CORNUDO AND INSULTED

 

As society progresses towards equality, words are left by the wayside, unused, and now meaningless. The once offensive and much on everybody´s tongue, the Spanish word for cuckold, "cornudo" (also "cabrón") is losing its offensiveness. However, many of these disappearing words are kept very much alive in phraseology. A perfect example is "encima (tras) de cornudo, apaleado", which has the English equivalent of "add insult to injury." Run-of-the-mill workbooks do not list this idiom and I suspect this is because they try to skirt the "cornudo" word. Sánchez Dragó wrote in his El camino del corazón (1990): "Me siento cornudo y apaleado." Someone must have injured him and then, to boot, insulted him. María Moliner tells us that: Frase con que see comenta, en tono de amargura, conmiseración o burla, el hecho de que alguien, después de sufrir un perjuicio, es maltratado o culpado."

EL ESPAÑOL Y LOS IDIOMAS

 

Una de los bulos más extendido es que el español no tiene aptitud para los idiomas. Este fatalismo oriental aplicado a la inteligencia del español medio quiere justificar fallos que nada tienen que ver con la capacidad del cerebro de los habitantes de Hispania. ¿Son los suecos más inteligentes que los españoles? Porque los suecos hablan idiomas foráneos muy bien y los españoles no. ¿Será posible que el español medio tenga un cociente intelectual más bajo que nuestros parientes humanos del norte de Europa? ¿Serán por desgracia más tontos los españoles? No sé. El Dr. James Watson no se ha pronunciado sobre este tema específico todavía y por desgracia para nosotros. Mientras tanto yo creo que tan tontos son los suecos como los españoles. Tan listos son los holandeses como los españoles. Y por lo tanto tenemos dos opciones: Resignarnos a pensar que somos estúpidos y que por eso no hablamos idiomas o creer que algo falla en nuestro sistema educativo o en el carácter local nuestro. Yo, por ejemplo, que también me gusta opinar, ¡no faltaba más!,

·       No creo que el español medio tenga una inteligencia inferior a la del europeo medio.

·       Creo que el sistema educativo español es un desastre, inferior a otros sistemas europeos.

·       Creo que la enseñanza de idiomas en España está en manos de incompetentes que no tienen la menor idea de lo que es aprender idiomas. Esta aseveración la puedo repetir delante de quien quiera y dónde quiera. Esto no es hablar por hablar. Sé lo que digo.

Después de lo dicho, usted debe decidir si es imbécil o no a la hora de tratar de dominar el idioma inglés, o cualquier otro.

(De mi El laberinto del idioma inglés. Hoja de ruta.)

BESIDE Y BESIDES

En momentos de menoscabo me da por pensar que aprender idiomas es una misión imposible. Cierto es que la misma naturaleza del lenguaje, su esencia, es tan escurridiza, tiene tanta plasticidad, es tan cambiante, que lograr agarrarlo, pin it down, es tarea de locos.  Todo esto porque un corrector de texto me ha subrayado beside, indicándome un error. No era error porque empleaba la palabra como al lado, a la vera: She sat beside me, very close to me. Otra cosa es besides, además, es más, más aún (traduzco sin consultar diccionarios): I don´t want to marry you, besides, my wife would not let me. Y por eso debemos aceptar las correcciones automáticas cum grano salis y mucho tiento.   

LABIOS

 

Cerrar los labios Keep one´s mouth shut, lips sealed

Ten los labios cerrados porque esto es un secreto Keep your mouth shut because this is a secret

— “… no me lo dijo, ya que permaneció con los labios cerrados.” Alfonso Vallejo, Hölderlin, 1984. Esp.

Cuando los labios callan, los ojos hablan The heart´s letter is read in the eye

Sabía que no me quería mirándole a los ojos porque cuando los labios callan, los ojos hablan I could tell she didn´t love me by looking at her eyes, the heart´s letter is read in the eye

Morderse los labios Bite one´s lip

Jack iba a decirle pero se mordió los labios Jack was going to say it but he bit his lip

No despegar (descoser) los labios Not say a word, button one´s face (lip), keep one´s mouth shut, keep mum

Tu novia no ha despegado los labios en la cena Your girlfriend has not said a word during suppe

— “El Maestro, que no despegó los labios en todo el tiempo…” Juan José Benítez, Caballo de Troya 1, 1984. Esp.

Relamerse los labios Lick one´s lips

La sopa estaba muy buena y aún me estoy relamiendo los labios The soup was very good and I´m still licking my lips

— “… sacaba una lengua enorme con la que se relamía los labios…” Manuel Vázquez Montalbán, Galindez, 1990. Esp.

