IDIOMS WITH: OMBLIGO

 

Arrugársele (encogérsele) el ombligo a alguien Get cold feet

David estaba dispuesto a firmar, pero en el último momento se le arrogó el ombligo David was ready to sighn but in the last minute he got cold feet

— “… al ser informado de que había sido espiado se le había encogido en ombligo.” La Vanguardia, 16/06/1995. Esp.

Contemplarse (mirarse) el ombligo Contemplate one´s navel

Debes tomar una decisión en vez de contemplarte el ombligo You must make a decision instead of contemplating your navel

— “Estamos finalmente superando una época de autocomplacencia, de mirarnos el ombligo…” La Vanguardia, 01/07/1994. Esp.  

Ser (creerse) el ombligo del mundo One thinks the world revolves around one

David se cree importante y que es el ombligo del mundo David believes himself important and that the world revolves around him

— “… a veces los universitarios nos creemos el ombligo del mundo.” La Vanguardia, 14/04/1994. Esp.

DEAR Y EXPENSIVE

Decimos "dear friend, she is very dear to me" que equivale al castellano poético "caro amigo" con el significado de "querido". Pero tanto "dear" como "expensive", aún significando lo mismo tienen matices:

Expensive: Se aplica a algo que cuesta mucho dinero. (caro) 

Dear: Se aplica a algo que cuesta más de lo que vale. (costoso)

Inexpensive da a entender que es una ganga. Cheap sería de bajo precio y calidad.

¿LA GRIPE SE PEGA?

Parece que a la gente actual le encanta hablar de enfermedades. Esta gente que sufre de hipocondria, se alimenta de información médica de segunda mano, via televisión, Instagram, YouTube, y de lo que le cuentan amistades y parientes. Tan pronto saben de que fulano de tal tiene una enfermedad, la pregunta de rigor es: ¿Se pega? Aquí "pegar" significa que es contagioso. Nosotros tenemos el problema bilingüe de estar al tanto en dos idiomas. Pues es "is it catching?" Everything is catching, todo se pega, y muy en especial la estupidez y la falta de rigor. 

¿FEMALE O WOMAN?

 

El idioma inglés es consciente de las desventajas de no tener siempre género en los sustantivos. Si digo que voy a salir a tomar café "with a friend" no doy información sobre si es hombre o mujer. En realidad no importa, pero a veces es esencial dar esa información. El inglés, como todos los idiomas, recurren a triquiñuelas para expresar una idea. Voy a tomar café "with a female friend" o "with a woman friend" aclara el sexo del "friend." Yo no doy esa información porque, creo, no es relevante: "a friend" es "a friend" independientemente de si es "female" o no. ¿Verdad? 

Woman: Se refiere a una persona del género femenino, de más de 18 años. "She is an intelligent and healthy woman." Se emplea para identificar el género de nombres: "policewoman, woman friend, womandriver..." 

Female: Describe el sexo de persona o animal: "a female cat, a female elephant", sin importar edad. Y también se emplea para identificar el sexo de sustantivos: "female nurse, female teacher, female boxer." Yo prefiero "female teachers" porque creo que tienen más paciencia. 

El contexto siempre nos guiará, y las formas sociales también. 

IDIOMS: OIL

Burn the midnight oil Quemarse las cejas

Goethe burnt the midnight oil all his life, writing Goethe se quemaba las cejas escribiendo, toda su vida

— “State lawmakers and the governor are burning the midnight oil.” WTNH, CT - 24 Jul 2003. USA.

Give (get) a dose of strap oil Zurrar (curtir, sacudir, cascar, calentar) la badana

If you keep on talking like that you are going to get a good dose of strap oil Si continúas hablando así te van a zurrar la badana

Oil (grease) someone´s hand (palm) Untar, engrasar

If we oil the Mayor´s hand he will sign the contract Si untamos al alcalde, firmará el contrato

Pour (throw) oil on the flames Echar leña al fuego

Don´t mention money or you´ll be pouring oil on the flames No menciones lo del dinero o echarás leña al fuego

— “Careful not to throw any oil on the flames because of their invasion of Iraq, the United States gave up any idea of having China condemned.” Reporters Sans Frontièrs, 24 Jul 2003. France.

Pour oil on troubled waters Apaciguar (calmar) los ánimos, templar gaitas

I´m just trying to pour oil on troubled waters Trato de apaciguar los ánimos

— “And, now Rann is back from overseas, is he pouring oil on troubled waters? Er... no - according to the state´s Labor Right...” Crikey, 13 Jul 2003. Aus.

