“No pasa nada”
Literal meaning: “Nothing passes”
Meaning in conversation: ‘It’s no trouble,’ ‘Don’t worry about it’
Example:“Professor, I’m going to be late for class tomorrow!” “Oh, nothing passes!”
“Estar como abeja en flor”
Literal meaning: “To be like a bee on a flower”
Meaning in conversation: To be feeling excellently (In English, ‘To be on top of the world’)
Example:“What a great day! I got a raise at my job, I’ve lost ten pounds, and I’ve got a hot date tomorrow! I feel like a bee on a flower!”
“Ahogarse en un vaso de agua”
Literal meaning: “To drown in a glass of water”
Meaning in conversation: To become upset over nothing of consequence
Example:“I can’t believe that I forgot to put out the appetizers before you all came over to my party! I’m absolutely mortified!” “Oh, don’t drown in a glass of water, it’s fine.”
“Como un gato en chifa”
Literal meaning: “Like a cat in a Chinese restaurant”
Meaning in conversation: To be very scared or in danger
Note: this is a Peruvian idiom. It’s not a very tasteful thing to say.”
Example:“I was so terrified when I walked by the prison. I felt like a cat in a Chinese restaurant.”
“Me cago en tu puta madre”
Literal meaning: “I shit on your whore of a mother!”
Meaning in conversation: An insult. ‘You motherfucker!’ in English.
Example:“You know how you asked me to stop borrowing your car? Well I did it again. And it was stolen.” “I shit on your whore of a mother!”
“Me cago en Dios”
Literal meaning: “I shit on God”
Meaning in conversation: Used under moments of extreme frustration or annoyance. (‘Fuck me!’ in English.)
Example:“I shit on God, I’m so late for this meeting that I might get fired.”
“Está en su salsa”
Literal meaning: “To be in his/her sauce”
Meaning in conversation: ‘To be in one’s element,’ ‘To be right at home’
Example:“Look at him. Even though he just got here, he’s already making friends, pouring drinks, and chatting with girls. He’s in his sauce all right.”
“No hay peor ciego que el que no quiera ver”
Literal meaning: “There is no worse blind man/woman than he/she who doesn’t want to see”
Meaning in conversation: ‘Nothing is worse than the willfully ignorant’
Note: This may stretch the meaning of ‘idiom’ a bit. It very well may be a phrase or saying. But there’s certainly a deeper meaning to the phrase than what is revealed with simple translation.
Example:“I can’t believe that he won’t admit that his own son has a drinking problem!” “There is no worse blind man than he who doesn’t want to see
“Dios da pan a quien no tiene dientes”
Literal meaning: “God gives bread to those without teeth”
Meaning in conversation: Luck is always reserved for (or given to) those who can’t take advantage of it
Example:“How does Pablo know so many beautiful women? He’s hopeless with women” “His father owns a modeling agency.” “What a waste! Why can’t I have a father who does that?” “God gives bread to those without teeth.”
“Me cago en la leche”
Literal meaning: “I shit in the milk”
Meaning in conversation: Another phrase used to express extreme anger or frustration
Example:“Oh no, they took my wallet! I shit in the milk!”
“Irse el santo al cielo”
Literal meaning: “To go to heaven’s saint”
Meaning in conversation: To lose one’s thought, to forget what one was thinking about
Example:“We were talking about the project when I suddenly remembered all the work that I have to do at home, and then I went to heaven’s saint!”
“Cuatro gatos”
Literal meaning: “Four cats”
Meaning in conversation: No one was there.
Example:“The party was horrible. I don’t think anyone but us went. Four cats.”
“Quedarse pajarito”
Literal meaning: “To stay a little bird”
Meaning in conversation: To be very, very cold
Example:“Once I waited for a car to pick me up for three hours in January in the middle of a snow storm! I stayed a little bird and had to take a hot shower to warm up.”
“Cada cabeza es un mundo”
Literal meaning: “Every head is a world”
Meaning in conversation: Everyone has their own opinions (‘To each his own’ in English)
Example:“I don’t really care for peanut butter sandwiches, but she really loves them. Every head is a world, I guess.”
“Media naranja”
Literal meaning: “Half orange/grapefruit”
Meaning in conversation: True love, soul mate
Example:“We went to their wedding, and you can see that they really love each other. I hope I can find a half orange like that one day.”
“Tirar la casa por la ventana”
Literal meaning: “To throw the house out the window”
Meaning in conversation: To spend a lot of money on a celebration
Example:“This wedding is exorbitant! Lobsters! Steak! An open bar! Limousine service for all the guests! Her parents threw the house out the window when they did this!”
“Ser plato de segunda mesa”
Literal meaning: “To be a dish on the second table”
Meaning in conversation: To be of lesser importance (In English, ‘To play second fiddle’)
Example:(Girlfriend to boyfriend): “You’re so obsessed with football! I feel like I’m a dish on the second table!”
“Es como llevar naranjas a Valencia”
Literal meaning: “It’s like taking oranges to Valencia”
Meaning in conversation: Comment referring to a remarkable display of skill or salesmanship, usually when odds of success appear to be very low (In English, ‘He could sell ice to Eskimos’)
Example:“How did you manage to sell that plumber four plungers?” “Oh, I could take oranges to Valencia if I wanted to.”
“Emborrachar la perdiz”
Literal meaning: “To get the partridge drunk”
Meaning in conversation: To delay speaking about an awkward or unpleasant topic (In English, ‘To beat around the bush’)
Example:“No need to get the partridge drunk. I know you want to talk to me about the outstanding invoice.”