Tener los labios sellados One´s lips be sealed

No diré nada. Mis labios están sellados I´ll say nothing. Mi lips are sealed

— “... los guardas y municipales consiguieron arrebatarle una sílaba de sus labios sellados.” Juan José Armas Marcelo, Madrid, distrito federal, 1994. Esp. || “... que durante largo tiempo pensé que moriría con los labios sellados sobre sus claves secretas...” Antonio Larreta, Volavérunt, 1980. Urug.

THE IMPORTANCE OF PHYSICAL PRACTICE IN LANGUAGE LEARNING

Old sayings die hard but I stick to the "practice makes perfect" one because in the case of foreign-language learning, the physical practice of sound making I find essential. We must coordinate the various speech organs and muscles in order to develop backup memory for accurate pronunciation. Thus, if the point of articulation of the Spanish and English /t/ is different, we must practice either sound, in context, in order to imprint our memory with the precise movement to make the sounds. This is a question of repetition, not understanding, and so we make a full circle back to "practice makes perfect".  Physical practice allows learners to develop muscle memory and train their speech organs to produce the desired sounds. It is through repetition and consistent practice that learners can improve their pronunciation skills and strive for greater accuracy.

  

FOSSILIZED SOUNDS AND SECOND LANGUAGE ACCENTS

 

I am not a neuroscientist (whatever that may be) and I know nothing, like Steven Pinker, about how the mind works. However, I have been giving the matter of how mankind learns second languages much thought, and the challenges posed by pronunciation acquisition. Remember that I am sold on bilingualism, whatever the two languages might be, and the benefits derived thereof. One facet of language learning that intrigues me is why it is so difficult to reproduce the sounds of the second language well, which results in "accents". Native speakers can spot an accent when the person opens his mouth. Further even, we can tell what the speaker´s native language is, be it German, Italian, Spanish, or Chinese. My conceit is that the native language, the first we learn, installs itself in our brain cells, and with time it becomes fossilized and rigid.  In older learners, this is known as phonetic perception narrowing. They probably have some sort of a sound immune system that rejects foreign invading sounds. These cells use the old sounds to adapt to the incoming new sounds they do not recognize and even reject. The good news is that, given the plasticity of the brain, with training and repetition, and with good guidance, we can reproduce the new sound. Try it with the /t/ of Time and Tiempo. Targeted practice and training can help individuals improve their pronunciation skills in a second language and acquire a native-like accent.

IDIOM: DISCRETION IS THE BETTER PART...

 

Discretion is the better part of valor Lo cortés no quita lo valiente

Be discrete because discretion, as Shakespeare said, is the better part of valor Seamos corteses porque, como dijo Sakespeare, lo cortés no quita lo valiente

— “Rather than risk trying to give the enormous slab of muscle a spanking, canny team bosses decide that discretion is the better part of valour and hire a child...” Empire Online, 10 June, 2004. UK.

MODISMO: DORMIR COMO...

Dormir a pierna suelta (como un lirón, una marmota, un santo, bendito, leño, tronco, ceporro) Sleep like a log (soundly, baby, top, rock, princess, the dead, stone)

Tu padre está durmiendo a pierna suelta Your father is sleeping like a log

— “Rolando, con tanta píldora en el cuerpo, dormía como un bendito.” José Donoso, Donde van a morir los elefantes, 1995. Chile. 

IDIOM: TO TREAT LIKE DIRT

 

Treat someone like dirt Maltratar a alguien, tratar a patadas

The boss treats me like dirt El jefe me trata a patadas

— “They treat me like dirt.” Beverly LaHaye, Times and Seasons, 2002. US.

MODISMO: MANTENERSE UNO EN SUS TRECE

 

Mantenerse uno en sus trece Stick to one´s guns, stand one´s ground, stand pat, put one´s foot down

Mantente en tus trece, si no se aprovecharán de ti Stick to your guns or else they´ll take advantage of you

— “... de creer que después del síndrome de Vietnam, resultado, al menos en parte, del desconocimiento del terreno y su cultura, los estrategas sigan en sus trece.” La Voz de Galicia, 28/10/2003. Esp.

NATIVE SPEAKERS AND THE COMMAND OF LANGUAGE

An acquaintance of mine´s wife is in the hospital. I recently inquired about her health and got back the following text message in Spanish: "todo sigue igual le pusieron catéter y el riñón a mejorado y siguen haciéndola análisis empezará comer y haber que tal le sienta gracias." I am not trying to make fun in any way. I aim to warn about the linguistic abilities of the average native speaker and that being monolingual, 80 years old, and even well-read, means little about the command one might have of his language. Being a native speaker does not mean having a good language knowledge.   

MODISMO: ENTRAR AL TRAPO

 

Entrar (acudir) al trapo Rise to the bait

David entró al trapo e hizo que los otros querían que hiciese David rose to the bait and did what the others wanted him to do

— “El Nobel rehusó entrar al trapo cuando se le preguntó sobre las nuevas generaciones.” La Vanguardia, 08/04/1994. Esp.