The squeaky (squeaking) wheel gets the oil El que no llora, no mama

You must complain because the squeaky wheel gets the oil Tienes que quejarte porque el que no llora, no mama

 

AGUAS AND DUST AND THE I.Q. OF ChatGPT

 I often feel very discouraged when composing my PHRASEOLOGICAL DICTIONARY, in English and Spanish. Over four years, several hours a day, trying to figure out how to parallel expressions in both languages, is a daunting experience, especially for me, endowed with a rather limited I.Q. But today, somehow, I feel more cheerful about the whole business and have been playing, taunting, poor old ChatGPT, having fun, and chuckling at the weird occurrences of that AI. (We are still waiting to be told the exact I.Q. of the Intelligence of ChatGPT.) Look up in any dictionary or in ChatGPT or in Google Translate the following idiomatic expressions, independently, in either language, and you´ll see what I mean.  

Cuando (que) las aguas vuelvan a su cauce When dust settles

Cuando la guerra en Ucrania termine, cuando las aguas vuelvan a su cauce, visitaré Kiev When the war in Ukraine ends, when the dust settles, I will visit Kiev

— “… prefieren esperar, haciendo como si nada, esperando que las aguas vuelvan a su cauce.” Lola Beccaria, La luna en Jorge, 2001. Esp. 

When dust settles Cuando las aguas vuelvan a su cauce

When the war in Ukraine ends, when the dust settles, I will visit Kiev Cuando la guerra en Ucrania termine, cuando las aguas vuelvan a su cauce, visitaré Kiev

— “When the dust settles, we´ll know not only the death toll but…” Ian Katz et al., The Guardian Year, 2001. UK.

MODISMO: NOTICE

I know that at a moment´s notice (en cualquier momento), I may be fired. I made a huge mistake that did not escape my boss´s notice (no pasó inadvertido), so I thought that perhaps I should serve notice (hacer saber) that I may leave my employment. I must give prior notice (previo aviso) or else I will not get paid. I will sit tight and wait until further notice (hasta nuevo aviso). Perhaps they will take no notice of my mistake (no see darán cuenta). My future in this company is bleak, I think!

IDIOMS: NOISE

 

Make (a) noise Hacer (meter) ruido, armar barullo

Don´t make a noise! They are all sleeping ¡No hagas ruido! Están todos durmiendo

— “… made a noise like the beating of a tin board with sticks.” Louis Hughes, Thirty Years a Slave, 2004. US.

Make a noise in the world Tener éxito en la vida, ser alguien en la vida

I´m sure your son is going to make a noise in the world Estoy seguro de que tu hijo va a ser alguien en la vida

— “That busy animal that makes such a stir and such a noise in the world…” “Matthew Henry et al., The NIV Matthew Henry…, 1992. US.

POLITICALLY INCORRECT SPANISH

 

Yo estaba negro (angry, peeved, irked) de tanto esperar. Todos en la sala gritaban, se movían y danzaban sin tino, aquello parecía una merienda de negros (Chinese fire drill). Por fin pusimos los términos del contrato negro sobre blanco (in writing), pero me dijeron que me pagarían en negro (under the table). Lo pasé muy mal, las pasé negras (had a tough go) pero en realidad lo que más me puso negro (upset me) fue que todos se reían. "Me ha tocado la negra" (I´m jinxed) pensé para mis adentros y sabía ya que tendría que trabajar como un negro (work one´s ass off) en el futuro. Me vi negro (hard put to) para abandonar aquella oficina. 
Estar negro
Merienda de negros
Negro sobre blanco
Pagar en negro
Pasarlas negras
Poner negro
Tocar la negra
Trabajar como un negro
Verse uno negro

CATALANS AND LANGUAGES

Notwithstanding some Catalans' yearnings for independence from Spain, the fact that all of them are bilingual in Catalan and Spanish is a godsend many other inhabitants in the Peninsula do not have. They need to appreciate that bilingualism is a gift that few people possess. Those rabid Catalanists would erase Spanish from the face of the Catalonia map, condemning the population to be monolingual in a language -Catalan- that, with all due respect, does not have the widespread importance Spanish has in world communication. This shows that politics and personal interests blind politicians who are willing to sacrifice the intellectual future of a population in order to achieve their narrow monetary and power objectives. Being able to speak both Catalan and Spanish is an intellectual gift the rest of Spaniards do not possess. When nationalism and language mix, language is always the loser and it is used as a weapon to divide, not to reconcile.   

