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7.2 Idioms and Fixed Expressions
So far, in this lesson we’ve been examining collocation between words, how words have a tendency to be used with other words in a given language. Generally, this usage is fairly flexible in form. For the collocation to “pay a bill” we can create such phrases as “will pay the bill”, “the bill has been paid”, “the payment of the bill”, “bill pay”, etc. and still maintain the meaning. At this point we will turn our attention to idioms and fixed expressions, both of which are generally characterized by rigidity in patterning. In other words, the parts of speech cannot be changed (from verb to noun for example) and the word order must remain the same.
An idiom is an expression with at least two words which cannot be understood literally, and for which the meaning is based on the whole rather than on the individual words in it. Some examples of idioms in Spanish and English are dar por sentado which means to take for granted and estar al tanto which means to be up to date. Spanish and English both have idioms to express many of the same messages, though this is not always the case. Idiomatic expressions are strongly cultural and have different meanings derived from the cultures they come from. In translation, it is essential to identify idioms in the source language and to transfer the meaning into the target language, either by using an equivalent idiom or by paraphrasing the meaning.
Fixed expressions, as the name indicates, are also usually fixed and not flexible in patterning. They are however, unlike idioms, generally transparent in meaning. Some examples of fixed expressions are de hecho - in fact/ as a matter of fact, a pesar de - in spite of, and a quien corresponda - to whom it may concern.
In order to translate idioms and fixed and expressions well, the translator first needs to be able to recognize them in the source language, then decipher the meaning (if it is an unfamiliar expression), and finally to identify a similar idiom or fixed expression in the target language. In these cases, it is especially important to abandon any attempt to translate literally word-for-word from source text and rather to focus on translating the message in a way that is natural in the TL. For example:
Example 7.3
Source Text
Literal Translation
Translation which compensates for fixed expressions
Following are some examples of idioms and fixed expressions in Spanish that might be used frequently at DCS and their translations to English:
Resource List 7.5
|
Spanish
|
English
|
| a cargo de | in charge of, responsible for |
| a estas alturas | at this point, in this situation |
| a la vez | at the same time |
| al revés | backwards |
| a propósito | on purpose, deliberately/ speaking of which |
| al fin y al cabo | in the end |
| con anticipación | in advance, ahead of time |
| dar a luz | to give birth |
| darse cuenta de | to realize, become aware |
| darse por vencido | to give up, to give in |
| de costumbre | as usual, normally |
| estar de acuerdo | to agree, to be in agreement |
| estar al tanto | to be up to date |
| estar conforme a/con | to be in accordance/ to be in agreement with |
| estar de vuelta | to be back, to have returned |
| estar harto de | to be fed up with, to be sick and tired of |
| estar mal de dinero | to have money problems |
| hacer caso a | to pay attention to |
| hacer frente | to confront |
| hacerse cargo de | to take charge of, take responsibility for |
| llegar a un acuerdo | to come to an agreement, reach an agreement |
| llevarse bien con | to get along well with |
| mientras tanto | meanwhile |
| no tener caso | to be pointless |
| pasar a buscar | to pick up |
| pasar seguido | to happen often |
| querer decir | to mean to say |
| salir adelante | to get ahead, move forward |
| tener suerte | to be lucky |
| tomar/tener en cuenta | to bear in mind, keep in mind |
| valer la pena | to be worth/ worthwhile |
If we try to translate these expressions literally, without taking into account their idiomatic nature, it’s possible to distort the message. Consider the following example:
Example 7.4
Source Text
Literal Translation
Improved Target Text
In other cases, while the message might remain more or less intact, we will be unable to achieve natural expression unless we translate the idiomatic expression well.
Example 7.5
Source Text
Literal Translation
Improved Target Text