expressions are different, I'm pretty sure the metaphor is quite clear, isn't it?

3)            SPANISH                    ENGLISH

  

De tal palo tal astilla                The apple never falls far from 

(from a given stick comes an     the tree / like father like son.

analogue wood chip)

These expressions are used to indicate family action resemblance, that is, the actions of a given parent are repeated by their offspring. To picture this, in Spanish they use the imagery of a stick and a small wood chip, while in English they say that the apple (the son or daughter), never falls far from the tree (the parent). They also use a straightforward simile : like father like son. 

4)            SPANISH                    ENGLISH

  

The die is cast.

La suerte está echada.

(Luck is cast)

Has it ever happened to you that you are nervous for a decision that is about to be taken by someone and that can affect your life? If so, these are the expressions for you. In Spanish, the protagonist of this idiom is 'luck', while in English is a die that has just been cast. In case you don't know, 'die' as a noun is the singular of the word 'dice', something you normally need to play a board game. If you don't remember them, you can resort to your Latin and use the Latin expression instead : 'alea jactea est.'

5)            SPANISH                     ENGLISH

 

Ser un grano en el culo      To be a pain in the neck/ass

(to be a spot in the ass)

I presume there is someone in your life who gets on your nerves or who you find terribly annoying. In Spanish, this upsetting person is compared to a spot in your bottom, while in English is compared to pain in the neck (if you are polite) or in the ass (if politeness is not for you). 

6)            SPANISH                     ENGLISH

   

Traer pan a casa                         Bring home the bacon 

(Bring the bread home)

These expressions refer to the fact of supporting the family, bringing home money and food. In Spanish, this is associated to an important element in the Spanish cuisine, no other than bread. Can you imagine your lives without it? However, in English, this striking element is bacon, he he. What a difference!

7)            SPANISH                     ENGLISH

 

Ponerse rojo como un              Be as red as beetroot

tomate (turn red as a tomato)

When you were teenagers, I'm pretty sure that you got embarrassed by your parents, or maybe by your first love. When you are that embarrassed you face gets red. In English, you get red as a tomato, but in English as a beetroot. 

8)            SPANISH                     ENGLISH

   

Fresco como una lechuga       As cool as a cucumber

(Cool as a lettuce)

When someone's character is relaxed and unworried, we say they are cool. However, vegetables change according to language. In Spanish, we associate it to the lettuce, while in English to a cucumber. Which one do you think is best?

9)            SPANISH                     ENGLISH

    

Está chupado (it's licked)         It's a piece of cake

                                             (easy peasy lemon squeezy)

When we refer to something super-easy, Spaniards, strange though it may seem, refer to it as something that has been licked before. Yuck! However, in English, they use a dessert to refer to it, in particular, a piece of cake. 

10)            SPANISH                     ENGLISH

    

Ni por todo el oro del mundo         Not for love not for money

(not even for all the gold in the

world)

When something is impossible to get, we like to exaggerate. In Spanish, we say that you won't be able to get that not even for all the gold existing in the world. However, in English love is added to the equation, and they simply say it not for love not for money. 

Well, as you can see Spanish and English are two very different languages. If you are able to use some of these idioms accordingly in real communication, that'll mean you 're getting close to being a native speaker! If you're fond of idioms and would like to learn some more, click on idioms with number 2; colour idioms I; colour idioms II; idioms related to joy; animal idioms I; animal idioms II, idioms of parts of the body I ; body idioms II; idioms related to violence; idioms related to food; idioms related to revenge; idioms related to money; idioms English vs. Spanish I; idioms English vs. Spanish II.

See you next week. Until them you can share in comments some other idioms that are striking for you. 

The verb 'pay': much more than using your money in English.

From : https://www.esldirectory.com/blog/learning-english/pays-off-pay-off-take-payoff-pay-off-loans-phrasal-verb-confusion/

Howdy !

We're in mid-September and the summer season is about to come to an end. Anyway, to mitigate my melancholic feelings, I've decided to write an entry about an interesting verb English : the verb 'pay', so please PAY attention.  

