IDIOMATIC EXPRESSIONS IN SPANISH

USED TO DESCRIBE THE CHARACTER

SANJA MARIŢIŠ

Introduction

This paper was based on the idea that the classification of idioms

connected with certain themes expressing negative meaning is possible. In

addition, idioms given in this work are not only related by the fact they‘re

describing people‘s character in a negative context, but also they‘re all

used with the Spanish verb to be (ser). Along with the given classification

of idioms taken from the corpus, this paper provides examples and their

translation equivalents. The aim is to reach the relevant and applicable

classification with respect to both source language (Spanish) and target

language (English).

The corpus consists of idioms taken from Diccionario de dichos y

frases hechas, Hablar por los codos, Hablando en plata de modismos y

metáforas culturales and Es pan comido. The translation equivalents were

taken from Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, Osnovni recnik

englesko-srpski i srpsko-engleski, and Oxford Idioms Dictionary. This

paper is an attempt to determine the division of idiomatic expressions with

the verb to be in which they are classified by the themes of animals and

people, personal names, body parts, food, adjectives, adjectives used as

nouns. Taking into consideration the fact that this paper was limited by the

choice of idioms used to describe character, a quality which is considered

to be permanent, the research was started with the selection of idioms used

with that same verb. Further on, the translation equivalents were found and

analyzed. However, for some there were no idiomatic equivalents and

that‘s why expressions were suggested and given instead.

This paper consists of three parts: The introduction, the classification

and the conclusion. The introduction first defines idioms and describes

their usage in a language. This part also deals with the meaning of

character and lists three definitions taken from three different sources: the

internet, psychology book and the dictionary. Furthermore, this part of the

Sanja Mariţiš 347

paper talks about idioms as means of describing human character and

points out the variety of idioms connected especially with the theme of

animals and people. The second part deals with the classification that this

paper has to offer and it represents possible groups with respect to the

types of idioms. A special attention is paid to the group which consists of

idioms connected with the theme of animals and their translation

equivalents. Furthermore, all of the examples taken from the corpus are

followed by the detailed descriptions of their usage and a possible

translation is given for which the native speakers were consulted. The final

part is the conclusion which sums up the whole research and the given

hypothesis.

1. What Is an Idiom

―Idiom‖ most often refers to a phrase or expression that cannot be

understood by knowing its literal meaning or what the individual word in

the phrase means. The phrase is misunderstood when interpreted in a

literal meaning. Although most idiomatic expressions are of primarily

colloquial usage, there are many that are acceptable in standard speech and

writing. The words develop a specialized meaning as an entity, as an

idiom. Moreover, an idiom is an expression, word, or phrase that means

something different from what the words literally imply. When a speaker

uses an idiom, the listener might mistake its actual meaning, if he or she

has not heard this figure of speech before. Idioms are usually not

translated well; in some cases, when an idiom is translated into another

language, either its meaning is changed or it becomes completely

meaningless. Knowing Spanish idioms is essential for understanding and

communicating with native speakers. Since Spanish is spoken in so many

different countries, more caution is recommended when learning idioms.

Before using anything other than what is considered to be the common

expression, one should be attentive about what he is talking and under

which circumstances he is doing so. Considering the fact that character is a

combination of qualities distinguishing a person, words and phrases used

to describe it are numerous. Spanish language, in its richness, boasts with

great number of expressions, phrases and idioms describing character. The

importance of idioms in colloquial language is big and therefore, for a

more precise description, speakers quite often use idioms. Animals have

an important role in metaphoric expressions on which the semantics of an

idiom is based.

In her book, Hablar por los codos, Goradana Vranić says that the

process of learning a language is like building a house. The grammatical

Sanja Mariţiš 348

structure is its foundation, and it prevents the house from falling apart.

The walls and the bricks are the words, the vocabulary and the words

support the roof to complete the house. But for the house to be a real home

it needs decoration, needs idiomatic expressions. That’s why knowing,

understanding and using idioms is a fundamental and the most interesting

aspect of Spanish language and without that, it wouldn’t be what it really

is, a universal, rich and above all a beautiful language.

2. What Is Character

Gerald Erichsen, in Spanish Language Guide defines the character as a

combination of qualities or features that distinguishes one person, group,

or a thing from another and also as a reputation: a stain on one‘s character.

(Gerald Erichsen, http://spanish.about.com/b/)

Character as an expression in psychology has multiple meaning. Many

psychologists use this term instead of the term personality, therefore with

the term ―characterology‖ define psychology of character (personality).

Quite often, using the word character we refer to the moral side of it; we

talk about character when we describe personal behavior according to the

current moral principles. Frequently, it is used to describe will and

―conative‖ characteristics (term given by this author), and so talks about

determination, persistency, consistency in behavior, initiative and all of

their opposite marks as personal characteristics, such as, character.

