TODAY'S IDIOM: RUN RINGS AROUND / RUN CIRCLES AROUND

"RUN RINGS AROUND / RUN CIRCLES AROUND"

If you run rings around someone, or run circles around them, you do something much better than they do.

Example: The Democrat candidate ran rings around the Republican candidate in their debate on the economy. 

Le da mil vueltas.

Example sentences:

• We watched this dance contest and some kid from Brixton ran circles around a guy from Chelsea / Vimos este concurso de baile y un niño de Brixton le dio mil vueltas a un chico de Chelsea.

• After running rings around his competitor for the whole fight, the boxer from Cuba won the fight easily / Después de darle mil vueltas a su competidor en toda la pelea, el boxeador de Cuba la ganó fácilmente.

Additional examples:

• Why does he talk to Alison as if she's stupid, when we all know she could run rings around him?

• Olympic hockey runs rings around the game played by professionals.

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TODAY'S IDIOM: ABOVE THE LAW

"ABOVE THE LAW"

If someone is above the law, they are not subject to the laws of a society.

Example: Just because his father is a rich and powerful man, he seems to think he's above the law and he can do whatever he likes.

Por encima de la ley.

Example sentences:

• In a democracy, no-one is above the law; not even a president or a prime-minister / En una democracia, nadie está por encima de la ley; ni siquiera un presidente o un primer ministro.

• James seemed to think he was above the law, so he was shocked when he was arrested for selling drugs / James solía pensar que estaba por encima de la ley, por lo que se sorprendió cuando fue arrestado por vender drogas.

Additional examples:

• None of us is above the law. We have to obey all of them.

• Football players can't be above the law just because they are so valuable to team owners.

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TODAY'S IDIOM: (HAVE) EGG ON YOUR FACE

"(HAVE) EGG ON YOUR FACE"

You have egg on your face if you've said or done something wrong, and it's made you feel embarrassed or stupid.

Example: Stan had egg on his face after saying he could easily do fifty push-ups, and then giving up after doing just twenty.

Quedar en ridículo.

Example sentences:

• The police force had egg on its face because they arrested and beat up an innocent guy who had the same name as a suspect they were looking for / La policía quedo totalmente en ridículo porque arrestaron y golpearon a un tipo inocente quien tenía el mismo nombre que el sospechoso que ellos estaban buscando.

• Silvio had egg on his face after saying he was much better than all the other drivers, and then coming last in the race / Silvio quedó en ridículo después de decir que él era mejor que todos los demás conductores y después lo dejaron atrás en la carrera.

Additional examples:

• I was completely wrong, and now I have egg on my face.

• She's really got egg on her face!

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TODAY'S IDIOM: CALL A SPADE A SPADE

"CALL A SPADE A SPADE"

If you call a spade a spade, you tell the truth in a straightforward and direct way, even if the truth is not pleasant.

Example: I should warn you that Sandra calls a spade a spade, so if she thinks you say something wrong or make a mistake, she'll say so.

Andar sin rodeos.

Example sentences:

• Sometimes it's good to call a spade a spade, but sometimes it's better to be more diplomatic in what you say / A veces es mejor andarse sin rodeos, pero aveces es mejor ser más diplomático en lo que dices.

• Harvey was just calling a spade a spade when he said you should lose some weight / Harvey no se anduvo con rodeos cuando dijo que deberías perder algo de peso.

Additional examples:

• Well, I believe it's time to call a spade a spade.

• We are just avoiding the issue. Let's call a spade a spade. The man is a liar.

 

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TODAY'S IDIOM: A WEIGHT OFF YOUR SHOULDERS

"A WEIGHT OFF YOUR SHOULDERS"

You can say a weight is off your shoulders if you no longer have to worry about something or deal with something difficult.

Quitarte un peso de encima.

Example sentences:

• Thanks so much for agreeing to take care of Snoopy while I'm away. It's a weight off my shoulders knowing that a real dog lover will be looking after her / Muchas gracias por haber accedido a cuidar a Snoopy mientras estaba fuera. Me quité un peso de encima al saber que un verdadero amante del perro cuidó de ella.

• He has a lot to do this week, so Trevor said it'd be a real weight off his shoulders if I could do the reports for him / Él tiene mucho que hacer esta semana, por lo que Trevor dijo que le quitaría un gran peso de encima si yo hiciera los reportes por él.

Additional example:

• If you could take over the job of organizing the party, that would be a tremendous weight off my shoulders.

• I think it was a real weight off Cathy's shoulders when you offered to take care of the arrangements. She's got so much else to deal with at the moment.

