To understand Spain properly, it is therefore not enough to know its food, fiestas, cities and traditions. You also need to understand the expressions Spaniards use in everyday conversation – many of them inherited from parents and grandparents and still very much alive today.
Spain Expat Press Editorial Team
For British residents and visitors, some are surprisingly familiar. Britain often has a proverb expressing almost exactly the same idea. Others, however, are so unmistakably Spanish that translating them literally into English produces something rather peculiar.
When a Spaniard tells you “En boca cerrada no entran moscas” – “Flies don’t enter a closed mouth”, for instance, insects are not really the issue.
“Obras son amores y no buenas razones”
Literally: “Deeds are love, not fine words.”
The meaning is immediately recognisable to a British reader: affection, loyalty and good intentions are demonstrated by what we do, rather than what we say.
English has an almost perfect equivalent:
“Actions speak louder than words.”
The message is essentially identical, although the Spanish version has a rather lovely additional touch by linking obras – deeds – directly with amores – love.
“Haz bien y no mires a quién”
Literally: “Do good and don’t look at whom.”
This traditional saying encourages people to do good without first asking who will benefit, whether that person deserves it or whether the favour might one day be returned.
English can certainly express the same idea – do good without expecting anything in return, for example – but there is no commonly used British proverb that reproduces the Spanish phrase quite so neatly.
Seven words, and an entire philosophy of generosity.
“En boca cerrada no entran moscas”
Literally:
“Flies don’t enter a closed mouth.”
This is one of those wonderful Spanish expressions that sounds rather bizarre when translated word for word.
The flies, of course, are beside the point.
The proverb means that there are occasions when it is wiser to keep quiet than to speak too much and end up saying something inappropriate, indiscreet or damaging.
British English offers several similar ideas, including “Silence is golden” and, in certain situations, “Least said, soonest mended.”
But neither has the wonderfully graphic Spanish flies.
“Nunca es tarde si la dicha es buena”
Literally: “It is never too late if the happiness is good.”
And this is precisely where literal translation begins to struggle.
Spaniards use the expression when something good finally happens later than expected: a new love, an opportunity, a reconciliation, a long-awaited journey or simply something that has taken far too long to arrive.
The obvious British equivalent is:
“Better late than never.”
Yet the Spanish version has a subtle difference. It does not merely say that late is better than never. It suggests that waiting does not matter quite so much if what eventually arrives brings happiness.
Rather more romantic than the English version, perhaps.
“Más vale pájaro en mano que ciento volando”
Literally:
“A bird in the hand is worth more than a hundred flying.”
And this time British readers are on very familiar territory.
In English:
“A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.”
Both sayings advise us to value something certain rather than risk losing it in pursuit of something potentially greater but far less secure.
The only real difference is one of scale. The British are contemplating two birds in a bush.
The Spaniards have a hundred flying around.
“A quien madruga, Dios le ayuda”
Literally:
“God helps those who get up early.”
A favourite of Spanish parents and grandparents when somebody is showing little enthusiasm for getting out of bed.
It praises initiative, hard work and the belief that those who start early are more likely to seize opportunities.
British English has not one but two familiar expressions that come close:
“The early bird catches the worm” and “God helps those who help themselves.”
Neither is an exact translation, but together they capture much of the Spanish sentiment.
Different images, same basic advice: get up and get on with it.
“No hay mal que por bien no venga”
A relationship ends, a job disappears or a carefully made plan falls apart – only for something unexpectedly good to emerge from it later.
In Spain, that is the moment for:
“No hay mal que por bien no venga.”
Roughly speaking: Something good can come out of something bad.
British English has a particularly elegant equivalent:
“Every cloud has a silver lining.”
The imagery is completely different, but the philosophy is remarkably similar: even an unpleasant experience may eventually lead to something positive that we simply cannot see at the time.
“Dime con quién andas y te diré quién eres”
Literally:
“Tell me who you spend your time with and I’ll tell you who you are.”
The idea is that the company we keep reveals something about our own character.
English has a remarkably close traditional version:
“A man is known by the company he keeps.”
In Spain, the expression can be a piece of general wisdom, a warning or – very often – a parental observation when a mother or father is not entirely delighted by their child’s new circle of friends.
Some things, it seems, require no translation at all.
Different words, surprisingly similar ideas
What makes these sayings particularly fascinating is not only their differences, but also their similarities.
Spain and Britain may use different animals, images and turns of phrase, yet centuries of popular wisdom have often led both cultures to remarkably similar conclusions.
Work matters more than promises. Something certain may be preferable to something better but uncertain. Getting up early has its advantages. Silence can save trouble. And something good can occasionally emerge from something bad.
The language changes; human nature rather less so.
Spanish proverbs are small cultural time capsules, filled with references to work, love, caution, friendship, patience, luck and everyday life. Some have almost perfect British counterparts. Others are so distinctively Spanish that translating them literally is half the fun.
Learning Spanish, after all, is not simply a matter of vocabulary and grammar.
Sometimes, to really understand a country, you need to know what its grandparents have been saying for generations.