(Radoniš & Rot 1992)

Character, individuality, personality refer to the sum of the

characteristics possessed by a person. Character refers esp. to moral

qualities, ethical standards, principles. Individuality refers to the

distinctive qualities that make one recognizable as a person differentiated

from others: a woman of strong individuality. (http://dictionary.reference.

com/ browse/character)

Classification

Since we are concentrating only on describing character of a person the

most appropriate verb would be ser because ser is used for qualities that

are permanent or do not change easily. Here are some of the idioms that

are used to describe character:

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1. Idioms Connected with the Theme of Animals and People

Ser un besugo/merluzo means ‗to be ignorant, not very intelligent‘. Fish

are believed to be the least intelligent creatures of all animals. Beside this,

there are other expressions such estar pez en algo which means not to have

a clue about something.

Example: Con lo guapa y fina que es ella nadie se explica cómo puede

estar con ese tío que es un besugo de marca mayor. [No one can

understand what a pretty, nice girl like her is doing with the guy who is

such a bonehead.]

Ser un (mal) bicho ‗a very bad person, malicious, who has bad intentions

and wants to hurt someone‘. Bicho means animal and as such are

considered synonyms, however bicha, feminine form, and culebra (snake)

are often used synonymously.

Example: Sí, cuando estás un ratito con él parece muy simpático, pero

tendrías que verlo cuando se enfada: es un bicho. [When you don‘t spend

that much time with him he seems nice, but you should see him when he

loses his temper: he‘s an animal.]

Ser un buitre means ‗to be a vulture, an animal that feeds from a cadaver,

a leech‘. This person is opportunistic, taking advantage of other people by

taking their money, food, etc.

Example: En vida sus hijos no le hicieron ni caso, pero, como son unos

buitres vinieron al funeral sóolo para reclamar la herencia. [While she

was alive her children never paid any attention to her, but leeches showed

up on her funeral to claim their share.]

Ser un burro/animal is an idiom often used to describe a person which is

ignorant or rude.

Example: ¡Pero qué burro eres! ¡Anda, que decir que la capital de Estados

Unidos es Nueva York! [It‘s amazing how ignorant you are! How can you

say that the capital of United States is New York!]

Ser un cerdo that‘s what we call ‗a person with no scruples, someone that

has bad intentions and also is a slob or a dirty person‘.

Example: Sabías que iban a salir dos plazas y no me dijiste nada para que

no me presentara, ¿verdad? ¿Cómo has podido ser tan cerdo? [You knew

they were looking for two more employees and you didn‘t say anything so

I wouldn‘t apply, didn‘t you? How can you be such a pig?]

Sanja Mariţiš 350

Ser un chivato ‗not to be able to keep one‘s mouth shut, or keep a secret,

be an informer‘. Chivato is a baby of a goat called a kid. It completely

depends on its mother and calls her with its unique high-pitched voice. In

Spanish language word chivato is used for every device that announces

something, for example an alarm.

Example: Como se enteren de que has sido tú el chivato, te matarán.

[They‘ll kill you if they find out you‘ve ratted on them.]

Ser una mosquita muerta (a bird from Sardinia) is used for someone that

doesn‘t seem conflictive, never gives her/his opinion but actually is a bad

person with bad intentions, a hypocrite:

Example: No confío en Jorge. Parece ser una mosquita muerta pero luego

es de esas personas que intente aprovecharse de ti para conseguir algo. [I

don‘t trust Jorge. He certainly seems harmless but he might be a wolf in

sheep‘s clothing. As a matter of fact, he is one of those people who would

do anything to achieve their goals.]

Ser un pájaro de mal agüero means that someone is pessimistic and

brings bad luck. In Spanish we usually use it in an imperative form.

Example: -Seguro que hay mucha gente en el concierto y no conseguimos

entradas. -¡No seas pájaro o de mal agüero! El concierto es en la plaza y

allí puede entrar un montón de gente. Ya verás como no tenemos

problemas. [-There are many people at the concert and we won‘t get the

tickets. - Don‘t put a jinx on us. The concert is on the square and there‘s

going to be enough space for everyone. It‘s not going to be a problem,

you‘ll see.]

2. Idioms Connected with Personal Names

Ser un Adán is an expression we use to describe a person who is untidy or

messy, and neglect his/her own appearance. Two people in history who

didn‘t pay any attention to their physical appearance or what they were

wearing were Adam and Eve.

Example: Mira: la camisa por fuera, la pata del pantalón dentro del

calcetín, un cuello por fuera otro por dentro… Vas hecho un Adán. [Look

at you: shirt not tucked in, trouser leg in your sock, one side of your collar

is out and the other is in… You‘re such a mess.]