 

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TODAY'S IDIOM: TALK THROUGH YOUR HAT

"TALK THROUGH YOUR HAT"

If you're talking through your hat, you're talking about something without knowing much about it, or you claim something is true when it isn't.

Example: Evan says that quantum physics proves that space and time don't really exist, but Kathy says he's talking through his hat. 

Hablar sin fundamento.

Example sentences:

• I proved that George was talking through his hat by checking on the internet to find out if what he said is true - and it isn't / Demostré que George estaba hablando sin fundamento comprobando en internet para saber si lo que dijo es verdad.

• Our biology teacher says evolution is a fact, and that people who say it isn't real are talking through their hats. He says these people are simply wrong / Nuestro maestro de Biología dice que la evolución es un hecho y la gente que dice que no es real están hablando sin fundamento.

Additional examples:

• The man's talking through his hat. He doesn't know the first thing about banking.

• He is talking through his hat when he says he'll make the team.

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TODAY'S IDIOM: FROM NOW ON

"FROM NOW ON"

If you do something "from now on", you do it from now until some unknown time in the future.

Example: I was lucky to escape from the accident with just a few minor injuries, so from now on I'm going to be much more careful when I drive.

De ahora en adelante.

Example sentences:

• From now on you can wear casual clothes to work every Friday / De ahora en adelante puedes vestir ropa casual para trabajar todos los Viernes.

• Rashid has promised his family that from now on he won't drink alcohol. This means he's promised not to drink alcohol for the rest of his life / Rashid le prometió a su familia que de ahora en adelante no beberá alcohol. Esto significa que prometió no beber alcohol por el resto de su vida.

Additional examples:

• From now on I will study Italian every day.

• From now on, all of us have to turn our mobiles off.

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TODAY'S IDIOM: MORE OFTEN THAN NOT

"MORE OFTEN THAN NOT"

If something happens more often than not, it happens quite often, but not all the time.

Example: If I listen to BBC 3's "Late Junction" online, more often than not I'll hear some great music that I've never heard before.

La mayoría de las veces.

Example sentences:

• Bob loves browsing around second-hand bookstores, and more often than not he finds something great to read / A Bob le encanta navegar alrededor de librerías de segunda mano, y la mayoría de las veces se encuentra algo bueno para leer.

• If Jenny goes shopping, more often than not she'll look for new clothes / Si Jenny va de compras, la mayoría de las veces va a buscar ropa nueva.

Additional examples:

• Our children's clothes are, more often than not, made in China.

• These flowers will live through the winter more often than not.

• This kind of dog will grow up to be a good watchdog more often than not.

 

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TODAY'S IDIOM: PIPE OF DREAM

"PIPE OF DREAM"

A pipe dream is a plan or a dream for the future that could never come true or be achieved.

Example: The idea of a perfect world in which everyone lives in peace and harmony is just a pipe dream. 


Sueño dorado / Sueño guajiro

Example sentences:

• Pipe dreams only ever come true in the movies / Los sueños dorados solo se vuelven realidad en las películas.

• Your hopes of winning a lot of money are just a silly pipe dream / Tus esperanzas de ganar mucho dinero son solo un sueño guajiro.

Additional examples:

• Going to the West Indies is a pipe dream. We'll never have enough money. 

• I think that his plan to become a professional athlete is a pipe dream and that he should stay in school.

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TODAY'S IDIOM: YOU CAN'T MAKE A SILK PURSE OUT OF A SOW'S EAR.

"YOU CAN'T MAKE A SILK PURSE OUT OF A SOW'S EAR."

If something isn't very good to start with, you can't do much to improve it.

Example: The girl is a terrible singer and she will never become better. You cannot make a silk purse out of a sow's ear.

Aunque la mona se vista de seda, mona se queda.

Example sentences:

• When Pedro put a Mercedes star on his Ford, I said, "You can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear" / Cuando Pedro puso en una estrella de Mercedes en su Ford, le dije: "Aunque la mona se vista de seda, mona se queda."

• No matter how expensive her clothes, she still looks sloppy. You can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear / No importa que tan cara sea su ropa, todavía se ve descuidada. Aunque la mona se vista de seda, mona se queda.

Additional examples:

• To make chairs that'll last, you need good strong pieces of wood. You can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear. 

• I've given up trying to get my cousin to appreciate classical music. You can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear.

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TODAY'S IDIOM: NO HOLDS BARRED

"NO HOLDS BARRED"

If something is done with no holds barred, it's done without restriction, rules or restraint.

Example: The final game was played with no holds barred. It was very rough football and the referee had a hard time keeping control of things.

Sin tabúes.

