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Heads or tails

 

An idiom is an expression whose meaning is not readily apparent based on the individual words in the expression. This forum is dedicated to discussing idioms and other sayings.


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  #1
Old October 16, 2009, 06:17 AM
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Heads or tails

Refiere la las monedas. A veces tiramos una moneda para decidir algo.
ejemplo: Heads we go to the movies. Tails we go out for a drink.

¿Se usa eso en español?

Cuál es la palabra correcta para la cabeza y dorso de una moneda,¿obverso y reverso?

ps: two coins can help decide three choices.
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  #2
Old October 16, 2009, 06:30 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by poli View Post
Refiere la las monedas. A veces tiramos una moneda para decidir algo.
ejemplo: Heads we go to the movies. Tails we go out for a drink.

¿Se usa eso en español?

Cuál es la palabra correcta para la cabeza y dorso de una moneda,¿obverso y reverso?

ps: two coins can help decide three choices.
En Chile se dice "cara o sello" (head or seal)

En español generalmente se usa "cara o cruz" nunca he sabido por que lo de cruz...

las palabras correctas en español para la parte del frente y el dorso es:anverso y reverso
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  #3
Old October 16, 2009, 06:58 AM
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Agree with Chileno
"nos lo jugamos a cara ó cruz"

la cruz, de Wikipedia
http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cara_o_cruz
"En la época colonial las monedas que circulaban en el imperio español tenían obviamente la cara del emperador y en el anverso una cruz. "
coins with the FACE of the emperor and a CROSS on the back
Saludos
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Last edited by sosia; October 16, 2009 at 07:00 AM.
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  #4
Old October 16, 2009, 07:50 AM
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Y ahora las monedas que circulan es España muchas veces no tienen ni cara ni cruz. Creo que técnicamente el anverso sería el lado que muestra el valor de la moneda, pero no he tenido ocasión de disputarlo con nadie.
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  #5
Old October 16, 2009, 10:13 AM
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En México, tirar la moneda al aire es "echar un volado". Los dos lados de la moneda son "águila" y "sol". (Aunque ya ninguna moneda mexicana tiene el "sol", que era un gorro frigio con rayos alrededor, se sigue usando al referirse a los "volados".)


-- ¿Echamos un volado?
-- (El que tiene la moneda) ¿Águila o sol?
-- ¡Águila!
-- Cayó sol, ¡te gané!


Pregunta: ¿Cómo se dice en inglés el hecho de tirar la moneda?
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  #6
Old October 16, 2009, 11:10 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by AngelicaDeAlquezar View Post
En México, tirar la moneda al aire es "echar un volado". Los dos lados de la moneda son "águila" y "sol". (Aunque ya ninguna moneda mexicana tiene el "sol", que era un gorro frigio con rayos alrededor, se sigue usando al referirse a los "volados".)


-- ¿Echamos un volado?
-- (El que tiene la moneda) ¿Águila o sol?
-- ¡Águila!
-- Cayó sol, ¡te gané!


Pregunta: ¿Cómo se dice en inglés el hecho de tirar la moneda?
Muy interesante. Averigüe con una colombiana aquí en trabajo y ellos tambien tiran volados, pero como en Chile es cara y sello (no águila y sol)

Aqui decimos "lets flip a coin" o si quieres usarlo en forma de nombre(sustantivo) se puede decir "it's a coin flip" o "the flip of a coin"
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  #7
Old October 16, 2009, 11:21 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by poli View Post
Aqui decimos "lets flip a coin" o si quieres usarlo en forma de nombre(sustantivo) se puede decir "it's a coin flip" o "the flip of a coin"
En Inglaterra decimos "let's toss a coin" o "the toss of a coin"
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  #8
Old October 16, 2009, 12:24 PM
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Gracias... "toss" & "flip"... I hope I won't mix them when talking to Americans and British.


@Poli: According to the way contemporary coins are minted, it's hard to decide an equivalent word for "cara" here. That's why "sol" was kept, despite the fact that one cannot see any sun on current coins.
The opposite side of Mexican coins (the equivalent of "sello"), has always been the official national emblem (escudo nacional): an eagle devouring a snake. Although the design of the emblem has changed over the years, the eagle has remained in most of the coins. That's where the word "águila" comes from.
On the contrary, the obverse of coins has changed a lot. For many years, the motif was a phrygian cap (like the symbol of freedom during the French Revolution), with shining rays around it (and that's where "sol" comes from). Later the cap disappeared and there were only the faces of some national heroes.
Currently the obverse of a coin can have almost any kind of national symbol or simply the denomination of the coin.

