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it's of no importance whatsoever

  • 1 importance

    importance [ɪm'pɔ:təns]
    importance f;
    ∎ to be of importance avoir de l'importance;
    ∎ it is of great importance to act now il est très important d'agir maintenant;
    ∎ it's of no importance whatsoever cela n'a aucune espèce d'importance;
    ∎ to give or attach importance to sth attacher de l'importance à qch;
    ∎ a position of importance un poste important;
    ∎ pejorative to be full of one's own importance être imbu de sa personne
    ✾ Play 'The Importance of Being Earnest' Wilde 'De l'importance d'être constant'

    Un panorama unique de l'anglais et du français > importance

  • 2 alguno

    adj.
    at all, of any kind.
    No hay dinero alguno en mi bolsillo There is no money at all in my pocket.
    pron.
    1 any one, a particular one, some.
    2 someone, anybody, anyone, somebody.
    * * *
    1 (afirmativo) some; (interrogativo, negativo) any
    ■ ¿ha habido alguna llamada? has anyone phoned?, have there been any phone calls?
    1 (afirmativo) someone, somebody; (interrogativo, negativo) anybody
    \
    alguno que otro some, a few
    * * *
    1. (f. - alguna)
    pron.
    someone, somebody
    - algunos
    - algunas     2. (f. - alguna)
    adj.
    1) some, any
    2) not any, not at all (in negative sentences)
    •
    * * *
    alguno, -a
    1. ADJ
    ( antes de sm sing algún)
    1) [antes de s] [en oraciones afirmativas] some; [en oraciones interrogativas, condicionales] any

    ¿conoces algún hotel barato? — do you know a cheap hotel?

    hubo alguna que otra nube — there were one or two clouds, there was the odd cloud

    • en alguna parte — somewhere

    • alguna vez — [en oraciones afirmativas] at some point; [en oraciones interrogativas, condicionales] ever

    ¿has estado alguna vez en Nueva York? — have you ever been to New York?

    2) [después de s]

    • sin interés alguno — without the slightest interest

    • sin valor alguno — completely worthless

    duda
    3) pl algunos (=varios) several
    2. PRON
    1) (=objeto) one

    de entre tantas camisas, seguro que alguna te gustará — out of all these shirts, there's bound to be one that you like

    • alguno que otro — one or two

    2) (=persona) someone, somebody

    siempre hay alguno que protesta — there is always one o someone o somebody who complains

    • alguno de ellos — one of them

    3) pl algunos (=cosas) some, some of them; (=personas) some, some of us/you etc

    vinieron algunos, pero no todos — some of them came, but not all

    ALGUNO, ALGO "Some" y "any" en oraciones afirmativas e interrogativas Fras es afirmativas ► En frases afirmativas debe usarse some o las formas compuestas de some: He leído algunos artículos interesantes sobre el tema I have read some interesting articles on the subject Algunos no están de acuerdo Some people disagree He comprado algo para ti I've bought something for you Fras es interrogativas ► En frases interrogativas que expresan algún tipo de ofrecimiento o petición y cuya respuesta se espera que sea positiva, también debe emplearse la forma some {etc}: Tienes muchos libros. ¿Me dejas alguno? You've got lots of books. Can I borrow some? ► En el resto de las frases interrogativas, empléese any o las formas compuestas de any: ¿Se te ocurre alguna otra idea? Do you have any other ideas? ¿Hay algún sitio donde podamos escondernos? Is there anywhere we can hide? Fras es condicionales ► La construcción si + ((verbo)) + algo o algún/ alguna {etc} se traduce al inglés por if + ((sujeto)) + ((verbo)) + any {o} some, {etc}: Si necesitas algo, dímelo If you need anything, let me know Si quiere algunas cintas, no deje de pedirlas If you would like some tapes, don't hesitate to ask Hay que tener en cuenta que some se utiliza cuando tenemos más certeza de que la condición se vaya a cumplir. Para otros usos y ejemplos ver algo, alguno see NINGUNO
    * * *
    I
    - na adjetivo

    algún día — some o one day

    b) (en frases interrogativas, condicionales, etc) any

    ¿tocas algún instrumento? — do you play any instruments?

