Meaning:<\/strong> To pull someone’s leg<\/p>\n “Tomar el pelo<\/em>” literally means “to take the hair,” and is used when someone is tricking or making fun of someone else, but in a good-natured way. So if a friend tells you he won $10 million, you might say:<\/p>\n “Me est\u00e1s tomando el pelo<\/strong>.<\/em>” (You’re pulling my leg.)<\/p>\n Meaning:\u00a0<\/strong>To be a piece of cake<\/p>\n The literal translation of “ser pan comido<\/em>” is “to be bread eaten,” and it means that something is very easy to do. It’s the English equivalent of saying something is a piece of cake. For example:<\/p>\n \u201cEl trabajo es pan comido.<\/strong><\/em>\u201d (The job is a piece of cake.)<\/p>\n Meaning:<\/strong> To be a little crazy<\/p>\n “Estar como una cabra<\/em>” is a commonly used Spanish idiom for when somebody is doing something bizarre or a little out of the ordinary. The literal translation is “to be like a goat,” and the English equivalent is saying someone is a little nuts or crazy:<\/p>\n \u201cEsta noche est\u00e1s como una cabra.<\/strong><\/em>\u201d (Tonight you are a little crazy.)<\/p>\n Meaning:\u00a0<\/strong>To be straightforward \/ To tell it like it is<\/p>\n The literal translation of “no tener pelos en la lengua<\/em>” is “not to have hairs on your tongue.” This Spanish idiom means that someone is a straight shooter and will always speak their mind:<\/p>\n \u201cMi amigo no tiene pelos en la lengua<\/strong>.<\/em>” (My friend tells it how it is.)<\/p>\n Meaning:\u00a0<\/strong>To spare no expense<\/p>\n “Tirar la casa por la ventana<\/em>” is literally translated as “to throw the house through the window,” and it means that no expense has been spared or that money is no object:<\/p>\n \u201cTir\u00e9 la casa por la ventana<\/strong> cuando compr\u00e9 mi nuevo coche.<\/em>\u201d (I spared no expense when I bought my new car.)<\/p>\n Meaning:\u00a0<\/strong>To be stunned<\/p>\n “Quedarse de piedra<\/em>” is literally to “stay like a stone,” and it means to be amazed. In other words, you’re so stunned by something that you stay like a stone:<\/p>\n \u201cMe qued\u00e9 de piedra<\/strong> cuando me dijo la historia.<\/em>\u201d (I was stunned when he told me the story.)\u00a0<\/p>\n Meaning:\u00a0<\/strong>To say something you didn’t mean<\/p>\n “Lo dijo de labios para fuera<\/em>” is literally translated as “he said it from the lips outwards,” and it means that a person didn\u2019t mean what they said:<\/p>\n \u201c<\/strong>Lo dijo de labios para fuera<\/strong> cuando dijo que era culpable.<\/em>\u201d (He didn\u2019t mean it when he said he was guilty.)<\/p>\n Meaning:\u00a0<\/strong>To be very angry<\/p>\n “Estar hecho un aj\u00ed<\/em>” is literally translated as “to be made a chili,” and it means to be very angry about something:<\/p>\n \u201cNo le gust\u00f3 el resultado. Est\u00e1 hecho un aj\u00ed.<\/strong><\/em>\u201d (He didn\u2019t like the outcome. He\u2019s very angry.)<\/p>\n Meaning:\u00a0<\/strong>To put the cart before the horse<\/p>\n “Empezar la casa por el tejado<\/em>” is literally “to start the house by the roof,” and it means to put the cart before the horse, or to have things in the wrong order:<\/p>\n “Si empez\u00e1ramos la construcci\u00f3n sin los fondos, estar\u00edamos empezando la casa por el tejado.<\/strong><\/em>” (If we started construction without the funds, we’d be putting the cart before the horse.)<\/p>\n Meaning:\u00a0<\/strong>To be fit as a fiddle<\/p>\n “Estar m\u00e1s sano que una pera<\/em>” is literally translated as “to be healthier than a pear.” The English equivalent is to be as fit as a fiddle, and it means that someone feels great and is very healthy:<\/p>\n \u201cMi abuela tiene 85 a\u00f1os, pero est\u00e1 m\u00e1s sana que una pera<\/strong>.<\/em>\u201d (My grandmother is 85, but she\u2019s as fit as a fiddle.)<\/p>\n Meaning:\u00a0<\/strong>To be in a bad mood<\/p>\n “Tenemos un humor de perros<\/em>” is literally translated as “to have a mood of dogs,” and it means to be in a bad mood:<\/p>\n \u201cEllos tienen un humor de perros<\/strong> porque no aprobaron los ex\u00e1menes en la universidad.<\/em>” (They’re in a bad mood because they didn’t pass their exams at the university.)<\/p>\n Meaning:\u00a0<\/strong>To make one’s mouth water \/ To be mouthwatering<\/p>\n “Se me hace agua la boca<\/em>” is a common Spanish idiom translated as “it makes my mouth water,” meaning that an item of food or a meal is so delicious it makes the saliva flow in a person\u2019s mouth:<\/p>\n Se me hace agua la boca<\/strong> solo pensar en la paella.<\/em>\u201d (It makes my mouth water just thinking about paella.)<\/p>\n Meaning:\u00a0<\/strong>To be loaded [with cash]<\/p>\n “Tiene m\u00e1s lana que un borrego<\/em>” translates as “he has more wool than a lamb,” and it means that a person is loaded with cash:\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201c\u00c9l pag\u00f3 la cuenta en el restaurante porque tiene m\u00e1s lana que un borrego<\/strong><\/em>\u201d<\/strong>. (He paid the bill in the restaurant because he’s loaded with cash.)