Using Spanish idioms with confidence and fluency will make all the difference in your conversational Spanish.
If you can understand and integrate the colloquial Spanish idioms which you’ll learn in this article into your messages, not only will your Spanish sound more natural, but you’ll also be able to make jokes, tease your local friends, and better showcase your personality when speaking Spanish.
In 2023, I published an article on my blog titled “10 Spanish Slang and Idioms Commonly Used by Native Speakers,” which could be considered the first part of the article you’re reading now.And week after week, this 2023 article, where you can learn colloquial slang words like flipar, molar, pirarse, guay, … is among the top 5 most-read articles on my blog.
It has been a very interesting surprise for me to discover that the origin of these three expressions of Spanish idioms and colloquial slang is in the sea, in the lives of sailors, crews, and shipbuilders of the past.
Meaning:
“Dormir la mona” means to sleep after getting drunk.
Origin:
The expression “dormir la mona” (to sleep it off) originates from the custom of giving alcohol to monkeys transported by ship from Africa to Europe in the 16th and 17th centuries.
Sailors gave alcohol to the animals to entertain them with their acrobatics and jumps during the voyage, or also to calm the monkeys and make them sleep during the journey.
Example:
Anoche Sandra se pasó con las copas en la fiesta y hoy estará durmiendo la mona.
Meaning:
We use the expression “vaya tela” to refer to a complicated, difficult, or unbelievable situation.
Origin:
The origin of this expression lies in the ships of the past and refers to the large amount of cloth needed to make the sails of vessels. This enormous quantity of cloth meant something difficult and expensive to obtain, something so large that it was also difficult to handle.
Therefore, expressions like “tela marinera” (a real mess), “tiene tela” (a real problem), “aquí hay tela que cortar” (a real mess), “telita” (a real problem), or the expression we’re using today, “vaya tela” (a real mess), are used to talk about something that is complicated, difficult to handle, very large, very expensive…
Example:
– Marta ha dejado a su marido y se ha ido con su jefe.
– ¡Vaya tela!
Meaning:
“Por los pelos” means “in extremis”, at the last possible moment.
Origin:
This expression originates from the past custom of sailors growing their hair long. They did this not for aesthetic reasons, but for pure survival: if they fell overboard during a voyage, it was easier for their companions to grab them by the hair and rescue them if they had long hair.
This was a rescue “in extremis,” that is, at the last possible moment, which is the current meaning of the colloquial expression.
Example:
¡Hemos cogido el avión por los pelos!
Now we’re going to look at a group of Spanish idioms that are very common here in Spain – when we talk to our friends and family in a relaxed and informal environment.
Meaning:
“Rayarse” indicates that someone is obsessively thinking or worrying about something. It also means to get angry or upset.
Origin:
The origin of the expression “rayarse,” understood as “to become obsessed with a thought,” is directly related to vinyl records.
In the past, when a record was scratched (rayado), the sound would repeat over and over because the record player was jammed. This continuous repetition, continuous playing without stopping, is reminiscent of how a thought can obsessively repeat itself in a person’s mind.
Example:
La novia de Sergio estuvo bailando con su compañero de trabajo toda la noche. Sergio se rayó y se fue de la fiesta sin decir nada.
Meaning:
“Estar de coña” means to be joking.
Origin:
Too vulgar or obscene to include in this article (author’s note).
Example:
– Mi jefe me subió ayer el sueldo.
– ¿Estás de coña?
Meaning:
“Y punto” (and that’s it) means there’s nothing more to say. We consider the conversation closed; we end it.
Origin:
The origin of the expression “y punto” is related to one of the meanings of the word “punto” (period): the punctuation mark we use to end sentences when writing.
When we say “y punto” in a conversation, we make our intention to end a matter or conclude a conversation clear and firm.
Example:
He dicho que te comas las lentejas, ¡y punto!
Meaning:
“Partirse el culo” means to laugh a lot.
Origin:
Too vulgar or obscene to include in this article (author’s note).
Example:
Cuando escuchamos a Sara cantar en el karaoke nos partimos el culo.
As a great lover of history, I always enjoy discovering and sharing with my students the connection between customs, daily life, and real-life anecdotes from the past and our present. This connection between the reality of the past and the reality of the present often occurs through language.
Let’s see the last two Spanish idioms of this article.
Meaning:
“Montar un pollo” (to raise a fuss) means to cause a scene or have a heated argument.
Origin:
The expression “montar un pollo” (to raise a fuss) originates from the word “podio” or “poyo” (podium). A “podio” or “poyo” was a pedestal that was once used in towns and cities for public speeches about politics, religion, and other topics. These speeches often ended in shouting, arguments, and even fights among the audience. Hence, the original expression “montar un poyo,” which has evolved into the current expression “montar un pollo.”
So, as you can see, it has nothing to do with the animal “pollo” (chicken), but rather with the pedestal (poyo) that was used in the past for giving speeches on the street.
Example:
Cuando acabó el partido, los aficionados empezaron a discutir y montaron un pollo impresionante.
Meaning:
“Poner los cuernos” (to cheat) means to be unfaithful, to deceive your partner with another person.
Origin:
The origin of this expression in Spanish colloquial slang is related to the rights that medieval feudal lords in Europe and Viking clan chiefs had.
In both cases, the feudal lord and the Viking clan chief could sleep with the wives of their subjects. Therefore, to indicate that the wife was “available” to the lord or chief, a deer antler (cuernos) was placed on the doors of the houses.
Example:
Jenifer se ha divorciado porque descubrió que su marido le estaba poniendo los cuernos.
Meaning:
We use the expression “irse la olla” (to lose one’s mind) when someone acts irrationally, incoherently, or without sense.
This expression also means to forget something completely.
Origin:
The origin of this Spanish colloquialism lies in a phrase uttered by the French chef Jean Luc Sagnol during an elegant dinner where he was the chef in charge of the menu in the 18th century.
During the evening, our friend Jean Luc experienced a moment of extreme stress in the kitchen, losing control of his nerves because something was going wrong, and the only thing he could think to do was shout: “¡Se me ha ido la olla!” (I’ve lost my mind!)
A pot (olla) is a utensil we use for cooking in the kitchen, and, by analogy, we can understand our mind as the place where our ideas are cooked.
Does this make sense, or “se me ha ido la olla” have I lost my mind? 😉
Example:
A Juan se le ha ido la olla: ha dejado su trabajo, ha vendido su casa ¡y se ha comprado una cabaña en las montañas!
It would be very unusual to spend three or four days with native speakers and local friends here in Spain, and not hear any of the Spanish idioms or colloquial slang words or expressions we’ve seen in this article.
My advice is not to try to use them all at once. Get familiar with the sound of them and with their meanings, so that when you hear them, you understand the context of the conversation and what the speakers are trying to say when using those idioms..
And in your case, the best thing to do is choose one, just one, and try to use it in the next seven days: in a message to a Spanish-speaking friend, in a language exchange group chat, in the comments of a Spanish-speaking influencer or celebrity you follow… And of course, especially when you have the opportunity to talk with local friends in Spain or with your Spanish teacher 😉
So, the question is…
Which expression from this article did you choose?
