Expresiones idiomticas con sus Traduccin Ejemplo

sinnimos
after all despite, nevertheless despus de todo, al fin y al cabo I knew it! After all, I was right!
all along all the time todo el tiempo I knew about his little secret all along.
all ears eager to listen todo odos I am all ears.
all of a sudden suddenly de repente, de pronto All of a sudden, he refused to pay.
all the same no difference da igual, lo mismo; de todos If its all the same to you, lets start
modos at two.
all thumbs clumsy torpe He cant fix anything, hes all thumbs.
apple of discord subject manzana de la discordia This question is an apple of discord
of envy or quarrel in our family.
as a rule usually como regla general As a rule, we offer a 5% discount.
as far as I am concerned en lo que a m respecta As far as I am concerned, both the
in my opinion book and the movie are good.
as for me/as to me en cuanto a m As for me, you can rely on his support.
in my opinion
as well also, too tambin He knows math, and physics as well.
at all (not) in the smallest en lo ms mnimo, en absoluto He doesnt know French at all. I dont
degree like it at all.
at random without order al azar He chose those places at random.
at this point at this time a estas alturas At this point, we cant turn back.
be about to ready (to do) estar a punto de I was about to leave when you called.
be after someone insist, pressestar tras alguien; insistir, His mother is always after him
presionar to study.
be all in be extremely tired estar hecho polvo Im all in, Id better go to bed now.
be back on ones feet healthy recuperarse despus Hes back on his feet after a long
again or better financially de un tiempo difcil; period of debt and unemployment.
ponerse de pie otra vez
beat around the bush avoid irse por las ramas Stop beating around the bush! Get
giving a clear/definite answer to the point!
be beside oneself be very estar fuera de s She was beside herself with worry /
upset, nervous, worried, etc. with grief.
be better off be in a better estar en una mejor situacin Hell be better off with a new job.
situation
be broke have no money at all estar en bancarrota I spent all my money, Im broke.
be hard on something ser duro con algo/alguien My son is hard on shoes, they dont
/someone treat roughly last long with him. Life was pretty hard
on Tom.
be high on ones list be one encabezar la lista de los asuntos A new car is high on my list
of the most important things importantes of priorities. A new TV is not high
on my list.
be in charge of be responsible estar a cargo de, ser responsable He is in charge of marketing.
for de
be in the red be in debt estar en deuda, estar quebrado Our sales were in the red last year.
be into smth. be interested in estar interesado/apasionado por He is into computers. She is into
algo sports.
bend over backwards try hard hacer todo lo que se pueda I bent over backwards to help her.
be on ones way estar en el camino Im on my way.
be on the safe side not to take para mayor seguridad Take an extra key, just to be on the
any chances safe side.
be out of be without estar fuera de, estar We are out of bread, cheese, and
desabastecido, no tener sugar.
be out of shape be physically no estar en forma / estar en mala He needs to exercise, he is out
unfit condicin fsica of shape.
be out of sorts in bad humor estar de mal humor Leave him alone, hes out of sorts
today
be pressed for time / money estar presionado por Im pressed for time now. We are
be short of; not have enough tiempo/dinero (no tener pressed for money at the moment.
suficiente tiempo/dinero por
el momento)
beside the point off the point ajeno a la cuestin, no va al caso What I said to him privately is beside
the point.
be to blame be responsible for ser culpable Who is to blame for this awful
a mistake / something wrong mistake? Tom is to blame for this mix-
up.
be touch and go be uncertain pender de un hilo He was very sick, and for some time
of the result it was touch and go, but he is better
now.
be up against be opposed by, enfrentar (a algo/alguien), Our company is up against serious
have problems, be in danger encontrarse ante problemas attempts of hostile takeover.
be up and around/about able volver a andar, recuperarse He was sick for a month, but now
to be out of bed after an illness (despus de una enfermedad) he is up and around.
be up to ones ears very busy estar muy ocupado Im up to my ears in work.
be up to something estar tramando algo I have to check what the kids are
do mischief up to.
be up to someone be ones ser decisin de alguien, Its up to you to decide. Its up to you
own decision or responsibility corresponderle a alguien to close the office every day
at 8 oclock.
be used to be accustomed to estar acostumbrado a Im used to hard work. Hes used
to heat.
big shot important person persona importante He is a big shot around here.
bite off more than one can sobrevalorar tus fuerzas I couldnt handle two jobs and family.
chew try to do more than one (morder ms de lo que puedes I really bit off more than I could chew.
can masticar)
bite ones tongue stop talking morderse la lengua, dejar I almost told her, but bit my tongue.
de hablar
bite the dust die, be defeated morder el polvo, morir Many of them bit the dust in that war.