    si tienes algún problema — if there's any problem, if you have any problems

    ¿te dio algún recado para mí? — did she give you a message for me?

    hace algunos años — some years ago o a few years ago

    algún or alguno que otro/alguna que otra: escribió algún que otro artículo he wrote one or two articles; algún or alguno que otro lujo the odd luxury; he ido alguna que otra vez I've been once or twice; alguna que otra vez vamos al cine — we go to the cinema now and then

    II
    - na pronombre
    a) (cosa, persona indeterminada) one
    b) (en frases interrogativas, condicionales, etc)

    buscaba una guía ¿tiene alguna? — I was looking for a guide, do you have one o any?

    he visto alguna or algunas — I've seen some

    * * *
    = one or other, some.
    Ex. The array of data bases available through one or other of the online hosts is rapidly expanding.
    Ex. The banning of The Times newspapers by some local authorities has been a case in question.
    ----
    * alguna que otra vez = from time to time, every once in a while, occasional, every now and then, every now and again.
    * algunas personas = some people.
    * algunas veces = sometimes, from time to time, occasionally.
    * alguna vez = ever, on any one occasion.
    * algún día = one day.
    * algunos = a few, some people.
    * algunos años más tarde = some years on.
    * algunos lo aman, otros lo odian = love it or loathe it.
    * algunos otros + Nombre = various other + Nombre.
    * algún tiempo = awhile.
    * algún tipo de = some, some sort of.
    * algún tipo de + Nombre = one kind of + Nombre + or another.
    * a partir de ahora y durante + Cuantificador + algunos años = for + Cuantificador + years to come.
    * de alguna manera = some way.
    * de alguna otra forma = in any other way.
    * de algún modo = some way.
    * de algún tiempo a esta parte = for some time now.
    * desde hace algún tiempo = for days.
    * durante algunos años = over a period of years.
    * durante algún tiempo = for days.
    * en alguna ocasión = on any one occasion.
    * en algún lugar = at some point.
    * en algún momento = at some point, at one time or another.
    * en algunos casos = in some cases.
    * en algunos grupos = in some quarters.
    * en algunos grupos de la población = in some quarters.
    * en algunos sectores = in some quarters.
    * en algunos sectores de la población = in some quarters.
    * en el transcurso de algunos años = over a period of years.
    * estar tramando alguna barrabasada = be up to no good, get up to + no good.
    * hace algún tiempo = a while back, some while ago, sometime back.
    * para alguna gente = to some people.
    * para algunas personas = to some people.
    * para alguno = to some.
    * por decirlo de alguna manera = so to speak.
    * por decirlo de algún modo = in a manner of speaking, so to speak.
    * por mencionar sólo algunos = to mention only a few.
    * si alguna vez lo fue = if it ever was.
    * sin causa alguna = for no reason, for no specific reason, for no particular reason, for no good reason.
    * sin coste alguno = without cost, without charge, free of charge, free of cost, cost free, for free, at no charge, at no cost.
    * sin costo adicional alguno = at no extra charge.
    * sin fundamento alguno = without any basis.
    * sin razón alguna = for no reason, for no specific reason, for no particular reason, for no good reason.
    * tener alguna posibilidad = have + a fighting chance.
    * tener alguna posibilidad de triunfar = have + a fighting chance.
    * ya hace algún tiempo = for quite some time.
    * * *
    I
    - na adjetivo

    algún día — some o one day

    b) (en frases interrogativas, condicionales, etc) any

    ¿tocas algún instrumento? — do you play any instruments?

    si tienes algún problema — if there's any problem, if you have any problems

    ¿te dio algún recado para mí? — did she give you a message for me?

