De la boca pa’ fuera
Literal translation: from the mouth out Meaning: you don’t mean what you say. Significado: usted no siente lo que dice o no es sincero. Use: general
Ahí hay gato entre macuto
Literal transation: There’s a cat in a knapsack there. Meaning: Something doesn’t add up or make sense. Someone is hiding something. Significado: Algo no tiene sentido o no concuerda. Alguien está escondiendo algo. Use: general Example: El dinero se perdió el día que el vino. Ahí hay gato entre macuto. (The money disappeared the day he came by. There’s a cat in a knapsack there.)
E’ má’ la sal que el chivo
Literal translation: there’s more salt than goat (in this dish). Meaning: of a situation - it is more trouble than it is worth. Significado: “Es más la sal que el chivo”: no vale la pena, es más el esfuerzo que el resultado. Use: general
Pasar crujía
Literal translation: to go through a corridor. Meaning: to go through hardship. Significado: pasar por momentos difíciles. Use: general, colloquial. Example: Aquí estoy, pasando crujía. (Here I am, going through hardship - an answer to the question: How are you? often heard in the DR).
Te volviste buche y pluma’
Literal translation: you turned into maw and feathers. Meaning: to tell someone they failed to live up to a promise, fulfill a commitment or simply do something they said they would do (such as showing up at a party). “Buche y pluma” can be used to refer to people, organizations or the government. Significado: esta frase se usa cuando una persona no cumple una promesa o no hace algo que dijo que haría, como asistir a una fiesta. “Buche y pluma” puede usarse para referirse a personas, organizaciones y el gobierno. Use: general Example: Me quedé esperándote anoche en la…
Tragarse un cable
Literal translation: to swallow a cable. Meaning: to go through difficult times. Especially used to refer to economic hardship. Significado: pasar por momentos difíciles. Usado especialmente en casos de dificultad económica. Use: general Example: Y tu hermano, ¿cómo está? - Tragándose un cable en Nueva York. Hace un año que no consigue trabajo.
A falta de pan, casabe.
Literary translation: “In the absence of bread, cassava bread”. “Casabe” is bread made of grated cassava root (yucca). Yucca root is abundant in Hispaniola island and was a staple of the native Taino inhabitants. Cassava bread is part of the Taino heritage and the recipe, as well as the look of it hasn’t changed much over the years. Here’s a video in Spanish of how Casabe is made in the Dominican Republic. Meaning: Settle for what you can get. Enjoy what you have if you can’t get what you want. (This is used to refer to food, circumstances, and people).…
Mucha espuma y poco chocolate
Literal translation: Lots of foam, very little chocolate Meaning: Lots of fuss, very little substance. Used to refer to people or events that build up expectations and then do not deliver. Significado: Mucha algarabía y poca esencia. Se usa para referirse a una persona o evento que llena de expectativas a los demás pero no cumple con las mismas. Use: colloquial