black sheep a good-for- oveja negra Their second son is the black sheep
nothing member of the family of the family, he is good for nothing.
blind date a meeting of a man cita a ciegas She refuses to go on a blind date again
and woman arranged by friends because she had bad experience.
blow it lose the chance perder la oportunidad He understood that he blew it.
blow over pass, end pasar Wait here till his anger blows over.
bottom line main result/factor resultado The bottom line is, I dont have
enough money.
break into enter by force entrar por la fuerza, penetrar The police broke into the robbers
house.
break ones heart hurt deeply romper el corazn de alguien The news of her death broke his heart.
break the ice overcome romper el hielo (superar The party was dull until someone
shyness in making the first step la timidez y dar el primer paso) broke the ice with a joke and we all
laughed.
break the news tell new facts difundir la informacin CNN is breaking the news right now.
bring home the bacon earn proveer a la familia He works very hard at several places
the living for the family to bring home the bacon.
brush off give no attention to no hacer caso The boss brushed off my project again.
brush up on review repasar, refrescar la memoria You need to brush up on the tenses.
by all means -definitely, certainly definitivamente, por supuesto Do you need my help? By all means.
by heart by memorizing de memoria Learn this poem by heart for
tomorrow.
by hook or by crook by any como sea She will get what she wants by hook
means possible or by crook.
by the way incidentally por cierto By the way, Ann is coming back today.
call a spade a spade use plain, llamar a las cosas por su nombre He always tells the truth and calls
direct words a spade a spade.
call it a day consider work considerar el trabajo terminado Weve been working for 10 straight
finished for the day hours. Lets call it a day.
call off cancel cancelar The police called off the search.
carry out fulfill realizar, cumplir She never carries out her plans.
carry weight be important tener peso en, influir, ser His advice always carries weight here.
importante
cast down depressed, sad desanimar He was cast down by the bad news.
castles in the air daydreaming (construir) castillos en el aire Instead of working hard, he spends
about success time building castles in the air.
catch ones eye attract llamar la atencin This picture caught my eye.
attention
catch ones breath stop and recobrar el aliento I cant run, I need to catch my breath.
rest
catch someone off guard tomar por sorpresa He caught me off guard with his
catch someone unprepared question.
catch someone red-handed sorprender a alguien con las The manager caught the boy red-
find smb. in the act of doing manos en la masa handed when he was stealing
wrong cigarettes.
catch up become not behind ponerse al da He needs to catch up with the others.
close call a narrow escape, por poco sucede algo malo The speeding car almost hit the man.
a bad thing that almost happened (escaparse por milagro) That was really a close call.
come across meet by chance encontrar I came across that article yesterday.
come down with become ill caer resfriado Im coming down with a cold.
come to ones senses start entrar en razn He finally came to his senses, started
acting reasonably, intelligently to work hard, and passed his exams.
come true become reality volverse realidad My dream came true when I met Pat.
come up with suggest proponer Mike came up with a brilliant idea.
count on depend on contar con You can always count on me for help.
cut corners to take a short-cut; buscar atajos, omitir He ran fast, cutting corners where
to limit ones spending procedimientos he could. I have to cut corners this
week.
cut down on reduce reducir el consumo You have to cut down on chocolate.
cut out to be /cut out for it estar hecho para (algn trabajo) She isnt cut out to be a surgeon. Hes
have the ability to do something cut out to be a leader.
do ones best try very hard
do ones bit do whats needed aportar su granito de arena;
do over do again
do someone good be good for beneficiar
do something behind ones
back do (harmful) things
secretively
do without live without
down to earth practical
draw the line fix a limit
dress up put on the best
clothes
drop off deliver somewhere
drop out quit (school)
duty calls must fulfill
obligations
easier said than done
eat ones words take back
words
even so nevertheless, but
every now and then -
occasionally
every other day every second
one
fall behind lag behind
fall in love begin to love
fall out of love stop loving
false alarm untrue rumor
a far cry from something very muy lejos de ser algo, muy
different, almost opposite (neg.) diferente a lo que creas
feel it in ones bones expect tener una corazonada
something bad to happen
feel like doing something
want to do, be inclined
to do smth.
feel up to be able to do
few and far between rare,
scarce
find fault with criticize
find out learn or discover
firsthand directly from the
source
first things first important
things come before others
dar lo mejor de s
hacer lo necesario
rehacer
hacer algo a espaldas de uno
vivir sin, prescindir
prctico, realista
trazar la lnea, limitar
ponerse la mejor ropa
llevar (a una persona a un lugar), Can you drop me off at the bank?
dejar (a una persona en un lugar)
abandonar
el deber llama
es ms fcil decir que hacerlo
tragarse las palabras
an as
de vez en cuando
cada dos das; un da s y un da She washes her hair every other day.
no
quedarse atrs
enamorarse
dejar de amar
falsa alarma
(presentimiento)
antojarse de hacer algo, sentir I feel like going for a walk. I dont feel
ganas de hacer algo
tener nimo para hacer algo
muy pocos, escasos
encontrar fallos, criticar
averiguar, descubrir
de primera mano
primero lo primero
I did my best to help him in his work.