    hace algunos años — some years ago o a few years ago

    algún or alguno que otro/alguna que otra: escribió algún que otro artículo he wrote one or two articles; algún or alguno que otro lujo the odd luxury; he ido alguna que otra vez I've been once or twice; alguna que otra vez vamos al cine — we go to the cinema now and then

    II
    - na pronombre
    a) (cosa, persona indeterminada) one
    b) (en frases interrogativas, condicionales, etc)

    buscaba una guía ¿tiene alguna? — I was looking for a guide, do you have one o any?

    he visto alguna or algunas — I've seen some

    * * *
    = one or other, some.

    Ex: The array of data bases available through one or other of the online hosts is rapidly expanding.

    Ex: The banning of The Times newspapers by some local authorities has been a case in question.
    * alguna que otra vez = from time to time, every once in a while, occasional, every now and then, every now and again.
    * algunas personas = some people.
    * algunas veces = sometimes, from time to time, occasionally.
    * alguna vez = ever, on any one occasion.
    * algún día = one day.
    * algunos = a few, some people.
    * algunos años más tarde = some years on.
    * algunos lo aman, otros lo odian = love it or loathe it.
    * algunos otros + Nombre = various other + Nombre.
    * algún tiempo = awhile.
    * algún tipo de = some, some sort of.
    * algún tipo de + Nombre = one kind of + Nombre + or another.
    * a partir de ahora y durante + Cuantificador + algunos años = for + Cuantificador + years to come.
    * de alguna manera = some way.
    * de alguna otra forma = in any other way.
    * de algún modo = some way.
    * de algún tiempo a esta parte = for some time now.
    * desde hace algún tiempo = for days.
    * durante algunos años = over a period of years.
    * durante algún tiempo = for days.
    * en alguna ocasión = on any one occasion.
    * en algún lugar = at some point.
    * en algún momento = at some point, at one time or another.
    * en algunos casos = in some cases.
    * en algunos grupos = in some quarters.
    * en algunos grupos de la población = in some quarters.
    * en algunos sectores = in some quarters.
    * en algunos sectores de la población = in some quarters.
    * en el transcurso de algunos años = over a period of years.
    * estar tramando alguna barrabasada = be up to no good, get up to + no good.
    * hace algún tiempo = a while back, some while ago, sometime back.
    * para alguna gente = to some people.
    * para algunas personas = to some people.
    * para alguno = to some.
    * por decirlo de alguna manera = so to speak.
    * por decirlo de algún modo = in a manner of speaking, so to speak.
    * por mencionar sólo algunos = to mention only a few.
    * si alguna vez lo fue = if it ever was.
    * sin causa alguna = for no reason, for no specific reason, for no particular reason, for no good reason.
    * sin coste alguno = without cost, without charge, free of charge, free of cost, cost free, for free, at no charge, at no cost.
    * sin costo adicional alguno = at no extra charge.
    * sin fundamento alguno = without any basis.
    * sin razón alguna = for no reason, for no specific reason, for no particular reason, for no good reason.
    * tener alguna posibilidad = have + a fighting chance.
    * tener alguna posibilidad de triunfar = have + a fighting chance.
    * ya hace algún tiempo = for quite some time.