<\/p>\n Meaning:\u00a0<\/strong>To do something pointless \/ To put a drop in the bucket<\/p>\n “Echar agua al mar<\/em>” is literally translated as “to throw water into the sea,” a Spanish idiom used in some Spanish-speaking regions to mean that something is pointless:<\/p>\n \u201cTratar de convencerla es como echar agua al mar<\/strong>. Ella nunca va a cambiar.<\/em>” (Trying to convince her is pointless. She’s never going to change.)<\/p>\n Meaning:\u00a0<\/strong>To be at that awkward age<\/p>\n This literally means “to be in the age of the turkey,” which fits the idiomatic meaning perfectly since it’s used to say “at that awkward age:”<\/p>\n Miguel, tienes 35 a\u00f1os ya, deja de hacer el tonto. \u00a1Ya no est\u00e1s en la edad del pavo<\/strong>!<\/em>\u00a0\u2014 Miguel, you are 35 already, stop playing the fool. You are not at that awkward age any more!<\/p>\n Meaning:\u00a0<\/strong>To turn the tide<\/p>\n While you can flip a tortilla while cooking, this phrase can also refer to turning the tide:<\/p>\n \u00cdbamos perdiendo, pero le dimos la vuelta a la tortilla<\/strong> y al final ganamos. \u2014<\/em>\u00a0We were losing, but we turned the tide and ended up winning.<\/p>\n Meaning:\u00a0<\/strong>There is no comparison<\/p>\n This literally means “there is no color,” but it is really saying that something cannot compare:<\/p>\n Mi coche es mucho m\u00e1s r\u00e1pido que el tuyo. \u00a1No hay color! <\/strong><\/em>\u2014 My car is much faster than yours. There\u2019s no comparison!<\/p>\n Meaning:\u00a0<\/strong>To be broke<\/p>\n This literally translated to “be without white,” but blanca\u00a0<\/em>was actually a Spanish coin in the 16th century, so this phrase is really used to say that you don’t have any money:<\/p>\n He gastado todos mis ahorros para comprar un coche y ahora estoy sin blanca<\/strong>. \u2014\u00a0<\/em>I have spent all my savings to buy a car and now I am penniless.<\/p>\n Meaning:\u00a0<\/strong>To rain cats and dogs<\/p>\n Literal translation: <\/strong>to rain to pitchers<\/p>\n English meaning: <\/strong>to rain cats and dogs<\/p>\n This literally means “to rain to pitchers,” but is more easily understood as “it’s raining cats and dogs.”<\/p>\n Estaba lloviendo a c\u00e1ntaros<\/strong>, as\u00ed que no fuimos al concierto. <\/em>\u2014\u00a0It was raining cats and dogs, so we didn\u2019t go to the concert.<\/p>\n Meaning:\u00a0<\/strong>To go to bed early<\/p>\n This literally means “to go to bed with the hens” but refers to someone going to bed very early:<\/p>\n Son las 4 de la tarde y ya est\u00e1s cansado. Me parece que hoy te vas a acostar con las gallinas<\/strong>.\u00a0\u2014<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0It\u2019s 4 p.m. and you\u2019re already tired. I think you\u2019ll be going to bed very early today.<\/p>\n Meaning:\u00a0<\/strong>To be a night owl<\/p>\n While this one technically means “to be a night bird,” you can probably catch on that this is the same as a “night owl” in English:<\/p>\n Me gusta estudiar por la noche. Soy un ave nocturna<\/strong>. \u2014<\/em>\u00a0I like studying at night. I am a night owl.<\/p>\n Meaning:\u00a0<\/strong>To be like looking for a needle in a haystack<\/p>\n![\"spanish](\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/site\/\/2\/spanish-idioms-1.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n2. Ser pan comido<\/em><\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n3. Estar como una cabra<\/em><\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n4. No tener pelos en la lengua<\/em><\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n5. Tirar la casa por la ventana<\/em><\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n6. Quedarse de piedra<\/em><\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n7. Lo dijo de labios para fuera<\/em><\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n8. Estar hecho un aj\u00ed<\/em><\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n9. Empezar la casa por el tejado<\/em><\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n10. Estar m\u00e1s sano que una pera<\/em><\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n11. Tener un humor de perros<\/em><\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n12. Se me hace agua la boca<\/em><\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n13. Tiene m\u00e1s lana que un borrego<\/em><\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n14. Echar agua al mar<\/em><\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n15. Estar en la edad del pavo<\/em><\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n16. Darle la vuelta a la tortilla<\/em><\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n17. No hay color<\/em><\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n18. Estar sin blanca<\/em><\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n19. Llover a c\u00e1ntaros<\/em><\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n20. Acostarse con las gallinas<\/em><\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n21. Ser un ave nocturna<\/em><\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n22. Ser como buscar una aguja en un pajar<\/em><\/h2>\n