Ill do my bit, you can count on me.
This work is not good, do it over.
Fresh air and exercise will do you
good.
I hate people who do things behind
my back. He did it behind my back
again.
Ill have to do without a car for a while.
Hes quiet, sensible and down to earth.
He drew the line for her at $100 a day.
What are you dressed up for?
He dropped out of school last year.
He said, Duty calls and left for work.
Its easier said than done, but Ill try
to do it.
He had to eat his words after her
report.
I work hard. Even so, I like my job.
Every now and then I visit my old aunt.
The little boy fell behind the older
boys.
Tom fell in love with Sue at first sight.
They fell out of love and divorced
soon.
I heard he quit but it was a false alarm.
His second book wasnt bad, but it was
a far cry from his first book.
Something bad is going to happen,
I feel it in my bones.
like working now, Im tired.
I dont feel up to cleaning the house.
Her visits are few and far between.
He always finds faults with everybody.
I found out that Maria left town.
You can trust it, its firsthand
information.
First things first: how much money
do we have to pay right away?
fly off the handle get angry perder los estribos He flew off the handle and yelled
at me.
follow in someones footsteps seguir los pasos de otro Igor followed in his fathers footsteps,
do the same thing he became a doctor, too.
foot in the door a special tener un pie adentro (tener una Nina got a foot in the door because
opportunity for a job oportunidad de trabajo) her friend works in that company.
foot the bill pay the bill pagar Her father footed the bill for the party.
for good forever para siempre After her death, he left town for good.
for the time being at this time por el momento, por ahora For the time being, this house is all
right for us.
frame of mind mental state estado de nimo I cant do it in this frame of mind.
from A to Z completely conocer algo de pe a pa; de cabo He knows this town from A to Z.
a rabo
from now on now and in the desde ahora, a partir de ahora From now on, I forbid you to go there.
future
get a grip on oneself take obtener control sobre s mismo Stop crying! Get a grip on yourself!
control of ones feelings
get along with have good llevarse bien con Ann gets along with most coworkers,
relations but doesnt get along with Laura.
get away with not be caught evitar el castigo, escapar The police didnt find the thief. He got
after doing wrong de la justicia away with his crime.
entusiasmarse He got carried away with opening
get carried away get too a store and lost most of his money.
excited and enthusiastic about
something
get cold feet be afraid to do entrarle miedo a alguien I wanted to try it but got cold feet.
get even with have ones desquitarse Ill get even with him for everything!
revenge
get in touch with contact contactar a alguien Get in touch with Mr. Smith for help.
get lost lose ones way perderse She got lost in the old part of town.
Get lost! Lay off! Vete! Desaparcete! Lrgate! I dont want to see you again. Get lost!
get mixed up get confused confundir I got mixed up, went the wrong way
and got lost.
get off ones back leave alone dejar a alguien en paz Stop bothering me! Get off my back!
get on ones high horse actuar como si fueras mejor que Every time I ask her to help me with
behave haughtily towards otras personas, ser engredo typing, she gets on her high horse.
someone
get on (the bus, train, plane) subir (el transporte) I got on the bus on Oak Street.
get off (the bus, train, plane) bajar (el transporte) I got off the bus at the bank.
get out of hand get out salirse de las manos, fuera If he gets out of hand again, call
of control de control me right away.
get over recover after recuperarse despus de una I cant get over how rude he was
an illness or bad experience enfermedad o mala experiencia, to me. She got over her illness quite
superar quickly.
get rid of dispose of, discard deshacerse He got rid of his old useless car.
get together meet with reunirse My friends and I get together often.
get to the bottom know llegar al fondo de algo He usually gets to the bottom
deeply of things.
get to the point get to the ir al grano Get to the point!
matter
Give me a break! spare me Dame un respiro! Djame! Come on, stop it! Give me a break!
give someone a hand help dar la mano, ayudar Can you give me a hand with cooking?
give someone a lift /a ride llevar a alguien en auto Can you give me a lift to the bank?
take to some place by car He gave her a ride in his new Porsche.
give someone a piece of ones criticar, decir abiertamente She lost my umbrella again, so I gave
mind criticize frankly lo que piensas her a piece of my mind about her
carelessness.