JUAN RAMÓN JIMÉNEZ Y EL HOY

Soy enemigo de libros de autoayuda, de esos que prometen felicidad y paz interior, de manera chabacana y sin profundidad. Esos libros que te dicen que lo importante es el ahora, el momento, el ya, y otras perogrulladas, pero mal explicadas. Soy partidario de los clásicos, de las obras que han perdurado en el tiempo por algún motivo. Y hablando del ahora, del minuto, del momento, del hoy, se me viene a las mientes Juan Ramón Jiménez (1881-1958), Premio Nobel de Literatura, 1956, que en su Diario de un poeta recién casado escribió:

El día de ayer no es sino sueño y el de mañana es sólo una visión. Pero un hoy bien empleado hace de cada ayer un sueño de felicidad y de cada mañana una visión de esperanza. ¡Cuida bien, pues, este día!"

LAST Y LATEST

La diferencia entre last y latest yace en el contexto y en su uso. En una secuencia, last se refiere al último o más reciente. Latest se refiere a lo más reciente. His latest novel, and certainly not his last, is wonderful. Su más reciente novela y esperemos que no la última. The latest news from the Ukraine. The last news report from this station before closing down.   

HOMOPHONES

 A word that has the same sound as another word but a different meaning, and often a different spelling, is a homophone. We must be careful not to confuse them in our writing. We can all fall easily into the trap of misspelling these words. Some examples:

to - two - too

reign - rein - rain

meet - meat

fare - fair

mail - male

sea - see

knight - night - nite

flower - flour

hear - here

pair - pare

right - write

hour - our

for - four

cell - sell

son - sun

won - one

aunt - ant

ALGUNOS OLVIDADOS POR LA RAE

Más de la mitad de los miembros de la Real Academia Española en este momento me son desconocidos. No deja de ser curioso porque me dedico a esto de las letras más de setenta años, con asiduidad, con ahínco y con mucha curiosidad. Un aspecto pueril de mi personalidad es el afán de saber, de tratar de saberlo todo, de estar al día. Me llevo diarios berrinches cuando me hablan de un famoso autor que vende mucho y muy celebrado y del cual yo no sé nada. ¿Cómo es posible? Mi único consuelo es que lo mismo le pasa, y le ha pasado, a la Real Academia Española. La "docta casa" nunca se enteró de la existencia de Francisco Umbral, ni de Caballero Bonald, ni de Fernando Sánchez Dragó. De María Moliner la Academia no quiso saber nada y la pasó por alto. Tampoco se ha percatado de que un tal Vila-Matas escribe novelas. De Eduardo Mendoza y Luis Landero ni hablemos. ¿Andarán tan despistados como yo? De los académicos actuales podemos aplicarles el dicho popular de que ni están todos los que son, ni son todos los que están.  Con todos mis respetos. 

ISSUE AND ITS IDIOMS

 

At issue En disputa

The cuestion of the money is not at issue La cuestión del dinero no está en disputa

Avoid the issue Eludir (esquivar) el problema (la cuestión)

We can´t avoid the issue for ever No podemos eludir el problema siempre

Make an issue of Hacer un problema de

She is trying to make an issue of our divorce Trata de hacer un problema de nuestro divorcio

Take issue with Disentir, estar en desacuerdo con

I must take issue with what you said yesterday Debo disentir con lo que dijo usted ayer

The main(real) issue Lo fundamental

The real issue here is the question of money Lo fundamental aquí es la cuestión del dinero

Without issue Sin descendencia

Victor died without issue Víctor murió sin descendencia

PUNS and RETRUÉCANOS

 

A pun is a form of wordplay that exploits the multiple meanings of a word, or the similarity of sound between different words, to create a humorous or witty effect. Puns often involve clever wordplay, double entendre, or tricks on words. The Spanish equivalent is retruécano, although it is not a well-known word, or even commonly used. Examples are:

-I used to be a baker but I could not make enough dough.

-Why did the bicycle fall over? Because it was two-tired.

-I bought a wooden whistle, but it wooden whistle.

GITANOS

Gypsies reached Spain around AD 1400 and since then they have led a makeshift relationship with the people of the country. They still cling to their customs, tribal laws, and ways of life led by their "ancianos, patriarcas" or elders. The animosity against them is very much alive, even in language. In spite of the new trends against inappropriate, and politically incorrect language, certain expressions can be heard today.  We can hear mothers say to their children: "Lávate la cara y las manos, que vas hecho un gitano." When people live like tramps, "viven como gitanos." I suppose, and wish, this phraseology will eventually die out... In the meantime, vivir como gitanos is to live like tramps, and ir hecho un gitano is to lool like a tramp. And some people ar "sucios como gitanos." And others "mienten como gitanos."

