Zapato

[DailyWord]

This is a discussion thread for the Daily Spanish Word for May 17, 2008

zapato -masculine noun (el), shoe, dress shoe. Look up zapato in the dictionary

Los zapatos negros son más comunes que los otros colores.
Black dress shoes are more common than other colors.

[Iris]

Have you heard the expression zapatero, a tus zapatos?

[Rusty]

No, but my first thought was that it could be translated as mind your own business.

I then investigated and found that others say the translation is stick to the stuff you know or let the cobbler stick to his last. I have never heard that phrase before, so I looked it up. It is an old (over 400 years) British saying, but originated elsewhere (Latin or Russian, according to the Internet).

'Stick to the stuff you know' is a very popular phrase in the U.S. It even appears in the lyrics of Status Quo, a song from High School Musical. 'To maintain the status quo' is another way to say 'keep things the way they are,' 'stick to the stuff you know,' or zapatero, a sus/tus zapatos.

[Iris]

You know, Rusty, I've always thought, zapatero a tus zapatos meant mind your own business. I think I'll have to start taking Spanish lessons...

[Rusty]

Originally Posted by Iris

You know, Rusty, I've always thought, zapatero a tus zapatos meant mind your own business. I think I'll have to start taking Spanish lessons...

Oh, I don't think so. When the phrase was first coined, it had a specific meaning in the context it was contrived. Since we learn what a phrase means according to the context in which it is used, the person who said it to us may very well have meant 'mind your own business' at the time. Of course, there's the chance that we apply the wrong semantics to the phrase ourselves and we go about the rest of our years with the wrong meaning attached to the phrase. If you were to tell me that this phrase means 'mind your own business,' and that is always how you use the phrase, that is the only meaning I would associate with the phrase, especially if no one ever made me think that the phrase had another meaning.

I have to admit that 'stick to what you know' and 'mind your own business' could be used equally well in some situations. If I were offering advice about wiring a house (something I know little about), the electrician could say 'mind your own business' and I would understand 'keep quiet, unless you know more than I.' That is the same thing as 'keep to the stuff you know and let me do my job.'

[Tomisimo]

That's a great expression Iris, I'll have to start using it.

[sosia]

agree with Rusty.
Here is a good page who seems reliable
http://tradicionclasica.blogspot.com...er-should.html
Saludos

[Rusty]

Originally Posted by sosia

agree with Rusty.
Here is a good page who seems reliable
http://tradicionclasica.blogspot.com...er-should.html
Saludos

Una corrección:
Here is a good page that seems reliable
(Here is a good fellow who seems reliable)

What a good web page, Sosia. The poem (sonnet) was especially good.

[Marsopa]

Does anybody else think that the guy resembles Tom Hanks?

[WMX]

Originally Posted by Marsopa

Does anybody else think that the guy resembles Tom Hanks?

Wow, he does have a resemblance.