give up stop doing something, rendirse I gave up smoking. I gave up trying
stop trying to do something to fix my old car.
go back on ones word break romper la palabra/promesa First he said he would help me, but
a promise then he went back on his word.
go for it try to do a new thing intentar algo nuevo If I were you, I would go for it.
go from bad to worse ir de mal en peor His business went from bad to worse.
be worse
go out go to parties, movies salir (de fiesta, al cine, etc.) Do he and his wife go out often?
go out of ones way -try very poner mucho esfuerzo, intentar He goes out of his way to please her.
hard mucho
go to ones head make too subirse a la cabeza (xito), His acting success went to his head.
proud sentirse demasiado orgulloso
go to pieces get very upset, fall derrumbarse, quedar deshecho She went to pieces when she heard it.
apart
go with the flow lead quiet life ir con la corriente She always goes with the flow.
grow on someone become gustar poco a poco When she knew him more, he grew
liked on her.
had better should ms vale que You look ill, youd better see a doctor.
have a ball have a good time pasarla bien Yesterday we had a ball at the party.
have a bone to pick complain tener una cuenta que ajustar Mr. Brown, I have a bone to pick with
or discuss something unpleasant you. My mail was lost because of you.
have a word with someone hablar con alguien Can I have a word with you?
talk to
have words with someone hablar muy seriamente con I had words with my coworker today
argue with someone about alguien /discutir because he used my computer again.
something
have it in him have the ability tener habilidades Laura has it in her to be a good doctor.
have no business doing no es tu asunto, no tienes You have no business staying here
something have no right to do derecho de (estar aqu, hacer without my permission.
esto, etc.)
have ones back to the wall estar entre la espada y la pared I had no choice, I had my back to the
be hard-pressed, on the wall.
defensive
have ones hands full very estar muy ocupado He has his hands full with hard work.
busy
have ones heart set querer algo demasiado, ansiar She has her heart set on going to New
on something want something algo York. He has his heart set on Betty.
very much
have pull have influence on influir, pesar Does he have pull with the director?
(not) have the heart (not) (no) atreverse a hacer algo I dont have the heart to tell him that
have the courage to do smth. desagradable; he wasnt accepted, hell
unpleasant (no) tener corazn para be so unhappy.
high and low everywhere
hit the nail on the head say
exactly the right thing
hit upon something
to discover
hold it against someone
blame somebody for doing
something
Hold it! Stop! Wait!
Hold on! Wait!
hold ones own maintain
oneself in a situation, behave
as needed
hold up rob using a weapon
en todas partes (en el cielo I searched high and low for my lost cat.
y en la tierra, cuando se refiere
a bsquedas)
acertar You hit the nail on the head when you
said our company needs a new
director.
pensar en algo; descubrir They hit upon gold. I hit upon a plan.
guardar rencores en contra I lost his book, but he doesnt hold
de alguien; culpar a alguien por it against me.
algo
Detente! Espera! Hold it! I forgot my key.
Espera! Hold on! Ill be back in a minute.
mantenerse firme He can hold his own in any situation.
We need men who can hold their own.
asaltar, atacar This bank was held up twice last year.

ill at ease uncomfortable disgustado, incmodo She felt ill at ease because of her
cheap dress.
in advance well before de antemano He told her about his plan in advance.
in a nutshell in a few words en breve, en pocas palabras In a nutshell, my plan is to buy land.
in care of someone write (escribir) a alguien a la direccin Im staying at Toms house. Write
to one person at the address de otra persona (al cuidado de) to me in care of Tom Gray, Chicago,
of another Illinois.
in cold blood mercilessly a sangre fra He killed her in cold blood.
in fact actually, in reality de hecho, en realidad In fact, he works as a manager here.
in general generally, generally en general In general, he likes to be alone.
speaking He described the place only in general.
in ones element what one estar como pez en el agua Hes in his element when hes arguing.
likes
in other words using other en otras palabras In other words, you refused to do it for
words her.
in plain English in simple, frank sencillamente hablando I didnt really like the concert. In plain
terms English, the concert was terrible.
the ins and outs all info about los pormenores He knows the ins and outs of this
business.
in someones shoes in another en los zapatos de alguin, Id hate to be in his shoes now. He lost
persons position en lugar de otra persona his job, and his wife is in the hospital.
in the long run in the end al final de cuentas In the long run, itll be better to buy it.
in the same boat in the same en el mismo barco; en la misma Stop arguing with me, were in the
situation situacion same boat and should help each other.
in the clear free from blame estar fuera de sospecha Pay the bill and youll be in the clear.
in time (to do something) a tiempo (para hacer algo) I came in time to have a cup of coffee
before something begins before class.
it goes without saying should no hace falta decir nada It goes without saying that he must
be clear without words pay what he owes right away.
