¡Dos tres, no te espantes!
Mexican Spanish has a definite numerical flavor. Every day one can hear dozens of expressions that use numbers both cardinal and ordinal. Some are light natured, others more aggressive, bare fisted, and even vulgar. There seems to be a number for just about everything. Since very few of these expressions make any kind of literal sense, it would be a good idea to bring them out into the open and talk about what they mean in everyday usage.
Dos tres. Or Dos tres, no te espantes. The phrase dos tres is used when someone asks how things are going, how a movie or a book was, or something along those lines. It means “not bad” but not exactly wonderful. By adding no te espantes we underline the fact that we don’t feel overly strong about our more-or-less positive evaluation of whatever it was we were talking about. This phrase shouldn’t be confused with...
Dos que tres, which means “a few.” Whereas dos tres is used as an adjective, dos que tres actually refers to a numerical value.
La tercera es la vencida. Very common expression which alludes to the fact that if things don’t work out the first two times around, the third time is sure to be lucky. It’s practically the opposite of “three strikes and you’re out,” unless your goal was to strike someone out, at which point you could say la tercera es la vencida. Ponerle un cuatro (a alguien). This everyday phrase is used as follows: “Fulano [which means ‘So-and-So’ in Spanish] me puso un cuatro,” signifying that someone put us between a rock and a hard place. In other words, we were thrust by someone or something into a very difficult situation. I, personally, have no idea where this comes from. If you happen to know, please fill me in by e-mail.
No hay quinto malo. This expression may come from the name of the five-cent piece still in use during the 70s: the quinto. Since it’s always good to have a quinto in your pocket, it would be logical to say no hay quinto malo. If one is absolutely broke, he says no tengo un quinto partido por la mitad (I don’t even have a quinto split in half). Nowadays it’s usually used to refer positively to something that comes fifth in order, or that has the number five.
Quinto. Origin uncertain. Used as a noun, someone who is “quinto” is a virgin, the gender not withstanding. It is understood as a vulgar expression — although not obscene in any sense — which shouldn’t be heard in polite company. It is mostly used by junior high school students. When employed in a question it would go like “¿Todavía eres quinto?” (Are you still a virgin?) It’s also common to hear: “Ya no es quintito.” (He [or she] is no longer a virgin.) From this noun comes the verb...
Desquintar. Equally vulgar, “desquintar” is a transitive verb which means take away one’s virginity, “deflower.”Quedarse uno de a seis. This is a very handy expression we may use to express extreme surprise: “Cuando me propuso matrimonio, me quedé de a seis.” (When he [or she] asked me to marry him [or her], I was totally shocked.) Not at all baudy, this colloquial expression may be used anywhere. The origin of this expression is also mysterious. Salir con su domingo siete. If we were to say that Fulanita salió con su domingo siete, we would mean that she got pregnant out of wedlock. It’s one of those euphemisms that end up sounding worse than the original they were supposedly trying to mask. We should take that into consideration before using it. If someone knows how this expression got started, please write in.
Aventarse un ocho. Usage: Fulanito se aventó un ocho. It means that Fulanito did something very well, a jolly good job, as the Brits might say. Very polite, although spunky, as most of these expressions can’t help being. It would seem that the number eight refers to a an excellent grade, like an A+ or a 10.
Ni que ocho cuartos. Who knows where this comes from! We use it to really finish someone or something off, to negate him or it. If someone were to say that Fulanito is a poet, and we don’t agree, we might retort with “¡Qué poeta ni que ocho cuartos!”, meaning of course that he couldn’t write poetry to save his life. Some people write this expression with an accent over the “e” of “que” (ni qué ocho cuartos). It’s anybody’s guess whether this would be correct or not, but I wouldn’t worry about it.
Caerle el veinte (a alguien). A very handy metaphoric expression we can use when wanting to express the fact that someone finally realized something that might have been realized before. Unlike many of the other expressions, this one’s origin is perfectly clear: the pay telephone. Once upon a time it took just one twenty-cent piece to make a call. When someone answered, the coin would fall into the box with an audible “click” and we could start talking, not before. So, if we say “Apenas ayer me cayó el veinte…,” it means that only yesterday did we realize something, as if something finally went “click” in our heads.
If you would like to know more about any idiomatic expressions
you may have heard, or about any Spanish-language difficulties,
feel free to contact me at sandrocohen@gmail.com
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