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Tonto/silly?

 

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  #1  
Old June 10, 2009, 12:46 AM
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Tonto/silly?

Hola,

Esta palabra me ha causado un poco (de) [me parece correcto] desconcierto. Tonto tiene la culpa de mi desconcierto

Generalmente, ¿se consideraría esta palabra ser grosera/maleducada? (¿Qué palabra es más común?, las dos palabras son en el diccionario)

1. Si mi amiga hace algo 'silly, goofy' ¿sería maleducada dice, '¡(Tú) eres tonto, mi amiga!'? (You are silly, my friend!)

2. O ¿puede ser traducido como, 'You are stupid/foolish'? (un insulto)
''No te quiero, pienso que eres tonto''

3. O una más vez, como veía/he visto en otros idiomas muchas veces, ¿la significada de la palabra puede cambiar dependiendo del contexto y lenguaje del cuerpo?

Gracias, yo no querría insultar alguien por casualidad/accidentalmente

Y lo siento por el tema larga y los posibles errores, buscaba por errores muchas veces, espero que haya sólo unos pocos errores o ningún.
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Last edited by bobjenkins; June 10, 2009 at 12:58 AM.
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  #2  
Old June 10, 2009, 06:18 AM
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La palabra tonto no es nada grocero. Significa foolish.
No seas tonto means don't be foolish.
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Old June 10, 2009, 08:48 AM
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Then foolish is the same than silly.

You was one great foolish leaving to your girlfriend.
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Old June 10, 2009, 09:10 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by poli View Post
La palabra tonto no es nada grocero. Significa foolish.
No seas tonto means don't be foolish.
Hmmm not quite. Tonto in itself means fool. Don't be a fool is not the same as saying don't be foolish, right? And then again it depends more than anything else on how you say it, to whom etc... right?

The same with tonto. If you want to say foolish I would use tontín(a)/tontito/a so as to lessen the offensiveness. :-)
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Old June 10, 2009, 09:45 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by chileno View Post
Hmmm not quite. Tonto in itself means fool. Don't be a fool is not the same as saying don't be foolish, right? And then again it depends more than anything else on how you say it, to whom etc... right?

The same with tonto. If you want to say foolish I would use tontín(a)/tontito/a so as to lessen the offensiveness. :-)
That's true. It's all in the way you say it. If I would hear «Ese señor en un
tonto» , I would think that would be a strong condemnation.
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  #6  
Old June 10, 2009, 10:25 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bobjenkins View Post
Hola,

Esta palabra me ha causado un poco (de) [me parece correcto] desconcierto. Tonto tiene la culpa de mi desconcierto

Generalmente, ¿se consideraría esta palabra ser grosera/maleducada? (¿Qué palabra es más común?, las dos palabras son en el diccionario)

Depende del contexto y de cuánta confianza existe entre tú y tu interlocutor.

1. Si mi amiga hace algo 'silly, goofy' ¿sería maleducada dice, '¡(Tú) eres tonta, mi amiga!'? (You are silly, my friend!)

If she is a long-time friend and does something goofy or silly, you can use the word "bobo/boba". It's less strong than "tonto/tonta".


2. O ¿puede ser traducido como, 'You are stupid/foolish'? (un insulto)
''No te quiero, pienso que eres tonto''

3. O una más vez, como veía/he visto en otros idiomas muchas veces, ¿la significada el significado de la palabra puede cambiar dependiendo del contexto y lenguaje del cuerpo? Exactamente.

Gracias, yo no querría insultar alguien por casualidad por error/accidentalmente

Y lo siento por el tema largo y los posibles errores, buscaba por busqué los errores muchas veces, espero que haya sólo unos pocos errores o ningún ninguno.

"Tonto/tonta" is not such an innocent word. It appeals straight to the person you're talking to, so it can be understood as an insult even when you don't mean it to be so. There are people who tend to feel insulted when you allude to their intelligence, so try to ponder every time how close the relationship is and make sure your intention is clear.

Still, most of the times, if you mean "silly", try "bobo/boba" instead of "tonto/tonta". It's still a potential insult, but it won't be easily misunderstood.
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Old June 10, 2009, 11:53 AM
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In Spain "tonto" isn't considered as an insult, really (it all depends on the context, of course). But we have words worse and harder to say than someone isn't very intelligent
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Old June 10, 2009, 11:56 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by irmamar View Post
In Spain "tonto" isn't considered as an insult, really (it all depends on the context, of course). But we have words worse and harder to say than someone isn't very intelligent
Of course, there are always bigger and better ways to make such a reference...
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Old June 10, 2009, 12:22 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by chileno View Post
Of course, there are always bigger and better ways to make such a reference...
An usual sentence about "tonto" has become into a joke:

- ¿Estás tonto o qué?
- ¡Qué!
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  #10  
Old June 10, 2009, 01:39 PM
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I would rather use bobo/boba.....I would think it is less offensive.

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