Its on the tip of my tongue. est en la punta de mi lengua His name is on the tip of my tongue.
its time should do it right es hora Hurry up, its time to go.
away
Its worth it. / Its not lo vale / no lo vale Watch this film, its worth it. Dont buy
worth it. Its (not) worth buying, vale la pena / no vale la pena this coat, it is not worth it. This
visiting, watching, etc. museum is worth visiting. This film
is not worth watching.
it will do its enough es suficiente Stop reading, it will do for now.
jump at the aprovechar la oportunidad His boss mentioned a job in Europe,
opportunity/chance accept and Peter jumped at the opportunity.
the opportunity eagerly
just as soon prefer this one preferira Id just as soon stay home, Im tired.
just in case to be on the safe por si acaso Take an extra shirt, just in case.
side
Just my luck! Bad / Hard luck! Vaya suerte que tengo! Qu They lost my job application. Just
mala suerte! my luck!
keep an eye on take care of, estar pendiente; vigilar Betty keeps an eye on my sons for me.
watch, look after Ill keep an eye on you!
keep a straight face not mantener la cara seria I tried to keep a straight face, but
to laugh failed.
keep company accompany hacer compaa She keeps me company quite often.
keep ones word fulfill mantener la palabra You promised, now keep your word.
a promise
keep someone posted inform mantener a alguien al tanto / Keep me posted about your plans.
informado
keep your fingers crossed cruzar los dedos I have a job interview today. Keep your
hope that nothing will go wrong fingers crossed for me, will you?
kill time fill/spend empty time matar el tiempo I went to the show to kill time.
(not) know the first thing no saber nada acerca de I dont know the first thing about
about not to have any nuclear physics.
knowledge about
know the ropes be very estar al tanto He knows all the ropes in this
familiar with some business company.
last-minute notice little noticia de ltimo minuto His arrival was a last-minute notice;
or no time to prepare for we didnt have time to prepare for it.
something
lay ones cards on the table poner las cartas sobre la mesa;Finally, we asked him to lay his cards
be frank and open ser sincero y abierto on the table and tell us about his
plans.
lay ones life on the line put poner la vida en juego, arriesgar He laid his life on the line to fulfill this
oneself in a dangerous situation la vida task, but nobody appreciated his
efforts.
lead a dogs life live in misery llevar una vida de perros He leads a dogs life.
lead someone on make engaar, hacer a alguien creer They suspect that you are leading
someone believe something that que es cierto them on. You led me on!
isnt true
leave it at that accept dejar las cosas como son Leave it at that, what else can you do?
reluctantly
leave word leave a message dejar un mensaje He left word for you to meet him
at the airport at 6.
let bygones be bygones forget lo pasado, pasado est Why dont you let bygones be bygones
and forgive bad things in the past and forget about what he said?
let go of release the hold soltar, dejar ir Let go of my hand or Ill call the guard.
let (it) go forget bad dejarlo ir, superar malas Hes still in despair and cant let (it) go.
experience, return to normal life experiencias You cant change anything, so let it go.
let ones hair down be relaxed soltarse la melena, echarse una She is always so formal. She never lets
and informal with other people cana al aire, relajarse her hair down.
let someone down disappoint, quedar mal con alguien, Dont let me down this time!
fail someone decepcionar a alguien
let someone know inform notificar, informar Let me know when you find a job.
like father, like son be like de tal palo, tal astilla Paul won a prize in a chess
ones parent in something tournament. Great! Like father, like
son!
little by little step by step poco a poco Little by little, he got used to Tokyo.
look for search for buscar What are you looking for?
look forward to expect with esperar con impaciencia Im looking forward to your letter.
pleasure Mary is looking forward to the party.
look out be careful, watch out tener cuidado Look out! The bus is coming!
look up check with buscar (informacin If you dont know this word, look
/in a dictionary or a reference en un diccionario, Internet, etc.) it up in the dictionary.
book
lose ones temper become perder la paciencia, enojarse He loses his temper very often.
angry
lose ones way get lost perder el camino, perderse I lost my way. Can you help me?
lose track of not to know perder el hilo/la pista I lost track of him years ago.
where someone or something is
lucky break a lucky chance golpe de suerte He got his lucky break when he got this
job.
make a living earn money ganarse la vida He works hard. His family is big, and
to provide for life he has to make a living somehow.
make allowance for take into tener en cuenta Dont criticize him so hard, make (an)
consideration when judging allowance for his inexperience.
make a point of be sure poner empeo en (hacer algo); Make a point of asking about his wife.
to do something intentionally hacer algo intencionalmente; Make it a point to be here by 10.
