A level Spanish - Idioms
por doquier
everywhere
hace bien su oficio
he really knows his job
él es su peor rival
he's his own worst enemy
Está endeudado hasta las cejas
he's in debt up to his eyes
el alma se le cayó a los pies
her heart sank
por encargo
in advance
de una vez
in one go
en carne y hueso
in person
en un segundo plano
in the background
en balde
in vain
efectivamente
indeed!; in reality
se le fue de la mano
it got out of hand
es una larga historia!
it's a long story
El mundo es un pañuelo
it's a small world
es tirar el dinero
it's a waste of money
es un hecho conocido
it's a well known fact
me suena a chino
it's all Greek to me
es puro cuento
it's all lies
Mal de muchos, consuelo de pocos
it's no consolation
en todas partes cuecen habas
it's the same the world over
igual no lo saben
maybe they don't know
en el entretanto
meanwhile
en sus propias narices
right under their noses
no tener pelos en la lengua
someone that is very blunt and direct
hechar agua al mar
something is redundant or pointless
tarde o temprano
sooner or later
eso digo yo
that's just what I say
la flor y nata
the elite
el precio de las viviendas están por las nubes
the price of houses are through the roof
la cantidad justa
the right amount
la viva imagen de alguien
the spitting image of someone
de ahí que
therefore
de tres en tres
three at a time
tres veces seguidas
three times in a row
salir el tiro por la culata a alguien
to backfire
estar impresionado por algo
to be amazed by sth
estar por los suelos
to be at rock bottom
estar en juego
to be at stake
estar mal visto
to be frowned upon
pasar muchos apuros
to be hard up
ser partidario de
to be in favour of
estar en buenas manos
to be in good hands
estar bajo de moral
to be in low spirits
estar de con los nervios de punta
to be on edge
pasarse de listo
to be too clever by half
estar al pie del cañón
to be up for the struggle
estar a la altura
to be up to it
estar pendiente de algo
to be waiting for sth
ponerse de moda
to come into fashion
sacar a alguien de quicio
to drive someone mad
irse al traste
to fall through
sentirse a gusto
to feel comfortable
perder los papeles
to fly off the handle
meterse una idea entre ceja y ceja
to get an idea into one's head
meterse en un lío
to get into trouble
ponerse las pilas
to get one's act together
desviarse del tema
to get sidetracked
dejar las cosas claras
to get things straight
ponerse a régimen
to go on a diet
pasar de moda
to go out of fashion
excederse
to go too far (exceed oneself)
titularse en
to graduate in
tener presente
to have in mind
seguir (+ gerund) (seguir haciendo)
to keep on (doing)
desahogarse
to let off steam
estar buen visto
to look good
perder los estribos
to lose one's rag
perder la brújula
to lose one's touch
perder el norte
to lose the plot
poner trabas a alguien
to make things difficult for someone
rizando el rizo
to make things even more complicated
jugar al gato y al ratón
to play cat and mouse
poner a alguien al tanto
to put someone in the picture
poner algo a la práctica
to put sth into practice
poner algo en la tapete
to raise an issue
por no hablar del dolor
to say nothing of the pain
tirar la casa por la ventana
to spare no expenses
plantar a alguien
to stand up to someone
tomarse algo a pecho
to take sth to heart
hacer balance de
to take stock of
hablar por los codos
to talk nineteen to the dozen
irse de la lengua
to talk too much when you shouldn't
arrojar la toalla
to throw in the towel
inclinar la balanza a favor de
to tip the balance in favour of
poner las cosas en la balanza
to weigh up the pros and cons
los vaivénes
ups and downs
en un dos por tres
very quickly
las paredes oyen
walls have ears
el punto flaco
weak point
respecto a/al
with regards to
y tal y cual
and so on
de todos modos
anyway
de la esquina
around the corner (on, at the corner?)
en un primer vistazo
at first glance
en el fondo
at heart
en comparación con
compared with
no hagas locuras
don't do anything stupid
ser pan comido: el trabajo es pan comido
"a peace of cake" The job is a piece of cake
De golpe
All at once
a modo de castigo
As punishment
al azar
At random
a lo sumo
At the most
a medida que
At the same time as
a base de, a partir de
Based on
a cuenta de
Because of
por azar
By chance
a mano
By hand
No se dio por aludido
He didn't take the hint
Le ha dado por el yoga
He's got into yoga
me da corte
I'm embarrassed
El viaje me hace mucha ilusión
I'm really looking forward to the trip
lo siento de veras
I'm really sorry
nunca he visto cosa igual
I've never seen anything like it
a la carrera
In a hurry
a cargo de
In charge of
Con relación a
In relation to
a falta de
In the absence of
a lo lejos
In the distance
a su antojo
In their own way
Da gusto estar aquí
It's nice to be here
a sabiendas de que
Knowing full well that
Tengo la casa patas arriba
My house is in a mess
a causa de
On account of
al borde de la muerte
On the brink of death
por el contrario
On the other hand
a medias
Partly
acaso
Perhaps
Aquí hay gato encerrado
There's something fishy going on here
aburrirse como una ostra
To be bored stiff
apreciarse
To be noticeable
animarse a hacer algo
To bring oneself to do sth
Costar un ojo de la cara
To cost an arm and a leg
Dar la cara
To face the music
Dar que hablar
To give people sth to talk about
Dar en el clavo
To hit the nail on the head
Dar en el blanco
To hit the target
Armar un escándolo
To kick up a fuss
borrón y cuenta nueva
To kiss and make up
ahogarse en un vaso de agua
To make a mountain out of a molehill
Dar la talla
To measure up; to be good enough
Atar cabos
To put two and two together
abastecerse de
To stock up on
Coger un atajo
To take a shortcut
Dar por hecho
To take for granted
Dar la espalda a alguien
To turn one's back on someone