1. Pay = give money in exchange of goods

When we think of the verb 'pay', this is the first meaning that comes to our minds. However, we need to take into account that, unlike in Spanish, this verb needs the preposition 'for' in English. Thus you pay for a service, for electricity, for food,... Pay food.

When we include the person, the preposition is not necessary. It is only necessary when we mention the service. You can say : 'I have to pay my mother the money I owe her.' 

Do you understand ? It's not so complicated, is it ? Anyway, I'll explain it even further by showing two sentences : 

a) I have a party and I have to pay for a waiter.

b) I have to pay the waiter for the catering service. 

In a) the waiter is the service. In b), the waiter is the person, and the catering is the service. 

2. Metaphorical uses of 'pay'

The meaning of 'pay' goes beyond using money. Like in Spanish you can use it metaphorically to indicate that you are putting something important at stake. 

- Pay the price /pay the consequences of your actions

- You caused me a lot of problems and I will pay you back / I will repay you / You will pay. 

- Working as a teacher at a language school pays off (=is worth doing it)

3. Expressions with pay

However, in English the verb 'pay' is much more complex than in Spanish. Thus, you can use it in a great deal of usual expressions. You can pay with more things than money in English. 

- Pay attention / pay heed to... (formal)

- Pay a visit to someone

- Pay my respects to someone after a sudden loss.

- Pay my duties at work.

- Pay someone a call

- Pay a compliment to someone

- Pay tribute to an artist / pay homage to an important person.

4. Idioms with 'pay'

Apart from the examples in number 2, 'pay' is the main star of loads of idiomatic expressions. 

From : https://es.pinterest.com/pin/555561304010292431/?lp=true

- Pay through the nose : When you pay for an item much more than what is worth it. 

- Pay peanuts : When you pay for an item much less than what is worth it. 

- If you pay peanuts you get monkeys : That means that price is not the most important thing and when you pay incredibly low prices for something it is usually a low-quality product (=lo barato sale caro)

From : https://www.keepcalm-o-matic.co.uk/p/if-you-pay-peanuts-you-get-monkeys/

- Pay the piper / pay the fiddler= Accept the unpleasant consequences of one's actions. I didn't want to work in the morning, and now I have to pay the piper and work at the weekend. 

- Pay the freight = Pay for something that is not pleasant. The state has to pay the freight for cleaning the streets after the city's festivities. 

- Hit pay dirt = Finding something incredibly useful after a long search. I couldn't find any good restaurants around until I hit pay dirt and I found and incredibly good restaurant very near ! 

Well, as you can see, English gives far more importance to 'pay' than Spanish and it is interesting to see how they commonly use this verb in tons of expressions. 

P.S. If you are interested in deeply knowing some other English verbs, click on the links provided : the verb 'get'; the verb 'have'; the verb 'go' 

The verb 'get', the jack-of-all-trades verb in English: some quirks about its multiple uses

The Easter holidays have just begun and I am using my first day to write a blog entry. I must not be much of a holiday fan myself, he he. Anyway, I feel like devoting this entry to one recurrent verb in the English language, no other than the verb 'get'. My students of Básico I keep asking me what it means. They simply want a Spanish translation for this English verb, something which is just not possible. If you are learning English, the verb 'get' will accompany you during your trip (just like the verb 'have', click on this link if you want to revisit my post about the verb 'have'). Let's begin. The verb 'get has multiple uses in English : 

1. 'Get' as a normal verb :

When you studied irregular verbs at school,  the  teacher probably told you that 'get' is a synonym for 'conseguir' ('achieve') and this can be true : 

- I got 10 in the English exam (=achieve)

However, 'get' has multiple meanings :

- I got an email from my boss (=received).

- We need to get bread for the dinner (=buy).

- John got a taxi to the airport (=take).

- We got a cold after skiing. (=catch).

- You still don't get it. (=understand).

- Now, he gets a lot of money in his new job (=earn).

'Get' can sometimes surprise it because it can work as an auto-antonym :

- I need to get Laura a present for her birthday (=buy).

- I got an awful present from Laura (=receive).

When 'get' is followed by the preposition 'to', it means 'arrive'.