Ser una celestina ‗person acting as a mediator in relationship of two

people, someone who tries to find a suitable partner for someone‘.

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Example: Por ahí viene Elena, me voy corriendo porque cuando me ve me

habla de algún amigo suyo que me convendría conocer. Es una celestina

está siempre buscándome pareja. [Here comes Elena, I have to run

because, whenever she sees me, she tells me about some friend of hers she

wants me to meet. She is a real matchmaker, always matching me with

someone.]

Ser la cenicienta describes a person or group of people that has been

unjustly ignored or treated as less important than other people. A story of

Cendrillon by French autor Charles Perrault is about a poor girl mistreated

by her stepmother and her stepsisters.

Example: Está claro que en esta oficina yo no pinto nada, que nadie me

hace caso. Vamos, que soy la cenicienta. [It‘s obvious that in this office no

one cares about my opinion or asks me about anything. Apparently, I‘m

the Cinderella here.]

Ser un donjuán/ligón/Tenorio means ‗to be a womanizer, a Casanova‘. It

alludes to a character from Spanish literature created by Tirso de Molina in

Burlador de Sevilla.

Example: Hasta que se casó con mi abuela, mi abuelo tuvo un montón de

novias. Todo el mundo dice que era un donjuán. [Until he married my

grandmother, my grandfather had a bunch of lady friends. Everybody says

he was a Don Juan of his time.]

Ser un don nadie can be used to describe a person who doesn‘t have any

importance although he/she considers himself indispensable and valuable.

The irony is in the two contrasted words with incompatible meaning, don

denoting a title of a certain prestige, somebody, and nadie meaning

nobody.

Example: Hay un escritor nuevo que, a pesar de ser un don nadie, se cree

capacitado para opinar como experto en cualquier materia. [There‘s this

new writer who, despite the fact he is Mr. Nobody, thinks he is an expert

qualified enough to give his opinion for everything.]

Ser Jaimito is a phrase used to describe a person as naive and stupid, a

muggins. Jaimito is a typical character from Spanish proverbs and jokes.

Example: Si es que eres un Jaimito. Te dejas engañar por todo el mundo,

y lo peor es que ni te enteras de que te están tomando el pelo. [You‘re

such a fool. You let people trick you, and the worst part is you don‘t even

see they‘re just pulling your leg.]

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3. Idioms Connected with the Theme of Body Parts

Ser cabeza de turco is used when someone takes all the blame or pays for

other people‘s mistakes, a scapegoat.

Example: Han tomado a Juan cabeza de turco y le van a echar la culpa de

todo. [They used Juan as a scapegoat and he will take the blame for

everything.]

Ser duro/cerrado de mollera (crown of the head) means ‗to be very

stubborn‘.

Example: Mira que eres duro de mollera: te he dicho mil veces que no se

dice cera sino acera, pero tú ni caso. [You really are pigheaded: I‘ve told

you thousand times it‘s not side, it is sidewalk, but you just won‘t listen.]

Ser un hueso means that a person has a bad temper, that he or she is not

flexible. We usually use it when we talk about teachers, bosses,

colleagues.

Example: Ya sabéis que el profe de física es un hueso. No creo que nos

cambie la fecha del examen. [You already know the physics teacher is

very strict. He won‘t change the exam date.]

Ser el ombligo del mundo/ser un narciso/el gallito is used to describe a

person who considers him/herself as very important or as being a center of

everybody‘s attention. We usually use it with the present simple of the

verb ser. The other part of the expression (el ombligo del mundo) does not

change.

Example: Estoy harta de Alicia… Siempre que vamos a una discoteca y un

chico nos mira, piensa que sólo puede estar interesado en ella. Cree que

es el ombligo del mundo. [I‘m sick and tired of Alicia… Whenever we go

to a club and a guy is looking at us she thinks he is interested in her. She

believes she is the center of the universe.]

4. Idioms with Adjectives

Ser (más) agarrado (que un chotis) means ‗to be tightfisted or a scrooge‘.

Not only does this person have a lot money but he also takes hold of it (lo

agarra) and doesn‘t let go. And chotis is a typical slow dance from

Madrid. While dancing chotis the dancers are closely holding each other.

Example: Con todos millones que tiene, de verdad no entiendo cómo

puede ser tan agarrado, el tío. [I don‘t understand, with all the millions

he‘s got how can the guy be such a scrooge.]

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Ser chungo ‗of a doubtful moral‘. Chungo is a borrowing from gipsy

slang and it means ‗bad‘.

Example: No te fíes de él. Es un tipo muy chungo que en cualquier

momento te puede pegar un puñalada por la espalda. [Don‘t trust him.

