We’ll look at a couple of idiomatic expressions in English that use “bone”.
“Bone of contention” has as its Spanish counterpart “Manzana de la discordia” which literally means “Apple of discord”.
When something is very dry we describe it as being “bone dry”. In Spanish one might say something is as dry as a raisin, or “mas seco que una pasa”. Interesting that the Spanish equivalents use fruit.
Here are some Spanish sayings involving ears “orejas” or “oidos”
“Asomar (descubrir) la oreja” translates to “To show the ear”. The equivalent saying in English is “To show one’s true colors”. A related idiom is “Verle a uno la oreja” which means “To see one’s ear”. The idiomatic meaning is “to see through someone”.
“Hacer orejas (oidos) de mercader” literally means “To make merchant ears”. The colloquial translation is “To turn a deaf ear”.
Here are two idioms using jewels.
“Boca de oro” means “mouth of gold”. In English a gifted orator is described as “silver tongued”.
In English we have the saying “to cast pearls before swine”. In Spanish one does not go to such expense. Instead, one casts daisies, as in “Echar margaritas a los cerdos”.
Here are some English language idioms, animal related, with their Spanish counterparts.
“To have a frog in one’s throat” in Spanish is “Tener carraspera”.
The game of “leap frog” is “Pidola”
“Rabbit punch” translates to “Golpe en la nuca” or “Blow to the neck”
“Pagar el pato” literally means “To pay the duck”. The colloquial translation is “To foot the bill” or “To take the rap”.
“Estar en los puros huesos” literally translates to “To be in the pure bones”. In English we say “To be nothing but skin and bones”. Here’s another anatomy related saying: “Sentar como anillo al dedo” literally means “To fit like a ring to the finger”. In English we’d say “To fit like a glove”.
“Hay gato encerrado” literally means “There’s a cat shut in”. Idiomatically it means “Something’s fishy” or “I smell a rat”. My Spanish brother-in-law says a similar saying is “Tiene premio” which means “It has prize”.
Here are some sayings involving “agua” or “water”.
“Agua que no has de beber” literally translates to “Water that you should not drink”. The colloquial meaning is “It’s none of your business” or the more old-fashioned version “It’s none of your bee’s wax”.
“Agua pasada no mueve el molino” literally means “Water that has passed does not move the mill”. The idiomatic equivalent in English is “It’s no use crying over spilt milk”.
“Echar agua al mar” means “To throw water into the sea”. The counterpart in English is “To carry coals to Newcastle”.
Here’s an idiom or saying that involves one category in Spanish and another one in English
“Desnudar a un santo para vestir a otro” literally translates to “To take the clothes off of one saint in order to clothe another”. The equivalent in English is “To rob Peter to pay Paul”.
“Bajo siete llaves” literally translates to “Under seven keys”. The equivalent in English is “Under lock and key”.
In English we refer to a “double chin”. In Spanish the term is “papada”.