Example sentences:

• The election campaign turned into a no holds barred battle with each candidate trying to find information with which to damage their opponent's reputation / La campaña electoral se convirtió en una batalla sin tabúes con cada candidato tratando de encontrar la información para dañar la reputación de su oponente.

• Our boss is a tough businessman, so it's no holds barred when he negotiates a deal / Nuestro jefe es un duro hombre de negocios, por lo que es sin tabúes cuando negocia un acuerdo.

 

Additional examples:

 

• You can say whatever you like to me, there are no holds barred.

 

• I intend to argue it out with Mary, no holds barred.

• When Ann negotiates a contract, she goes in with no holds barred and comes out with a good contract.

 

 

 

 

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TODAY'S IDIOM: FOR A SONG

"FOR A SONG"

If you buy or sell something for a song, you buy or sell it at a very cheap price.

Example: When I was in Vietnam I bought some beautiful lacquerware for a song. I still can't believe how cheap it was.

Barato.

Example sentences:

• I thought I was getting the gems for a song, but I was actually paying too much / Pensé que estaba adquiriendo las gemas baratas, pero realmente estaba pagando demasiado.

•  I bought the antique tray for a song / Compré la bandeja antigua bien barata.

Additional examples:

• James had a really valuable record by an old American band called The Cramps, but he sold it for a song at a garage sale. He didn't know how much it was worth.

• I could buy this house for a song, because it's so ugly.

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TODAY'S IDIOM: YEAR IN, YEAR OUT

"YEAR IN, YEAR OUT"

If something has happened year in, year out, it's happened every year for many years in a row.

Example: If you do something year in, year out, you do it every year.

Año tras año.

Example sentences:

• Our family gets together year in, year out at Christmas time / Nuestra familia se reúne año tras año en la época navideña.

• Let's go somewhere new. We've been going to the same old places year in, year out since we were married. / Vamos a un lugar nuevo. Hemos estado yendo a los mismos lugares viejos año tras año desde que nos casamos.

Additional examples:

• I seem to have hay fever year in, year out. I never get over it.

• John wears the same old suit, year in, year out.

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TODAY'S IDIOM: COVER YOUR TRACKS

"COVER YOUR TRACKS"

If you cover your tracks, you make sure no-one can find evidence of what you've done.

Example: He's a smart guy and he knew how to cover his tracks so the police couldn't connect him to the crime.

Borrar las huellas.

Example sentences:

• Bob didn't cover his tracks well enough, and his wife found a romantic text message that a girl had sent to his phone / Bob no borró las hellas suficientemente bien y su esposa encontró un romántico mensaje de texto que una chica le envió a su teléfono.

• After stealing millions of dollars from the company accounts, he covered his tracks by destroying the computer files / Después de robar millines de dólares de las cuentas de la compañía, él borró las huellas eliminando los archivos de la computadora.

Additional examples:

• The robber failed to cover his tracks.

• She was able to cover her tracks up so that they couldn't pin the charges on her. 

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TODAY'S IDIOM: GO DOWN A TRET

"GO DOWN A TRET"

If something goes down a treat, it's a great success and everyone enjoys it.

Example: The speech Lenny made at his daughter's wedding went down a treat. Everyone thought it was very funny but also very moving.

Un lujazo.

Example sentences:

• Geraldine made some pancakes for breakfast and they went down a treat. They were really delicious / Geraldine hizo unas tortitas para el desayuno y eran un lujazo. Eran realmente deliciosas.

• The band came back on stage and played one last song and it went down a treat. Everybody clapped and cheered / La banda regresó al escenario y tocó una última canción y fueron un lujazo. Todo el mundo aplaudió y aclamó.

Additional examples:

• His animal impressions went down a treat with the children.

• A cup of tea would go down a treat.

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TODAY'S IDIOM: UNDER THE TABLE

"UNDER THE TABLE"

If something is done under the table, it's done secretly, usually because it's illegal or unethical. 

Example: If I do any overtime, can you pay me under the table so I won't have pay tax on it.

Por debajo del agua.

Example sentences:

• If you make under the table payments to customs officials, you can get goods through the port without having them inspected / Si haces los pagos por debajo del agua a los oficiales de aduanas, puedes conseguir mercancía a través del puerto sin tener que inspeccionar.

• Newspapers reported that some basketball referees have received under the table payments for influencing the score in some games / Los periódicos informaron que algunos árbitros de balonceso han recibido pagos por debajo del agua para influir en el resultado de algunos juegos.

Additional examples:

• It was strictly an under the table deal.  

• The mayor made a few bucks under the table, too.

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