    * * *
    alguno1 -na
    siempre surge algún contratiempo something o some problem always crops up
    algún día some o one day
    en algún lugar seguro somewhere safe
    2 (en frases interrogativas, condicionales, etc) any
    ¿tocas algún instrumento? do you play an instrument o any instruments?
    ¿tiene alguna falta? are there any mistakes?
    ¿te dio algún recado para mí? did she give you a message for me?
    si tienes algún problema me lo dices if there's any problem o if you have any problems o if you have a problem, let me know
    3
    (indicando una cantidad indeterminada): esto tiene alguna importancia this is of some importance
    hace algunos años some years ago o a few years ago
    sólo me quedan tres tazas y algún plato I only have three cups and a plate or two left
    fuera de algún artículo de crítica no ha escrito casi nada apart from the odd review o apart from one or two reviews he has hardly written anything
    algún or alguno que otro/alguna que otra: me gustó alguna que otra de sus acuarelas I liked a few o one or two of her watercolors
    algún or alguno que otro lujo the odd luxury
    alguna que otra vez once or twice, on the odd occasion
    (con valor negativo): esto no lo afectará en modo alguno this won't affect it in the slightest o at all
    (una persona indeterminada): no hay semana en que alguno de ellos no me dé un disgusto not a week passes without one of them upsetting me
    siempre hay alguno que no está conforme there's always someone who doesn't agree
    fue en alguna de esas revistas que lo leí I read it in one of those magazines
    2
    (en frases interrogativas, condicionales, etc): buscaba una guía ilustrada ¿tiene alguna? I was looking for an illustrated guide, do you have one o any?
    si tuviera alguno te lo prestaría if I had one I'd lend it to you
    3 (una cantidad indeterminada — de personas) some (people); (— de cosas) some
    algunos creen que fue así some (people) believe that was the case
    para alguno, es lo más importante for some, it's the most important thing
    he visto alguna or algunas I've seen some
    * * *

     

    alguno 1
    ◊ -na adjetivo

    1 ( delante del n)

    ◊ algún día some o one day;

    en algún lugar somewhere
    b) (en frases interrogativas, condicionales, etc) any;

    ◊ ¿tocas algún instrumento? do you play any instruments?;

    si tienes algún problema if there's any problem, if you have any problems


    hace algunos años some years ago, a few years ago;
    me quedan tres tazas y algún plato I have three cups and one or two plates;
    escribió algún que otro artículo he wrote one or two articles
    2 ( detrás del n) ( con valor negativo):
    ◊ esto no lo afectará en modo alguno this won't affect it in the slightest o at all

    alguno 2
    ◊ -na pronombre

    a) (cosa, persona indeterminada) one;


    siempre hay alguno que no está conforme there's always someone who doesn't agree
    b) (en frases interrogativas, condicionales, etc):

    ◊ buscaba una guía ¿tiene alguna? I was looking for a guide, do you have one o any?;

    si tuviera alguno if I had one

    (— de cosas) some;

    he visto algunas I've seen some;
    he tenido alguno que otro I've had one or two
    alguno,-a
    I adjetivo
    1 (afirmativo) some: algunos críticos elogiaron la obra, some critics praised the work
    algunas veces me río sin motivo, some times I laugh for no reason
    alguna que otra vez, now and then
    2 (interrogativo) any: ¿tienes alguna cita para mañana?, have you any appointments for tomorrow?
    3 (negativo) not at all: en este crimen no hay móvil alguno, there's no motive at all for this crime
    II pron indef
    1 someone, somebody
    alguno que otro, someone or other 2 algunos,-as, some (people)
    ' alguno' also found in these entries:
    Spanish:
    algún
    - alguna
    - inconveniente
    - vínculo
    - compromiso
    English:
    aimlessly
    - any
    - anybody
    - care
    - some
    - either
    - odd
    * * *
    alguno, -a algún is used instead of alguno before masculine singular nouns (e.g. algún día some day).
    ♦ adj
    1. [indeterminado] some;
    [en frases interrogativas] any;
    ¿tienes algún libro? do you have any books?;
    ¿tiene algún otro color? do you have any other colours?;
    algún día some o one day;
    en algún lugar somewhere;
    tiene que estar en algún lugar it must be somewhere or other;
    compró algunas cosas he bought a few things;
    ha surgido algún (que otro) problema the odd problem has come up;
    si tuvieras alguna duda me lo dices should you have any queries, let me know
    2. [en frases negativas] any;
    no tiene importancia alguna it's of no importance whatsoever;
    no tengo interés alguno (en hacerlo) I'm not in the least (bit) interested (in doing it);
    en modo alguno in no way;
    no vamos a permitir que este contratiempo nos afecte en modo alguno we're not going to allow this setback to affect us in any way
    ♦ pron
    1. [persona] someone, somebody;
    * * *
    I adj
    1 en frases afirmativas some;
    alguno que otro de sus libros a few of his books;
    alguno que otro jueves occasionally on a Thursday;
    fumo alguno que otro cigarrillo de vez en cuando I smoke the odd cigarette, I have a cigarette from time to time;
    de modo alguno in the slightest, at all;
    en alguna parte somewhere
    no la influyó de modo alguno it didn’t influence her in any way;
    si alguna vez … if at any time …
    II pron: persona someone, somebody;
    algunos opinan que some people think that;
    alguno se podrá usar objeto we’ll be able to use some of them;
    si alguno de vosotros/aquéllos … if one of you/them …
    * * *
    1) : some, any
    algún día: someday, one day
    2) (in negative constructions) : not any, not at all
    no tengo noticia alguna: I have no news at all
    3)
    algunas veces : sometimes
    alguno, -na pron
    1) : one, someone, somebody
    alguno de ellos: one of them
    2) algunos, -nas pron pl
    : some, a few
    algunos quieren trabajar: some want to work
    * * *
    alguno1 adj
    ¿conoces algún restaurante barato? do you know any cheap restaurants?
    3. (en frase negativas) no / not... any
    ¿has estado alguna vez en Santander? have you ever been to Santander?
    alguno2 pron
    1. (singular) one
    2. (plural) some