If anyone's interested, Mexican National Bank has a webpage for bills and coins currently circulating here.
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  #9
Old October 16, 2009, 12:26 PM
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Originally Posted by Perikles View Post
En Inglaterra decimos "let's toss a coin" o "the toss of a coin"
We use toss a coin too, but tend to flip more than toss

Toss often means to throw something out in the USA (as in the garbage)
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  #10
Old October 16, 2009, 04:41 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by pjt33 View Post
Y ahora las monedas que circulan es España muchas veces no tienen ni cara ni cruz. Creo que técnicamente el anverso sería el lado que muestra el valor de la moneda, pero no he tenido ocasión de disputarlo con nadie.
Se dice cara porque generalmente va la cara de algún prócer de la patria y por detrás, o sea el reverso, va el valor de la moneda.

Quote:
Originally Posted by poli View Post
We use toss a coin too, but tend to flip more than toss

Toss often means to throw something out in the USA (as in the garbage)
¿Y la ensalada qué?
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  #11
Old October 17, 2009, 12:57 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sosia View Post
Agree with Chileno
"nos lo jugamos a cara ó cruz"

la cruz, de Wikipedia
http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cara_o_cruz
"En la época colonial las monedas que circulaban en el imperio español tenían obviamente la cara del emperador y en el anverso una cruz. "
coins with the FACE of the emperor and a CROSS on the back
Saludos
Hola ¿por qué usaste ó con un acento? Lo he visto pero no entiendo las reglas para usarlo así
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  #12
Old October 17, 2009, 01:35 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bobjenkins View Post
Hola ¿por qué usaste ó con un acento? Lo he visto pero no entiendo las reglas para usarlo así
Debe ser un error tipográfico . Normalmente se usa el acento sobre la o cuando escribes números, para no confundirlo con un 0:

Debe tener 5 ó 6 años

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  #13
Old October 17, 2009, 03:40 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by poli View Post
Toss often means to throw something out in the USA (as in the garbage)
you mean the rubbish
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  #14
Old October 17, 2009, 04:06 AM
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Hola ¿por qué usaste ó con un acento? Lo he visto pero no entiendo las reglas para usarlo así
me lié, va sin acento
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  #15
Old October 17, 2009, 06:51 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by chileno View Post
Se dice cara porque generalmente va la cara de algún prócer de la patria
Sí, eso ya estaba claro

Quote:
y por detrás, o sea el reverso, va el valor de la moneda.
En eso me equivoqué (¡menudo numismático!). Acabo de intentar fotografiar algunas monedas de mi colección que tienen el valor en el anverso, pero ni soy bueno fotógrafo ni tengo buena cámara así que no logro sacar fotos en las que se puede leer claramente la letra. Pero, bueno, tienes razón en que generalmente el valor va en el reverso.

Las monedas que quería fotografiar son algunas cubanas (5, 10, 50 céntimos convertibles; el valor va en palabras en el anverso y en figuras en el reverso), una española (1 peseta; el anverso tiene la cara del rey y la letra Juan Carlos I - España - 1 peseta; el anverso tiene el escudo de España, el signo de la casa de moneda (supongo), y la fecha), y una británica (5 libras; el anverso conmemora un siglo de la Entente Cordiale entre RU y Francia).
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  #16
Old October 17, 2009, 09:06 AM
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En español decimos lo echamos a suertes, cuando tiramos la moneda.
In English?

Throw a coin or to toss a coin?
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  #17
Old October 17, 2009, 09:19 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ROBINDESBOIS View Post
En español decimos lo echamos a suertes, cuando tiramos la moneda.
In English?

Throw a coin or to toss a coin?
En este caso, se usa 'toss (or flip) a coin'.

Quote:
Originally Posted by chileno View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by poli View Post
We use toss a coin too, but tend to flip more than toss

Toss often means to throw something out in the USA (as in the garbage)

¿Y la ensalada qué?
¡Esa es buena!
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Last edited by AngelicaDeAlquezar; October 17, 2009 at 01:58 PM. Reason: Merged back-to-back posts
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