CIRCLES

 

Come full circle Volver al principio, estar como antes

In actual fact, we have come full circle En realidad estamos como antes

— “I also came full circle in terms of my interest in domestic workers.” Arvonne Frase et al., Developing Power…, 2004. US.

High circles Altas esferas

He works in high government circles Trabaja en altas esferas gubernamentales

— “… and if the dance of her genes had revolved in high circles, she would have made a very respectable Duchess.” Janine Turner, Holding her Head High…2008. US.

Run around in circles Dar vueltas como un tonto

We are running around in circles getting nowhere Estamos dando vueltas como un tonto sin llegar a ninguna parte

— “… going around in circles, like traveling in vain.” Ewa Mazierska et al., Crossing New Europe…, 2006. US.

Run in circles Dar vueltas tontamente, dar vueltas tontamente

I have a sense of running in circles without a plan Tengo la sensación de que estoy dando vueltas tontamente, sin un plan / We are running in circles getting nowhere Estamos dando vueltas como un tonto sin llegar a ninguna parte

Run rings around someone Dar cien vueltas a

Mary can run rings around all her classmates Mary les da cien vueltas a todos sus compañeros de clase

— “I´ll run rings around you, my friend and I will win.” Dorothy D. Leone, Where the Herring Run…, 2006. US.

Square the circle Hacer la cuadratura del círculo

This is very complicated  It´s like trying to square the circle Esto es muy complicado  Es como hacer la cuadratura del círculo

— “One cannot square the circle of being independent and accountable; it will be either one or the other.” William Cash, Against a Federal Europe, 1991. UK.

Talk in circles Marear la perdiz

I´m not buying it, you are talking in circles No me convences, estás mareando la perdiz

— “… the speaker usually stops talking in circles and usually moves much more directly to the point.” Robert Bolton, People Skills, 2006. US.

Vicious circle Círculo vicioso

We are caught up in a vicious circle Estamos metidos en un círculo vicioso

— “It also introduced that pernicious system, the vicious circle that has suffocated Africa cultures and ensured its under-development.” AllAfrica.com, 3 Aug 2003. S. Afr.

CLARA SÁNCHEZ Y JUAN GABRIEL VÁSQUEZ

Estoy muy preocupado y creo que estoy perdiendo contacto con la realidad, especialmente con la realidad literaria de la lengua castellana. Leo revistas, libros, periódicos, investigo... pero de repente la realidad literaria me sorpende, y me da una buena bofetada. Acabo de enterarme de que una tal Clara Sánchez ha sido nombrada académica de la Real Academia Española. ¡Y yo aquí, en Babia, sin ni siquiera saber quién es la tal Clara! Al parecer es una fina escritora y gran estilista que tiene méritos y premios suficientes (10)  como para que la elijan miembro de la "Docta Casa." Y yo en las nubes, en Babia, en la higuera. ¿Cómo puede ser eso? Pero la cosa no para ahí, resulta que se me ha escapado un eminente escritor, ganador de 18 premios literarios y poseedor de la Cruz de la Reina Isabel la Católica, don Juan Gabriel Vásquez, escritor, ensayista, traductor, novelista, biógrafo, catedrático, un verdadero polígrafo, en resumen... ¡y yo aquí, a verlas venir! ¡No tengo perdón de Dios y me merezco lo que tengo...Nada! Ni premios, ni cruces, ni homenajes, ni parabienes, ni academias... Voy a tener que ponerme las pilas y estudiar la literatura contenporánea en lengua española en serio para estar al día. Ya está bien de hacer el ridículo. Leyendo las muchas páginas laudatorias que le dedica Wikipedia a don Juan Gabriel, se me encienden las mejillas de rubor.  ¿Seré un envidiosillo de esos que abundan en España? Aún así, me hago cruces.    

LANGUAGES IN SPAIN

Several languages and dialects are spoken in Spain. The main ones and their figures are

Catalan (Mayorquín, valenciano): 9,000, 000 speakers.

Gallego: 2,500,000 speakers.

Aranés: 5,000 speakers

Basque: 700,000 speakers.

Spanish: 47,000,000 speakers. 

