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10 expressions that are not so easy to figure out.
| Expression | Approximate literal translation (what you might think you actually heard) | Explanation |
| mirar feo a alguien.(MX) | to look ugly at someone? to uglily look at someone? to give someone an ugly look? | It could be a dirty look, but I would say that it’s more like an angry look. Someone gave me an angry look. A look of disapproval. |
| ser un montonero (MX) | un montón de is a bunch of. | This is hard to translate, but it refers to a person who wants to fight or bullies someone but never alone but in a group. He or she calls his buddies to bully one single person. Like a gang attacking only one person. To a certain degree, the montonero is a coward because he can’t deal with the problem alone. |
| A la mejor. A lo mejor. | At the best? To the best? To the better? | This is a way to say maybe, perhaps, and it never takes the subjunctive. It’s used in Mexico, in Argentina, so maybe it’s used in all countries in between, so it is odd that this a la mejor expression is not mentioned in most grammar books. |
| en estado inconveniente (MX) | what? inconvenient state? | One of the translations for inconveniente is inappropriate. So an inappropriate state in Mexico would be a drunk person. En estado inconveniente is a euphemism for a person who is drunk at the moment. Under the influence. |
| Ser un relajo (MX) | what? To be relaxed? | To be a mess, to be messy, to be complicated. |
| Darse una manita de gato (MX) | Literally: To give oneself a cat’s little paw. | Like when a cat grooms itself with its paws. I would say that this verb is for women and it means to give herself a quick makeup. For example when you have an unexpected guest at your house. When you need to rush somewhere, you need to tidy yourself up quickly. The difference between mano de gato, and manita de gato, is that the diminutive makes it a quick or superficial one. |
| ¿quién dijo “yo”? | Who said “me”? Who said “I”? | Who volunteers? Any volunteers? Usually, you would raise your hand if you want to volunteer. |
| sin falta. Hacer algo sin falta. | To do something without fault? | It basically means to do something and no excuses! |
| luego luego. (MX) | later later? What? | For some reason, luego repeated twice and fast like a single word luegoluego means immediately, right away in Mexico. |
| El príncipe azul. | The prince blue? The blue prince? | Prince charming. Principe azzurro in Italian, which is the same color blue meaning as in Spanish. |
Originally published on 20210725 (spanishNY.com)