    Spanish-English dictionary > alguno

  • 3 brimborion

    n. m. (pej.): 'Nobody', person of no importance whatsoever.

    Dictionary of Modern Colloquial French > brimborion

  • 4 zero

    n. m.
    1. (of person): 'Nonentity', character of no importance whatsoever. C'est un vrai zéro! He's a real nobody!
    2. Le zero: 'The arse-hole', the anus, the anal sphincter.
    3. Les avoir à zéro: To 'have the shits', to be in a blue funk, to be petrified. (Alain Rey and Jacques Cellard in their DICTIONNAIRE DU FRANÇAIS NONCONVENTIONNEL associate semantically le zéro and fear, in spite of the fact that the accepted alternative to the above expression is avoir le trouillomètre à zéro.)
      a To be 'back to square-one', to have lost all.
      b To be 'knackered', 'buggered', to be exhausted.
      a (lit.): To have 'a hard', to have 'the big stick', to have an erection.
      b (fig.): To be 'over the moon' about something, to feel elated. Il bandait à zéro de nous savoir dans la chtouille: He was dead chuffed knowing that we were going through a tough patch.
    6. Zéro! (also: zéro pour la question!): No way! — Nothing doing! — Certainly not!
    7. Avoir la boule à zéro: To be as bald as a coot. (The origin of the expression lies not in the zeroshape of a bald head, but in the head-shears used by army and prison barbers, known as zéro or double-zéro.)
    8. A zéro (adv. exp.): Totally, completely. On était affranchis à zéro: We were fully genned-up. On s'est fait avoir à zéro! We were well and truly trounced!