 

NACER

 

Nacer Be born

Pedro nació en Pittsburgh Peter was born in Pittsburgh

Nacer (venir al mundo) con un pan bajo el brazo Be born with silver spoon in one´s mouth

Pedro nació con un pan bajo el brazo Peter was born with a silver spoon in his mouth

Nacer de culo Be born to bad luck

Siempre tengo problemas; nací de culo I always have problems; I was born to bad luck

Nacer de pie (con estrella) Be born with a silver spoon in one´s mouth, be born lucky

Juan nació de pie y lo tiene todo John was born lucky and he has everything

Nacer para Be born to

Nací para profesor I was born to be a teacher

Se nace, no se hace Born, not made

Los poetas nacen, no se hacen Poets are born, not made

Volver a nacer (nacer de nuevo) Come back to life, be born again

Casi nos atropella ese camión; hemos vuelto a nacer That truck almost ran us over; we have been born again

SPANISH CONGRESS AND LANGUAGES

Like the rest of Europe, Spain is the home of several languages. Spanish is spoken by one hundred percent of the population and the rest, which we could label "regional" languages, Aranés, Gallego, Catalan, Basque, and Valenciano, have varied percentages of native speakers, all of whom, as I have already said, have a good command of Castilian, with different accents, intonations, and phraseology, also comparable to different accents, intonation, and phraseology in German, French, Italian and other continental languages. This is nothing to write home about except that, until a few weeks ago, Spanish was the only means of parliamentary communication in Congress since the advent of democracy after the Dictator´death, 1975. Unfortunately, the Socialist government decided to use languages as political weapons, approving a law permitting regional languages to be used in parliamentary procedure, with simultaneous translations into and from Spanish, forcing Aitor Esteban to address the chamber in a language he doesn't command, Basque. He solves the problem by using both: a few sentences in Spanish, and reading another few sentences in Basque. Gabriel Rufián showed his poor command of Catalan, reading a prepared speech. The result is that the government is using languages as weapons to divide and antagonize, divide et impera. The result is chaos and misunderstandings, not counting the large amount of time and money wasted on gadgets and interpreters. Socialists and communists do not give a hoot about regional languages, but they orchestrate confusion using such languages as weapons.  

ONLINE TRANSLATORS

 I won´t give up. I shall never tire of exposing online and AI translators and warning all and sunder against their shortcomings and dangers. Am I a stick-in-the-mud old foggy? You judge for yourselves. Put them to the test. I have on many occasions, in fact, just now I got "palo en el barro/lodo" and "persona pegada al barro" for stick-in-the-mud. Now everything goes but not quite. Beware of AI and other online translators lest you make a fool of yourself.  

BILINGUALISM AND CULTURE

I intuit that for the average language student, bilingualism refers to the mastering of two languages, right? "In my book", the definition is amplified, engulfing culture as well. And by "culture" I refer to history, music, religion, philosophy, or, in short, the framework of a person´s intellectual baggage which must be duplicated or mastered in the two languages of the true bilingual speaker. If we talk to a Spaniard about Alexander the Great, we must say Alejandro Magno. Saying Alejandro el Grande will sound weird to him. If a Spanish-speaker talks about the Las mil y una noches, he should remember that The Arabian Nights will be more comprehensible to the English speaker.  El lago de los cisnes turns into Swan Lake, as The Flight of the Bumblebee will be better understood than El vuelo del moscardón. An Englishman should not quote The Merry Wives of Windsor and instead mention Las alegres comadres de Windsor. The British cross the English Channel whereas Spaniards cross El Canal de la Mancha. El peñón de Giblartar ends up being The Rock of Gibraltar. I pose that the true bilinguist must be able to carry on a conversation in either language without giving away he speaks the other. A tall order and quite a feat, granted, but a feat that we must all aim for. 

ACTIVE READING ONCE AGAIN

 

I do not mean to flog a dead horse, but I must insist. Sorry. Active reading is the best way to polish, improve, and perfect your foreign language. By active reading, I mean looking up the unknown words and jotting them down in a notebook. If you can copy the context, i.e. the whole sentence where they appear, so much the better. The sentence that illustrates the meaning of a word is called a "citation." Once in a while, you can review your notes, reflect upon them, memorize them, and incorporate them into your vocabulary. This is the way to expand the horizon of your vocabulary. This proactive measure will always keep you in good stead in your language studies. No pain, no gain! 

MURIEL SPARK

We have milestones in our lives, milestones we remember and treasure. I have many intellectual milestones I often remember and always treasure. On Fridays, my two daughters and I used to go to Oxford Bookstore in Madrid, Paseo de la Habana, and buy books to read over the weekend. I acquired many exciting titles from Penguin Books, which we still have. In that bookstore, I was able to discover new British authors. Reviewing some of my books today, I discovered two that I loved: Memento Mori and The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, by a Scottish woman, Muriel Spark (1918-2006). I recommend both titles and the writer who brings fond memories of a gone-by era in my life.  