tender a/intentar
make ends meet to have and llegar a fin de mes; sobrevivir con His doesnt get much money. I wonder
spend only what one earns pocos ingresos how he manages to make ends meet.
make friends become friends hacer amigos Anton makes new friends easily.
make fun of laugh at, joke burlarse de He made fun of her German accent.
about
make no bones about it no darle ms vueltas, no andar Ill make no bones about it: I dont like
say/do openly, without hesitation por las ramas your attitude to work.
make room for allow space for liberar espacio para We can make room for one more dog.
make sense be logical tener sentido What you say makes sense.
make the most of smth do the sacar lo mejor de Lets make the most of our vacation.
best in the given situation
make up become friends again reconciliarse Im tired of fighting. Lets make up.
make up for smth compensate recompensar Ill make up for the time you spent
on it.
make up ones mind decide tomar una decisin When will you go? Make up your
mind.
make yourself at home sintete como en tu casa Come in please. Make yourself
be comfortable, feel at home at home.
man of his word one who el hombre de palabra You can depend on his promise
keeps promises, is dependable to help. Hes a man of his word.
mean well have good tener buenas intenciones He meant well, but it turned out that
intentions he spoiled a couple of things for me.
might as well a good idea podras aprovechar y hacerlo I might as well telephone him now.
(es buena idea hacer algo)
missing person someone who persona desaparecida The little boy disappeared. The police
is lost and cant be located registered him as a missing person.
meet someone halfway encontrar un trmino medio Hes reasonable and tries to meet his
compromise with others coworkers halfway, when possible.
never mind it doesnt matter olvdalo, no importa Thank you. Never mind.
not to mention in addition to sin mencionar We have three dogs, not to mention
two cats.
no wonder not surprising no es una sorpresa He ate three big fish. No wonder hes
sick.
now and again occasionally de vez en cuando I meet them now and again at the
bank.

odds and ends a variety
of small unimportant things
or leftovers
off the cuff without
preparation
off the point beside the point
off the record not for the
public, unofficially
once and for all decidedly
on credit not pay cash right
away
on edge nervous, irritable
on guard on the alert
on hand available
on ones own alone,
by oneself
on ones toes alert, attentive,
prepared for difficulties
on purpose intentionally
on second thought after
thinking again
on the alert on guard
on the carpet called in by the llamar al despacho del director, Yesterday the boss called her on the
boss for criticism
on the go busy, on the move en marcha, en movimiento
on the off chance unlikely
to happen, but still
on the other hand considering por otro lado
the other side of the question
restos, pedacitos
de improviso, sin preparacin
previa
no va al caso, fuera
de la cuestin
extraoficialmente
de una vez por todas
a crdito
nervioso, irritado
en guardia, alerta
a la mano
por su cuenta,
independientemente
alerta He was on his toes and produced
a propsito, intencionalmente I didnt do it on purpose, it just
pensndolo bien Id like to sit on the aisle. On second
alerta, en guardia
llamar la atencin, criticar
es poco probable pero
I needed to buy some odds and ends
for the kitchen.
Off the cuff, I can give you only
a rough estimate.
What I think about him is off the point.
Strictly off the record, I think the
director is going to get married soon.
You must quit smoking once and for
all.
He bought a car on credit.
Hes been on edge ever since she left.
Hes cautious and always on guard.
Do you have a calculator on hand?
She likes to live and work on her own.
a very good impression on them.
happened so.
thought, Id like a window seat.
Hes cautious and always on the alert.
carpet for being rude to the
coworkers.
He is always on the go.
On the off chance that you dont find
him at work, heres his home address.
Id like to have a dog. On the other
hand, my wife likes cats better.
on the spot right there en el mismo sitio I decided to do it on the spot.
on the spur of the moment en la euforia del momento He bought this car on the spur of the
without previous thought / plan moment, now he regrets it.
on time punctual a tiempo Jim is always on time.
out of ones mind crazy loco, fuera de s If you think so, youre out of your
mind.
out of ones way away from desviado del camino, fuera del I cant give you a lift to the bank, its
someones usual route camino out of my way today.
out of the question impossible fuera de la cuestin Paying him is out of the question!
pack rat a person who saves acumulador obsesivo Why does she keep all those things she
lots of unnecessary things never uses? She is a pack rat.
pay attention be attentive prestar atencin Pay attention to his words.
pick a fight start a quarrel empezar una pelea/discusin He often tries to pick a fight with me.
pick up take, get elegir, recoger Ill pick you up at 7.
play ones cards right choose jugar bien sus cartas If you play your cards right, hell agree
the right steps in doing to your plan.
