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Spanish idioms

Top 6 Spanish Idioms That People Use in Everyday Conversations

Using Spanish idioms can be very useful to communicate with native speakers of the language or other people that learn how to use Spanish, especially when you want to express your points of view very clearly and say what you want to say in short sentences during your conversations.

That’s why many people use different idioms when they are talking to people and want to attract their attention in just seconds and get a positive response from them every time they are speaking about any topics, including work, business, relationships, family, and many more.

Here are the most popular Spanish idioms that people use every time they want to make a point during their conversations or be more concise.

Príncipe Azul – Blue Prince

This Spanish idiom is very popular among the girls and women that dream of having a good partner in the future that takes care of them in every area of their life and is the ideal man that they want to get married to when they reach the age between 20 and 30 years old.

With the help of this Spanish idiom, people can talk about different topics where women speak of their relationships with the opposite sex and their experiences looking for a suitable man that they can get as a boyfriend or husband in the current dating market.

We can also use this Spanish idiom during any conversation to understand the opinions of any woman with regards to what kind of guy she would want to get married to and what are the main traits that they have to show as a male to be attractive to them.

Here are a few examples of this Spanish idiom that you can use when you are talking to other people and learn what they actually think about this topic.

SpanishEnglish
¿Qué es lo que quisieras encontrar en tu príncipe azul?What are you looking for in your Prince Charming?
¿Te gustaría encontrar a tu príncipe azul algún día?Would you like to find your Knight In Shining Armor one day?
Todas las chicas quieren tener un príncipe azul.All girls are looking for a Prince Charming.
Las madres siempre tratan de buscar un príncipe azul para sus hijas.Mothers are always looking for a Prince Charming for their daughters.
Muchas mujeres esperan casarse con un príncipe y ser muy felices.Lots of women hope to get married to a Knight In Shining Armor and be happy.

Al Pie de la Letra – To The Letter

This Spanish idiom is great for situations where people are doing specific activities that require them to follow instructions and do things properly to avoid any problems that may come up at that moment.

This idiom is perfect for people that study or work in technical careers that use different sets of rules and processes to achieve the results that they need.

You can also use this Spanish idiom every time you need to give orders to someone, explain to them how to do something complicated, or show them step by step how to get things done consistently under any situation they encounter.

If you spend a lot of time in environments like schools, businesses, courts, hospitals, IT companies, or similar places, you can use this Spanish idiom when you talk to people you meet every single day and get their assistance in whatever it is that you are doing.

Try to use this Spanish idiom every time you have the opportunity and get people to help you solve different problems by doing the things you have asked them to do properly.

SpanishEnglish
Todos debemos seguir el proceso al pie de la letra para hacer las cosas bien.We all need to follow the process to the letter so that things work out well.
Necesitas seguir las instrucciones al pie de la letra y tener más paciencia.You need to follow the instructions to the letter and have more patience.
Yo siempre hago las cosas al pie de la letra.I always do things according to the letter.
Debemos hacer el trabajo al pie de la letra para obtener mejores resultados.We should do our jobs properly to get better results.
Mis padres me enseñaron a seguir instrucciones al pie de la letra.My parents taught me to exactly follow instructions.
Necesitamos seguir las leyes al pie de la letra para no tener problemas.We need to follow the laws to the letter, so as not to have any issues.

Pan Comido – Piece of Cake

We can use this Spanish idiom every time people ask us to do something that is challenging for most people but is very easy for us to do. Whether it is because of our talent, our skills, our experience, our resources, or other advantages that we have over others, this Spanish idiom is perfect for these types of situations.

We can also use this to show off to other people what we can do and calm their nerves when they need our assistance to solve a particular problem that they can’t figure out themselves. With the help of this Spanish idiom, anyone can show their level of competence to others and at the same time give people a positive impression of themselves in just a few seconds.

Start using this Spanish idiom during your conversations when other people ask for your help with something, and you are willing to help them get what they need.