CALLING A SPADE A SPADE

 

Speaking candidly, honestly, directly, and without euphemisms or beating around the bush is expressed in English with the idiomatic phrase to call a spade a spade. In Spanish, we find a similar idiom in llamar al pan, pan, y al vino, vino. "He replied, that the Macedonians were coarse people, they called a spade a spade. If all men would call a spade a spade, it would be one of the bulwarks of morality ." (The New Englander, 1852.)  And closer to us, in David Walker´s book (2009), It´s Time to Call a Spade a Spade. Regardless of what some people might say, you can use the idiom freely. Let us not be harassed by grammar and usage dictators. Language is free. Remember that no offense is taken where none is intended.  

OLDER AND ELDER

Tanto older como elder son formas comparativas de adjetivo old. Older se emplea para comparar la edad de individuos: I am older than my brother. Peter´s wife is older than my wife. Elder se refiere a alguien que es mayor en términos de edad, superioridad, experiencia o jerarquía: The elder members of the group decide. My elder sister. 

Older compara edad, años, y elder se refiere a autoridad y experiencia. 

An elder of the church, se refiere a un anciano de la iglesia, aunque tenga 30 años.

CHINESE FIRE DRILL

A situation of chaos, confusion, or disorganization has been expressed as a Chinese fire drill since the mid-fifties. This is now considered offensive to the Chinese, and individuals of Chinese descent may take offense. The equivalent in Spanish is also politically incorrect, as it may be considered a slur for people of African origin: merienda de negros.  So when a situation is confusing and chaotic, do not use Chinese fire drill or merienda de negros. Remember that forewarned is forearm! 

INDIAN GIVER

 I have found this online for Indian giver: "Indian giver is considered offensive and derogatory. The term has historically been used to stereotype and demean Native Americans by implying that they give or trade something and then take it back. It is important to promote respectful and inclusive language that avoids perpetuating harmful stereotypes or demeaning any particular group of people." I agree with this, of course, but my question is: how can we express that idea now? What do we call a person who gives us a present and after a while wants it back?

THEREFOR OR THEREFORE?

Therefor es menos común y más anticuado que therefore, aunque válido y abundante en los clásicos. Si vemos escrito therefor, no es una errata. Se emplea mucho en textos legales: The defendent insulted the judge; therefor he was sentenced to jail. 

EL SUFIJO -EN PARA FORMAR VERBOS INGLESES

 

Es normal, y peculiar, en inglés, formar verbos de adjetivos añadiendo el sufijo -en. Este sufijo otorga una cierta riqueza y flexibilidad al idioma. Por ejemplo: del adjetivo weak formamos el verbo to weaken.

Más:

Hard - to harden

Soft - to soften

Sick - to sicken

Length - to lengthen

Sweet - to sweeten

Short - to shorten

Sharp - to sharpen

Fresh - to freshen

Fast - to fasten

Dark - to darken

Deep - to deepen

No todos los adjetivos pueden convertirse en verbos añadiendo -en. Los que he transcrito arriba son los más empleados. 

THE SPANISH LANGUAGE DEBATE

 

I have come to the silly conclusion that Spaniards trip on the same stone countless times and enjoy pounding on the same theme repeatedly, flogging the dead horse of their lack of foreign language savvy. In my last post, I mentioned Mr. Núñez Feijoo´s admission that his English is inadequate, which prompted his political adversary, the Socialist Party, to cook up a hasty video making fun of him on TV. O tempora, o mores, as the Navaho Indians used to say years ago. The President of Spain from the New Socialist Party, thinks himself a scholar in the language of Shakespeare. He is very daring because he has a lot to be modest about his English speaking abilities. But, unfortunately, he is a Spaniard, to our common regret, and so he believes that his passing acquaintance with English is a skill he should boast about. Not so. His fellow Communist-Socialists should not attack Mr. Núñez Feijoo for his lack of English and should instead send Mr. Pedro Sánchez to an English-language crash program. Who says? I do. I have heard him, and I am the expert. 

ALBERTO NÚÑEZ FEIJOO - ANA ROSA QUINTANA

 

Alberto Núñez Feijoo is running for the Presidency of the Kingdom of Spain, against the incumbent (and incompetent) socialist-communist Pedro Sánchez. In this morning´s Interview on Telecinco TV, with Ana Rosa Quintana, he showed himself as a true, leveled, serious and trustworthy politician. During the course of the interview, Mr. Núñez Feijoo admitted to a flaw: his lack of skills in the English language, but he did say he already has a teacher and is ready to overcome this weakness. Most Spanish Prime Ministers have been cut from this same cloth, including the communist-socialist Sánchez, although he thinks otherwise. I am sure that Mr. Núñez Feijoo will take up the challenge and make good, especially because he is bilingual in Castillian and Galician. I wish him the best of luck.