something
potluck supper a surprise una cena en grupo donde cada You know what happened at our last
meal, where nobody knows what quien trae lo que quiere potluck supper? Everybody brought
dishes other guests will bring macaroni and cheese, apples, and
beer!
pull oneself together brace sobreponerse Stop crying and complaining! You have
oneself, summon your strength to pull yourself together now.
pull the wool over someones engaar Are you trying to pull the wool over
eyes deceive, mislead my eyes? It wont do you any good.
someone
put a damper on discourage poner un freno a She always puts a damper
on my plans.
put in a word for someone say defender a alguien con palabras, Id be very grateful if you could put
positive things about someone decir algo bueno acerca in a word for me when you speak
de alguien to him.
put off postpone posponer Dont put it off till tomorrow.
put ones foot down object oponerse fuertemente Her father put his foot down when she
strongly said she wanted to marry Alan.
put ones foot in it do the meter la pata; decir /hacer algo He put his foot in it when he told the
wrong thing, make a fool estpido boss his daughter wasnt pretty.
of oneself
put up with accept, tolerate aguantar, tolerar I cant put up with your bad work!
quite a bit of much, a lot of mucho I had quite a bit of trouble with that
car.
quite a few many, a lot of muchos He wrote quite a few good stories.
rack ones brain try hard esforzar el cerebro He racked his brain to solve the puzzle.
to think
read between the lines find leer entre lneas His books are not easy to understand;
or understand the implied you have to read between the lines.
meaning
remember me to say hello to enviar saludos Please remember me to your family.
right away immediately de inmediato It very important to do it right away.
ring a bell remind someone se parece a algo, luce familiar Annabel Lee? Yeah, it rings a bell, but I
of something familiar /half- cant place it right now.
forgotten
rock the boat make the causar problemas, desestabilizar Peter always rocks the boat when
situation unstable una situacin we discuss companys spending policy.
rub shoulders with meet with codearse He doesnt rub shoulders with the rich.
rub someone the wrong way irritar, molestar a alguien His remarks rub many coworkers the
irritate, annoy, make angry wrong way.
run into meet by chance encontrarse a alguien por I ran into an old friend yesterday.
casualidad
save face try to change the rescatar la reputacin He said a stupid thing and tried to save
negative impression produced face by saying he misunderstood me.
save ones breath stop useless ahorrarse las palabras Theres no use talking to him about his
talk spending habits, so save your breath.
scratch the surface study no profundizar en el tema, He examines all the facts closely,
something superficially estudiar de manera superficial he doesnt just scratch the surface.
see about make arrangements ocuparse de I have to see about our plane tickets.
for
see eye to eye agree compartir un mismo punto We dont see eye to eye any longer.
de vista con alguien
serve someone right get what recibir lo que uno se merece It serves him right that he didnt get
someone deserves this job, he despised all other
candidates.
serve ones purpose be useful servir al propsito de alguien, ser I doubt that hiring this man will serve
to someone for his purpose til para el propsito de alguien your purpose.
show promise be promising mostrar esperanza This young actor shows promise.
show up appear aparecer I waited for hours but he didnt
show up.
size up evaluate someone evaluar It took me 5 minutes to size up that
man.
sleep on it postpone a decision posponer algo hasta la maana Dont decide now, sleep on it.
till next morning siguiente
a slip of the tongue a mistake error, equivocacin, lapsus It was just a slip of the tongue!
slip (from) ones mind forget olvidar It slipped my mind what she asked me.
smell a rat suspect something sospechar algo Im not sure what it is, but I smell a rat.
so far up to now hasta ahora So far, I have read 3 books by King.
so much the better its even an mejor If he can pay cash, so much the better.
better
spill the beans tell a secret soltar la sopa, decir un secreto Who spilled the beans about our plan?
stand a chance have a chance tener una oportunidad He doesnt stand a chance of getting it.
stand out be noticeable destacarse He stands out in any group of people.
stand to reason be logical ser lgico It stands to reason that he apologized.
straight from the shoulder sin rodeos, abiertamente Dont try to spare my feelings, give
speak frankly it to me straight from the shoulder.
take a dim view of something tener una opinin negativa My sister takes a dim view of the way I
disapprove of something acerca de algo raise my children.
take a break stop for rest tomar una pausa Lets take a break, Im tired.
take advantage of use for aprovecharse de We took advantage of the low prices
ones own benefit, to profit from and bought a computer and a monitor.
take after be like one of the parecerse a los padres Tom takes after his father in character,
parents and after his mother in appearance.
take a stand on something tomar una posicin firme People need to take a stand on the
make a firm opinion/decision respecto a algo issue of nuclear weapons.
on smth.
take care of look after, cuidar de Can you take care of my dog while Im
protect, see that smth. is done away? Tom takes good care of his car.