SpanishEnglish
Eso es pan comido.That’s a piece of cake.
Trabajar el fin de semana es pan comido.Working at the weekend is a doddle.
Para mí es pan comido conseguir eso.It is dead easy to get.
Gracias a mi negocio eso es pan comido.It’s a piece of cake in my line of work.

Sin Pelos en la Lengua – Without Hairs on Your Tongue

People use this Spanish idiom to show other people that they do not have any reservations when it comes to saying what they really think about someone or something when it can be considered controversial for most people.

This Spanish idiom can work in any situation where people ask about different topics that are sensitive or can trigger others, especially when you want to demonstrate to everyone that you do not have any problem having a conversation about those topics.

If you are an outspoken person and don’t have too many misgivings when you speak your mind, you can use this Spanish idiom to demonstrate that you are not afraid of speaking the truth, even if it makes other people uncomfortable.

Here are a few different examples of how you can use this Spanish idiom during your conversations and make people aware that you are about to say something that might be controversial.

SpanishEnglish
Yo no tengo pelos en la lengua.I don’t mince my words.
Yo hablo sin tener pelos en la lengua.I’ll speak quite frankly.
Mis amigos no tienen pelos en la lengua cada vez que hablamos.My friends always speak their mind.
Mi novia no tiene pelos en la lengua cuando le molesta algo.My girlfriend doesn’t beat about the bush if something is annoying her.

Las Cinco Patas al Gato – The Fifth Foot of the Cat

Use this Spanish idiom when you are talking to people that have a very complicated personality and are always trying to nitpick and find problems with anything that you say. This will help you express your personal opinion and provide constructive criticism to them, all at the same time.

You can make use of this Spanish idiom every time you speak to people that have a personal bias against your points of view or are trying to argue with you because they are angry at something you did or said to them previously. These people can include your boyfriend or girlfriend, a jealous friend, a lousy boss, a family member and so on.

Start using these Spanish idioms more frequently during your conversations and use them to deal with negative people that always find a problem for every solution that you come up with.

SpanishEnglish
No sé porque le buscas las cinco patas al gato.I don’t know why you’re always splitting hairs.
No hay necesidad de buscarle las cinco patas al gato.There’s no need for all this quibbling.
Tú siempre buscas las cinco patas al gato cada vez que hablamos.You are always nitpicking every time we talk.
No podemos resolver nada buscándole las cinco patas al gato.We can’t resolve anything with these petty objections.

Dos Pájaros de Un Tiro – Two Birds in One Shot

This Spanish idiom is perfect for situations where you are advising other people that are looking to get the maximum result they can get with the minimum effort required on their part. To make this work, you need to first give the best advice that you have available to the other person and then follow up what you just said with this Spanish idiom.

By fitting this idiom into your conversation, you can show other people that they can get the best outcome possible by following the advice that you mentioned before and solving two different problems all at the same time. It is quite similar to the English expression “to kill two birds with one stone”.

Try to use this Spanish idiom when you are advising your family, your friends, or anyone you know in person about how to achieve more by doing less.

SpanishEnglish
Así podemos resolver y matar dos pájaros de un tiro.We can sort it out like that and kill two birds with one stone.
La mejor forma de hacer las cosas es matando dos pájaros de un tiro.The best way to do it is by killing two birds with one stone.
Con eso podemos matar dos pájaros de un tiro.We can kill two birds with one stone with that.
Podemos matar dos pájaros de un tiro si hacemos las cosas hoy mismo.We can kill two birds with one stone if we do them right now.

Wrapping Things Up

By practicing all of these Spanish idioms, you will be able to take your speaking skills in the Spanish language to the next level and manage to build more rapport with people that you are talking to in a short amount of time.

Don’t waste any more time, start developing your Spanish skills with the help of these idioms right now and read the latest articles that we have available at LingoDude to improve your mastery of the language every single week.

Ali Sotillo

My name is Ali Sotillo, and I am a writer and linguist from Venezuela. I teach Spanish to lots of people on the internet and help them speak the language more fluently.

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