- After ten hours, I finally got to the United States (=arrive).

2. 'Get' + adjectives 

This is a special use of 'get'. In this case 'get' works as a copular verb (followed by a subject complement). This use normally corresponds to reflexive verbs in Spanish (verbs finished in 'se').  In all these cases, 'get' is a synonym for 'become.' Have a look : 

ENGLISH	SPANISH
Get married	Casarse
Get divorced	Divorciarse
Get engaged	Prometerse
Get ready	Prepararse
Get angry	Enfadarse
Get bored	Aburrirse / hartarse
Get tired	Cansarse
Get lost	Perderse

Get dressed

Vestirse

Get naked

Desnudarse

There are other examples where 'get' doesn't correspond with reflexive verbs in Spanish : 

- The cinema is getting more and more expensive (=become).

3. 'Get' + prepositions/adverbs

In basic levels, 'get' is associated to means of transport :

We use 'get on' to get on board all the means of transport (the bus, the train, the ship, the plane, the bike, the motorbike...), except the car (or similar). We use 'get off' to descend from the previous means of transport. 

The children are getting on the bus.
From : https://clipartfest.com/categories/view/0507004ce4bf4eaff5c97d6bcbfa320ca3666a7d/getting-on-the-bus-clipart.html

The children are getting off the bus.
From : https://clipartfest.com/categories/view/84b97c67db0570d289c34b08697f3677886688d8/get-off-the-bus-clipart.html

The car, however, is different. With the car, van and taxi, we use 'get into' to go onboard, and 'get out of' to descend. 

The man is getting into the car.
From : https://clipartfest.com/categories/view/31da91539baba464590a8e8180955dac49f13e7c/getting-in-the-car-clipart.html

The boy is getting out of the car.
From : https://es.dreamstime.com/stock-de-ilustraci%C3%B3n-el-salir-del-muchacho-del-coche-verde-image70687530

However, this is going to get more complicated. 'Get' is the protagonist of a great deal of phrasal verbs, prepositional verbs and phrasal-prepositional verbs. 

Get up : I get up at six o'clock every day (=stand / sit up).

Get on (well) with : He doesn't get on well with his mother-in-law. They argue all the time (=have a good relationship). 

Get along : They argue all the time. They don't get along (=have a good relationship). 

Get by : I get by with 300 euros a month. / I can't speak Chinese well. I only get by in Chinese (=to survive, or manage to do something)

Get away (with) : He killed him and got away with it (=escape). 

Get across : He managed to get his message across (=communicate).

Get over : After a long week, he finally got over the flu (=recover).

Get around : He likes getting around the city (=travel). 

Get through : I have to get through with a lot of work (=finish).

                          I phoned you but I couldn't get through (=communicate).

Get back : I have to go. I need to get back to work (=return).

4. Get in passive sentences 

In English, the passive is normally formed with the verb 'to be.' However, only when the subject  is a person, we can use 'get' in the passive. Have a look at the examples : 

- In Spain, teachers get paid less than in England. 

- Paul got fired yesterday. 

5.'Get' in causative constructions

In English, we can use the structure 'passive subject' + verb 'get'/'have'+ object + participle, to indicate that someone does something for you. It has passive meaning : 

'I got my hair cut yesterday by the hairdresser.' = The hairdresser cut my hair yesterday.

'I got my car painted last summer.' = A painter painted my house last summer. 

Another possibility is to use the structure 'get + person +participle', for example, 'smoking will get you killed.'

Yet another option is to follow the structure : subject + verb 'get' + person + to-infinitive : 'I got my assistant to look for information about new technologies.' (=force / make) 'I made my assistant look for information about new technologies.'

6. Expressions with 'get'

There are some important expressions with 'get' my favourite being : 'you have to get going' (=get started), or get to know a person (=when you finally really know someone). 

Well, as you know, the verb 'get' in English is pretty complicated. I hope I have shed some light and that know you have got to understand it better, he he. 

See you around.

False friends can be real friends

How is your weekend going ?

I hope you will be enjoying it pretty much. Last week, I wrote an entry about false friends. This week I intend to write a more original post about false friends. As you can remember, false friends are words that have a similar or identical form with words from other languages, but a very different, unexpected meaning. 