properly
take hold of something take, tomar, sujetar Take hold of this rope and pull.
hold
take into account consider tomar en cuenta You must take into account her old
smth. age.
take it easy relax, be calm no te preocupes Take it easy, everything will be OK.
take (it) for granted accept dar por sentado Mothers love is always taken for
as given granted by children.
take ones breath away dejarlo a uno sin aliento That great view took my breath away.
take ones time do slowly tomarte tu tiempo, hacer algo Dont hurry. Take your time.
despacio, sin prisa
take ones word for it believe creer en la palabra de alguien, Take my word for it, he wont
creerle a alguien go there.
take pains try hard esmerarse He took pains to make his report
to do it well perfect.
take part in smth. participate tomar parte, participar Mary is going to take part in the show.
in
take place happen tomar lugar, suceder The accident took place on Oak Street.
take someones mind off distraer a alguien de sus Go to a concert or a movie to take
things distract from fixed pensamientos your mind off things.
ideas/thoughts
take steps take action tomar medidas, actuar We need to take steps against it.
/measures
take the words right out of ones quitar las palabras de la boca I was about to say the same! You took
mouth say the same before (decir algo que quera decir otra the words right out of my mouth.
somebody else says it persona)
take time take a long time tomar tiempo It takes time to get used to a new
place.
take time off be absent from tomar un da libre He took time off to attend the
work wedding.
take turns alternate doing cambiar turnos, hacer algo por We went to Minsk by car. We didnt
something one after another turnos get tired because we took turns driving
talk back answer rudely replicar, responder Dont talk back to the teacher!
insolentemente
talk it over discuss discutir Ill talk it over with my family.
tell apart see the difference distinguir Can you tell the twins apart?
Thats just the point. Thats it. Este es el punto. Thats just the point! I hate this job!
the writing on the wall a sign premonicin (de algo malo) The plane crashed. Tim said he saw the
of future events (usually, trouble) writing on the wall about this flight.
not think much of think low tener un concepto bajo I dont think much of her cooking.
de alguien
think over consider carefully pensar en detalle, considerar Think over your answer. Think it over
carefully.
till one is blue in the face try esforzarse demasiado I repeated it till I was blue in the face!
hard
to make a long story short en pocas palabras To make a long story short, we won.
in short
to say the least to make the para no decir ms The film was boring and long, to say
minimum comment about smth. the least.
try on put on new clothes probarse (la ropa) Try on this leather coat, its very good.
to test them for size or look She tried it on, but it didnt fit her
at all.
try ones hand at something probar algo, probar suerte con I want to try my hand at painting.
try algo
turn on / off switch on / off encender/apagar Turn on the radio. Turn off the water.
turn out to be result/end this resultar He turned out to be a very good actor.
way
turn over a new leaf make empezar de nuevo, hacer borrn He promises to turn over a new leaf
a fresh start in life, work, etc. y cuenta nueva and quit alcohol for good.
turn the tide reverse the cambiar el curso de los eventos The new evidence turned the tide, and
course of events the defendant was acquitted
of charges.
twist ones arm make to agree retorcer brazos, obligar a alguien They twisted his arm to sell the house.
a hacer algo en contra
de su voluntad
under the weather feel ill resfriado Im a little under the weather today.
up-and-coming showing prometedor He is an up-and-coming young lawyer
promise of future success who might help you with your case.
up in arms hostile to, in strong protestar, estar en contra The employees are up in arms about
protest against something the new retirement rules.
up in the air undecided colgado en el aire, indefinido My vacation plans are still up in the
air.
up to par equal in standard adecuado y normal His behavior isnt up to par.
used to did often in the past, sola (hacer algo) I used to play the piano when I was
but not now in school (but I dont play it now).
walk on air be very happy estar en las nubes, estar muy He got the job and is walking on air
feliz now.
waste ones breath speak esforzarse en vano Dont waste your breath trying
uselessly, to no purpose to make him do it, he wont change his
mind.
watch ones step be careful tener cuidado, ser cauteloso Watch your step!
watch out look out, be careful tener cuidado Watch out for that car! Watch out!
wet blanket a kill-joy, who aguafiestas Remember what a wet blanket he was
spoils everybodys fun last time? Please dont invite him
again.
Whats the matter? What is it? Qu pasa? Whats the matter? What happened?
which way the wind blows cul es la situacin real (en qu He knows which way the wind blows
what the real situation is direccin sopla el viento) and always acts accordingly.
white lie unimportant lie mentira piadosa A white lie is told to spare your
feelings.
word for word in the same literalmente Tell me word for word what he said.
words
would rather prefer preferir Id rather stay at home today.