There‘s something very fishy about that guy and he will stab you in the

back first chance he gets.]

5. Idioms Connected with the Theme of Food

Ser un chorizo is used to characterize a person in Spanish as a petty thief

or a crook.

Example: ¿Te has enterado de lo del contable? Resultó ser un chorizo y lo

han denunciado porque se quedaba con parte del dinero de las facturas.

[Have you heard about our accountant? He ended up being a crook and

they accused him for embezzlement.]

Ser la leche/la hostia/la repera are used to express a person as

extraordinary, unusual and special with both positive and negative

meaning.

Example: ¡Este hombre es la leche! Cada vez que lo vemos nos cuenta que

le duele algo, que quiere cambiar de trabajo. Nunca está a gusto con

nada. [That man is a piece of something! Whenever we see him he is

complaining either about his health or his job. He is never satisfied.]

Ser el perejil en todas las salsas ‗to participate in everything, be

everywhere, to meddle, interfere, a busybody‘. The comparison is obvious

since parsley is a spice that can be put in all sorts of gravies.

Example: Está en todas partes, en el teatro, en inauguraciones, en todas

las fiestas. Este tío es el perejil en todas las salsas. [He is everywhere, in

the theatre, on opening ceremonies, inaugurations, at every party. He is a

typical culture vulture.]

6. Idioms Formed with Substantiated Adjectives

Ser un empollón means ‗to grind or swat, be a nerd or be a geek‘. An

expression used when a person makes fun of others that spend hours and

hours studying. While studying this person is in a position that reminds of

a bird laying eggs (empollar).

Example: No me extraña que haya aprobado el examen de física. Es un

empollón y seguro que se ha pegado todo el fin de semana estudiando.

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[I‘m not surprised he passed the physics exam. He‘s a geek and I‘m sure

he spent entire weekend studying.]

Ser un muermo means ‗to be boring, passive‘. Allegedly, this expression

originates from the comparison between animals that suffered from

muermo, an infectious disease and the situation of a person submitted to

the boredom and apathy.

Example: Me han dicho que no quieren venir a la fiesta porque están muy

cansados. ¡Son unos muermos! [They told me they didn‘t want to come to

the party because they were tired. They are boring as hell!]

Ser un trepa is an expression for a social climber it is a shorter form of a

trepador, person that has no scruples and that by all means intends to

climb (trepar) socially or professionally even if it means ‗walking over the

others‘.

Example: Ese es un trepa y sólo tiene un interés: llegar a ser director y no

te quepa duda de que hará cualquier cosa, lo que haga falta para

conseguirlo. [That one is a social climber and he has only one interest: to

become a director and you can be sure he will do anything to achieve it.]

Conclusion

Results of this research have shown that character should be expressed by

Spanish verb to be which is often used to denote character in negative

context. Of all the themes occurring in idioms, animals are mostly used to

describe human character. In addition, this paper offers a possible

classification of idioms for describing human character, but in a negative

context which was made from the corpus created in consultation with

native speakers, dictionaries and electronic sources. It should be pointed

out that this classification is not final, which means that the list and

number of idioms can be expanded (useful for additional and more

detailed research in the future: seminar paper, master thesis etc.). Further

on, it should be pointed out that the biggest number of encountered

idioms, when we talk about human character in a negative context, is

related to animals, that is, human character is described through animal

behavior. One of the possible explanations is certainly the similarities in

comparison animate + animate, which is more obvious than in animate +

inanimate.

Sanja Mariţiš 355

References

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sayings and phrases]. Madrid: Espasa.

Character. Online: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/character.

Dante Hernández, Ana. (2003). Es pan comido. [It‘s a piece of cake].

Madrid: Editorial Edinumen.

Erichsen, G. Spanish Language Guide. Online:

http://spanish.about.com/b/.

Hlebec, B. (2003). Essential Dictionary English-Serbian, Serbian-English.

Beograd: Zavod za udţbenike i nastavna sredstva.

Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English. (2005). Edinburgh:

Pearson Education Limited.

Oxford Idioms. (2008). Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Prieto Grande, María. (2007). Hablando en plata de modismos y metaforas

culturales. [Simplyfying idioms and cultural methaphors]. Madrid:

Editorial Edinumen.

Radonjiš, S. & Rot, N. (1992). Psihologija za II razred srednje škole.

[Textbook of Psychology for Highschool Secondgraders]. Beograd:

Zavod za udţbenike i nastavna sredstva.

Teenagers colloquial expressions with the verb “SER”. Online:

http://www.aulahispanica.com/node/216.

Vraniš, Gordana. (2004). Hablar por los codos. [Talking nineteen to the

dozen]. Madrid: Edelsa.