However, false friends, as some friends, can have two sides: they have an unexpected meaning, and a similar expected meaning. This is what I am going to analyze today in my post. Some false friends that, in some restricted contents, have the meaning that we expect. 

From : http://www.safetysignsandppe.co.uk/product/temporary-road-sign-diversion-ahead/

Let's begin :

WORD	UNEXPECTED MEANING	SIMILAR MEANING	SENTENCES
Succeed	a) Triumph, get success.	b) To come after another thing in a series (suceder). c) To replace someone (suceder).	a) He succeeded in building a company from scratch (‘tener éxito’). b) The calm succeeded the rain (‘sucedió’). c) Felipe IV succeed king Juan Carlos in the throne of Spain (‘sucedió).
Realize / Realise	a) Notice, become aware of …	b) To make something real.	a) He realized he had forgotten his keys at home. (‘se dio cuenta’) b) He realized his dream of becoming a singer (‘realizó’, ‘cumplió’).
Camp	a) A place where a lot of people sleep together.	b) A place where people are imprisoned with inadequate facilities.	a) My son is in a summer camp (‘campamento’). b) During the War, a lot of Jews were held in concentration camps (‘campos de concentración).
Promotion	a) To improve one’s job, position or salary.	b) A special offer to get consumers to buy a product.	a) There’s a special promotion this week : 3 Kit-Kat for 1 euro (‘promoción’). b) He got the promotion he was waiting for. Now he earns more money a month and works for less hours (‘ascenso’).
Attend	a) To go to or be present in an event.	b) To take care of or look after someone. c) To pay attention.	a) He didn’t attend the meeting because he was sick (‘asistió a’) b)The nurse attended to her patient’s call (‘atendió’). c) You must attend when the teacher is speaking (‘atender’).
Chorus	a) Refrain, part of the song that is repeated.	b) Choir, a group of people singing together.	a) This song is fantastic. I can’t get its chorus out of my head (‘estribillo’) b) The chorus at the church is superb. They have heavenly voices (‘coro’).
Content	a) Substance, ingredients.	b) Happy, satisfied.	a) I like the content of this lasagna (‘contenido’) b) He is content today. His son has just been born (‘contento’)
Condition	a) Illness, health problems.	b) Circumstances. c) State.	a) He has a heart condition (‘illness’). b) I will accept the job only under my conditions (‘condiciones’). c) This house is in a terrible condition (‘condición’, ‘estado’)
Molest	a) To harass someone sexually.	b) To bother, upset of annoy someone.	a) The police caught him when he was molesting the girl (‘acosando sexualmente’). b) Bullies molest their victims at school (‘molestan’).
Support	a) To encourage, to give help.	b) To bear weight, to sustain.	a)  Jane supported Stephen when his mum passed away (‘apoyó’). b) The columns support the building (‘soportan’).
Relative	a) Member of the family.	b) Having to do with, connected with, associated with.	a) He is my relative. I think he is my grand uncle (‘familiar’). b) These were the facts relative to the aggression (‘relativos’).
Casual	a) Informal.	b) By coincidence.	a) He is wearing casual clothes. It’s an unimportant event (‘informal’). b) That was a casual encounter (‘casual’, ‘fortuito’).
Facility	a) A building prepared to provide a given service.	b) Ease, lack of difficulty.	a) The sports centre has great, outstanding facilities to do sport (‘instalaciones’). b) This computer can be used with great facility (‘facilidad’).
Public	a) Private (in education) .	b) Open to all people.	a) He must be rich because he goes to a public school where the tuition fees are outrageous (‘privado’). b) This event is public : everyone can attend (‘público’)
Diversion	a) Detour in a road or lane.	b) Enjoyment or pleasure.	a) This street is closed to traffic, but there’s a diversion on the right (‘desvío’) b) Video games are his favourite diversion (‘diversión’, ‘pasatiempo’).

Well, as you have seen, English can be difficult and contradictory some times. but this  is precisely what makes it a daunting and challenging language, don't you think ?