Having trouble with Spanish Expressions

[Wahooka]

"What an annoying place he has chosen"

Is that a good translation?

He is angry that a bull is blocking his path.

What about the second phrase?

"Esta si que es buena"?

[wrholt]

Escrito originalmente por Wahooka

"What an annoying place he has chosen"

Is that a good translation?

He is angry that a bull is blocking his path.

What about the second phrase?

"Esta si que es buena"?

Perhaps "si" should be written "sí" (accent mark on the vowel) = "yes" or "indeed" (adds positive emphasis), in which case the sentence could mean: "That one is good" or "That one really is good".

[Wahooka]

Thanks very much for the translations.

I have a few more puzzling ones from the comic book:


1. Si te parece lo intentaremos, pero estoy seguro de su respuesta.

(I translate this as: "If you seem we will try it, but i am sure of your response.")

2. Hay que mirar por donde se va

(I translate as "There is that to see for where he leaves")

3. Ustedes han preguntado el camino a alguien, y el me lo ha dicho.

I translate as "You have asked the road to somebody, and I have heard it"


I guess these literal translations make no sense, but I don't know how else to decipher it.

Thanks.

[AngelicaDeAlquezar]

1) "his" or "her" reply.


Hint for 2): This looks like an online translation.
The sentence is a warning about watching your steps.


Question for 3): How did you arrive from "y él me lo ha dicho" to "I have heard it"?

[aleCcowaN]

Si te parece = if you agree; if it suits you; if it doesn't bother you (depending on the context)

Hay = there is, there are
Hay (followed by a phrase linked by the conjunction "que) = We must, we should, We ought to -it expresses obligation in an impersonal way-.

se va = -also in an impersonal way- you take/follow (a path)

Hay que mirar por dónde se va ---> it may mean many different things in Spanish, depending on the context. "You have to watch the path you're taking" and "you have to carefully select the path you're gonna take" are two of them. Context is everything and somewhat you are asking things deprived of any context in a way you are passing the burden onto who is willing to answer your questions. Keep it in mind.

[Wahooka]

Escrito originalmente por AngelicaDeAlquezar

1) "his" or "her" reply.


Hint for 2): This looks like an online translation.
The sentence is a warning about watching your steps.


Question for 3): How did you arrive from "y él me lo ha dicho" to "I have heard it"?

1. Don't understand your hint - His or her?

2. Yes, I think I now understand. thanks.

3. Sorry, not "I have heard it" but "and he has said it to me".

Escrito originalmente por aleCcowaN

Si te parece = if you agree; if it suits you; if it doesn't bother you (depending on the context)

Hay = there is, there are
Hay (followed by a phrase linked by the conjunction "que) = We must, we should, We ought to -it expresses obligation in an impersonal way-.

se va = -also in an impersonal way- you take/follow (a path)

Context is everything and somewhat you are asking things deprived of any context in a way you are passing the burden onto who is willing to answer your questions. Keep it in mind.

Thanks, understanding what "hay que" means, makes all the difference in understanding the sentence. I need to learn those types of expressions.

I'm sorry to deprive you of context. I can explain the context next time.

[Wahooka]

I am encountering so many difficult sentences in my Spanish comic book. Every page has a sentence that I don't understand, even if I know what the words mean.

I have about 10 more, and I'm starting to think that I might just need to talk to a teacher.

Necessito un maestro. ?Estamos de acuerdo?

What do you suggest?

[Rusty]

If you know what the words mean, but they don't make sense, you could be dealing with a set phrase or a saying or an idiomatic expression.

A teacher may not be necessary (there's only one 's' in the Spanish word, by the way).
There are several places online that might help you, including this one.
Someone already said it above, but you need to home in on (isolate) the part that doesn't make sense sometimes, and then do a search online. For instance, 'hay que' didn't make sense to you, but searching on ' "hay que" english ' will get you to the sites that can help you understand it. If searching fails you, create a thread here.

It would be great if you start a new thread for each of the phrases you don't understand.
The phrase you don't understand makes a good thread title. That way, other people who run into the same phrase can search the web and find the thread you created with the answer right in it.
Place the context (all the stuff around the phrase you don't understand) in the post. That will help us with our answers.

[AngelicaDeAlquezar]

Escrito originalmente por Wahooka

1. Don't understand your hint - His or her?
You translated "If you seem we will try it, but i am sure of your response", so I said the translation was "his"/"her" (depending on the character's genre) instead of "your", and "reply" instead of "response".

Escrito originalmente por Wahooka

I am encountering so many difficult sentences in my Spanish comic book. Every page has a sentence that I don't understand, even if I know what the words mean.

I have about 10 more, and I'm starting to think that I might just need to talk to a teacher.

Necesito un maestro. ¿Estamos de acuerdo?

What do you suggest?

I agree with Rusty. I will just add that the problem with comics, TV shows, newspapers, etc., is that they're full of idioms and colloquialisms that native speakers usually find obvious.

But even though you might need a formal course of Spanish, that doesn't necessarily guarantee that you'll understand so many set phrases and colloquial expressions immediately. It's a matter of getting used to the language and learning those constructions the way you're finding them, one by one. Patience and work are the only things that make people learn a language.

[Wahooka]

Do you guys really think I should start 10 different threads for each phrase?

I will do it, but I hope they don't think I'm spamming the website.

When you see the sentences, you will see they are odd constructions and unusual phrasing. Yes, comic books feature a lot of these types of phrases.

I've noticed that a lot of these sentences do have strange use of common words like "asi" or "de" or "que" or "hay" or "tan" or "no".

True, you can google "hay que" and it tells you the english, but most parts of expressions you put into google won't translate.

Here is a quick one:

"No tan de prisa".

The context: A man is walking ahead of them.

This could mean "Don't be in a hurry" or "No reason to be in a hurry" or "He isn't in a hurry".

The use of "no" is different in english, so english speakers won't know how to translate this.

Okay, I'll post the rest in different threads, if you want.

Thanks for your help.