SUYO

 

Hacer de las suyas Be up to one’s (old) tricks

Víctor está haciendo de las suyas otra vez Victor is up to his old tricks again

— “… los especuladores comenzaron a hacer de las suyas.” El Universal, 12/09/1996. Venez.

Ir uno a lo suyo (la suya) Look out for number one, after (for) himself

Pablo sólo va a lo suyo Paul only looks out for himself

— “… cada uno va a lo suyo sin preocuparse de los demás…” El Diario Vasco, 19/09/1996. Esp.

Ser uno muy suyo Be fussy, particular

Cristián es muy suyo y muy difícil de contentar Christian is very particular and difficult to keep happy

— “Mi marido, que es muy suyo, ha decidido…” Agustín Gómez-Arcos, Queridos míos…, 1994. Esp.

Suyo afectísimo Yours ever, yours truly

Suyo afectísimo, Joe Smith Yours ever, Joe Smith

— “Sin otro particular, se reitera suyo afectísimo, s.s. y amigo…” Julián García Candau, Madrid-Barça, 1996. Esp.

Tardar uno lo suyo Take one´s sweet time

Pablo tardó lo suyo en contestar Paul took his sweet time to answer

— “… y un director que tardo lo suyo en prestiagiarse.” La Vanguardia, 14/01/1994. Esp.

SPANISH IN FIGURES

I acknowledge that counting noses is difficult, but it is even more difficult to count tongues. Wherever you turn, you are confronted with conflicting reckonings about the amounts of people who speak Spanish as their mother tongue, home use, social interaction, and family. Some say 450 million speakers use Spanish as native speakers. Some others elevate the figure to 550 million. Recently, the highest bidder was, so far, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, from Madrid, who elevated the count to 600. According to ChatGPT, the total number is 460 million. Whatever the figure may be, I am not worried: I will never have the chance, or the time, to talk to so many people; besides we talk less and less, in any language so, go figure! Also, the worth of a language does not lie in the amount of speakers it has.    

BACKWARD O BACKWARDS?

Si no tenemos práctica, podemos dudar si escribir backward o backwards. Las dos son correctas, como también los son:
Forward / forwards
Toward / towards
Afterward / afterwards

Y así tenemos: backward and forward o backwards and forwards. So, worry not!    

IN THE COLD LIGHT OF DAY - EN FRÍO (3)

 

Collins Bilingual Online Dictionary gives us an example and a translation for "en frío": "Cuando se contemplan las cifras totales en frío, when one calmly or cooly considers the total numbers." 

Let´s try another approach.
Collins -again- renders "in the cold light of day" thus: "a la luz del día, pensándolo con calma."

In reality, "in the cold light of day" is the perfect equivalent of "en frío": "Cuando se contemplan las cifras totales en frío... When one considers the total numbers in the cold light of day... "En frío", when we are detached and calm and no longer so involved... when we see the issue "in the cold light of day."

It does take time and certain research to find the exact equivalents of idiomatic expressions, in different languages. 

 

EN FRÍO (2)

 

El Diccionario de María Moliner explica que la frase "en frío" significa: "sin estar emocionalmente influido por las circunstancias." Y el DRAE dice: "Con distancia de la emoción producida por una situación." Ninguna de las dos definiciones son dechados de rigor, pero nos valen. "Ayer, en la fiesta, le dije a Petra que la quería pero hoy, en frío, no estoy tan seguro." No se puede traducir al inglés por "in cold."

"Después de dos días, lo piensas en frío y lo llevas mejor." (Diario de Navarra, 12/05/1999.)

"Aunque, juzgados en frío, la mayoría de los personajes merecerían una severa condena moral." Mario Vargas Llosa, La verdad de las mentiras, 2002.

IN THE COLD LIGHT OF DAY (1)

 

Ya sabemos que la fraseología propia de un idioma, de cualquier idioma, presenta complejos retos y que por eso se debe aprender de memoria o consultar diccionarios de prestigio que nos guiarán y explicarán el significado. Este es el caso del modismo inglés "in the cold light of the day" que no es "en la fría luz del día." El Cambridge English Dictionary nos explica: "If you think about something in the cold light of day, you think about it clearly and calmly, without the emotions you had at the time it happened... " Y nos da el ejemplo: "The next morning, in the cold light of day, Sarah realized what a complete idiot she had been."

"I was a bit drunk and very enthusiastic, and I told her I loved her, but in the cold light of day I realized my mistake."

"Seemed like a good idea to purchase at the time, but in the cold light of day, what on earth was I thinking?" (Tim Healing, Three Men in a Niva, 2007.)

"However, in the cold light of day, this hope seems fragile."