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25 Spanish Words impossible to translate

25 Spanish Words impossible to translate
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(Last Updated On: May 13, 2022)

25 Spanish Words impossible to translate

It’s funny how we never question the comprehensibility of our language, especially, our mother tongue. The notion of not even considering thinking or expressing our perspectives in another language is just baffling if you think about it. The human mind is so trained to think that way that there is no other pattern, unless, of course, if you start learning a different language.

Spanish is one native language that is known for so many things, the rough accent, the local dialect, Spanish pronunciation, difficult sounds, the terms, and the words that are whole expressions in themselves. These super awesome Spanish tongue twisters are so cool that you can’t translate them. Don’t believe it? Well, we have created a list of the 25 most amazing Spanish words that can’t be translated and here’s why:

  • How do you say I want you in Spanish sexually?

    Most Spanish speakers say ‘te quiero’ when they want to tell someone that they want them. But if you wish to let someone know that you desire them sexually then ‘te deseo’ would be a better option. Because in many Spanish-speaking countries, ‘te quiero’ is used for saying I love you to friends and family members.

  • What is the longest Spanish word?

    The longest word in the Spanish language is Esternocleidooccipitomastoideos. It is the Spanish name of a muscle that can be found in a human neck. In English, the muscle is known as sternocleidomastoid, which is also a long word, but not as long as the Spanish translation. However, Spanish does not have a lot of long words.

  • What is the hardest word to say in English?

    The majority of English speakers are non-natives, which is why they often have trouble pronouncing words. But English has plenty of difficult words that can even confuse the natives. A two-syllable word ‘Isthmus’, which is pronounced as is-muss often confuses people. Many English speakers find words like colonel and squirrel equally difficult to pronounce.

  • What words have been borrowed from Spanish?

    English has borrowed hundreds of words from Spanish over the years but here are the most common ones:

    • Rodeo, taken from rodear
    • Aficionado, from aficionar, which means to inspire affection
    • Renegade, from renegado
    • Embargo, from embargar
    • Vanilla, from the Spanish word vainilla
    • Cafetaria, from cafeteria, which simply means coffee shop

1.Merendar

This one on top of our list is something you always love to have during those long days when you are feeling sad or anxious, or the days when you didn’t have the time to do a proper lunch so you want it. Yes, the word above means an afternoon snack, coffee, or tea. Unpredictable isn’t it? And of course, there is no single word in the English language that can cover all three of the above.

2.Verguenza Ajena / Pena Ajena

Ever been at a gathering with a stupid friend who’s simply annoying and does things that make him look even more stupid but instead of him, you are the embarrassed one? Well, the words above mean the whole of that, covering the whole situation in just two words is simply impossible in any other lingo

impossible spanish word to translate

3.Sobremesa

Remember the chit-chat you always had at Grandma’s house after dinner? What do you call it? A chit-chat after meal or Sobremesa? Now you can use the latter because that’s what it means.

4.Empalagar

What do you call that cake frosting which is too sweet that it leaves you no choice than to stop eating it? Now you have a name for the too sugary things, it’s called Empalagar!

5.Estadounidense

Telling someone that you are an American, could be confusing, because you could be an Afro-American, An Indian-American or even a Latin American but if you tell someone that you are from the USA, they’ll understand what you are talking about or you could say, “Soy Estadounidense” which is basically the same thing.

6.Madrugar

If you don’t like to wake up early in the morning, this word will not be your favorite. Madrugar means to wake up early in the morning, just one word for a complex task, isn’t it?

7.Antier

It’s hard to believe that you never wondered why there is no word for the day before yesterday, well, in Spanish they have it, called Antier.

8.Trasnochar

This is how Spanish people tell their parents or their partners that they are going to stay up all night, yes, with just one word!

9.Tener ganas de

When you are in the mood for something or feel like doing something, you use the above-mentioned phrase in Spanish.

10.Estrenar

The feeling you experience when you wear something new for the first time is seriously priceless and you can’t stop talking about it or you could say “Estrenar” and point towards your new dress.

11.Desvelado / a

Sleep deprivation can turn you into a Zombie but to explain why you are like that in that morning is not easy or is it? You could just say, “Desvelado/a” in Spanish.

12.Posibilitar

If you want to make something possible, you should say it in a cooler way, by saying POSIBILITAR!!!

13.Amigovio

This one can roughly translate close to the term, “friends with benefits” but not exactly, as it means something between a friend and a lover.

impossible translatable spanish word

14.Chanclazo

Mothers in Spain are fond of this term, meaning I am going to hit you on the back with this Chancla. Well, you can ask your Spanish friends for more on this.

15.Enmadrarse

If your husband is overly in love with his mother, he is the one you can call Enmadrarse.

16.Consuegros

This one has to be the most convenient word for parents who have children who are married. They can refer to their daughter or son’s parents in law as Consuegros.

17.Casa Ajena

Well, this is the place you can never feel comfortable in. A home where you can’t make yourself at home.

18.Tocayo / a

It gives you a sense of pleasure when you meet someone with your same name, and guess what, TOCAYO is what they say in Spansih when they find a name twin.

19.Tuerto

If someone has one blind eye, what do you call him? other than a pirate of course, well, they call it TUERTO in Spanish.

20.Friolento / a

Are you too sensitive to cold or feel the chills quicker than others? Then we can call you a FRIOLENTO/A.

21.Enchilar

When you put some chilli on something, how do you say it in English? Well, in Spanish, you say Enchilar

22.Me cae bien.

When you like someone but don’t know how you are gonna get along with them in the future but just for present, you say Me Cae Bien

23.Duende

Although Duende is somewhat a kind of elf-like creature who keeps children from misbehaving, in the Spanish word and Latin American world yet it means an artistically powerful work that moves a person deeply, woah, now this is deep.

24.A Huevo!

Well, this one’s quite funny actually because it literally translates into, “To Egg” but it actually means HELL YEAH!!!

25.Echar Los Perros

This last one is impossible to translate into English because it has two different meanings in Latin America and Spain.
The Latinos use it to mean to flirt or to hit on whereas the Spanish word uses it when they are to scold someone.

So these were our favorites, if you have any special words that you want us to translate, you can send them to us. For all your Spanish Translation needs, we are here!

“Espantapájaros” is voted to be the hardest Spanish word to pronounce. The word translates into Sacrecrow. It is considered a real tongue twister because of its repeated consonants with different accentuations. If you are not a native speaker, you must possess at least really good Spanish Language skills to attempt such a tongue twister.

If you have been taking Spanish lessons, you must have also learned the rules to master foreign language pronunciation. Handling hardest words in Spanish could be tricky, however, below are some rules that can help you a lot.

English natives, forget your English vowel sounds.

Focus on exaggerating sounds.

Use a Spanish dictionary, listen to hardest words and mimic as much as you can.

Try some popular tongue twisters to get comfortable with speaking in another way.

Watch Spanish movies and listen to the pronunciations that you want to master.

The most difficult word in Spanish is, “Espantapájaros”.

If we can help you with any questions, please feel free to contact us

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