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
348 Sanja Mariţiš

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:
 Sanja Mariţiš 349

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?]
350 Sanja Mariţiš

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‘.
 Sanja Mariţiš 351

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.]
352 Sanja Mariţiš

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.]
 Sanja Mariţiš 353

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.
354 Sanja Mariţiš

[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

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sayings and phrases]. Madrid: Espasa.
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Madrid: Editorial Edinumen.
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http://spanish.about.com/b/.
Hlebec, B. (2003). Essential Dictionary English-Serbian, Serbian-English.
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[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.
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dozen]. Madrid: Edelsa.