    Dictionary of Modern Colloquial French > zero

  • 5 ser2

    2 = be, take + the form of, stand as.
    Ex. Systems such as Dialog, IRS, ORBIT and BLAISE may be accessed by libraries and information units.
    Ex. Hierarchical relationships may also take the form of co-ordinate relationships, in which case they may be represented by 'RT' or related term, in a similar manner to affinitive relationships below.
    Ex. Meantime, our new library stand as as a confident symbol of the importance of ALL librarires to the nation's cultural, educational and economic success.
    ----
    * anhelar ser = ache to be.
    * a no ser que = unless.
    * así es = that's how it is.
    * así sea = amen.
    * así son las cosas = that's they way things are.
    * centrado en el ser humano = anthropocentric.
    * clonación del ser humano = human cloning.
    * como es el caso de = as it is with.
    * cómo + ser = what + be like.
    * conseguir ser el centro de atención = capture + spotlight.
    * continuar siendo importante = remain + big.
    * crearse el prestigio de ser = establish + a record as.
    * cualquiera que fuere = any... whatsoever.
    * cualquiera que fuese = any... whatsoever.
    * cualquiera que sea + Nombre = whichever + Nombre.
    * debilidad del ser humano = mankind's frailty.
    * dejar de ser útil = outlive + Posesivo + usefulness.
    * demostrar ser = prove + to be.
    * de tal forma que + ser/estar = in such form as to + be.
    * dicho sea de paso = by the by(e).
    * dime con quién andas y te diré quién eres = you are known by the company you keep.
    * dinero + ser para = money + go towards.
    * el + Nombre + es inestimable = the + Nombre + cannot be overestimated.
    * el ser barato = cheapness.
    * el sueño de todo ser viviente = the stuff dreams are made of.
    * entrar sin ser visto = sneak into.
    * es = it's [it is].
    * esa es la cuestión = herein lies the rub, there's the rub.
    * esa es la dificultad = herein lies the rub, there's the rub.
    * es decir = i.e. (latín - id est), in other words, that is, that is to say, which is to say.
    * es de deducir que = it follows that.
    * es de destacar que = significantly.
    * es de esperar = hopefully.
    * es de esperar que = all being well.
    * es de resaltar que = significantly.
    * es de suponer que = presumably.
    * ese es el asunto = herein lies the rub, there's the rub.
    * ese es el problema = herein lies the rub, there's the rub.
    * es el momento adecuado = the moment is ripe, the time is ripe.
    * es el momento oportuno = the moment is ripe, the time is ripe.
    * es evidente = clearly.
    * es importante destacar = importantly.
    * es inevitable que = inevitably.
    * es interesante que = interestingly.
    * es lo que a mí me parece = my two cents' worth.
    * es lo que yo pienso = my two cents' worth.
    * es más = more important, moreover.
    * es más fácil decirlo que hacerlo = easier said than done.
    * es mi opinión = my two cents' worth.
    * es mi parecer = my two cents' worth.
    * es por lo tanto deducible que = it therefore follows that.
    * es por lo tanto de esperar que = it therefore follows that.
    * es por lo tanto lógico que = it therefore follows that.
    * ¡esta es tu oportunidad! = here's your chance!.
    * estar siendo + Participio = be in process of + Nombre.
    * evitar ser afectado = escape + unaffected.
    * fue durante mucho tiempo = long remained.
    * haber sido aceptado = be here to stay, have come + to stay.
    * haber sido comprobado exhaustivamente = be thoroughly tested.
    * la razón de ser = the reason for being.
    * la verdad sea dicha = to tell the truth.
    * llegar a ser = become, develop into.
    * llegar a ser conocido como = become + known as.
    * lo que es aun peor = worse still.
    * lo que es peor = what's worse.
    * lo que haya que de ser, será = que sera sera, what's meant to be, will be, whatever will be, will be.
    * lo que + ser = what + be like.
    * lo que tenga que ser, será = que sera sera, whatever will be, will be, what's meant to be, will be.
    * merecer ser mencionado = deserve + mention.
    * no ser aconsejable = be undesirable.
    * no ser + Adjetivo + Infinitivo = be less than + Adjetivo + Infinitivo.
    * no ser así ya = be no longer the case.
    * no ser bien visto = be in the doghouse.
    * no ser cobarde = be no chicken.
    * no ser consciente de = remain + unaware of.
    * no ser deseable = be undesirable.
    * no + ser + de sorprender que = it + be + not surprising that.
    * no ser fácil = be no picnic, not be easy.
    * no ser gran cosa = not add up to much, add up to + nothing.
    * no ser lo suficientemente bueno = not be good enough.
    * no ser más que = be nothing more than, be nothing but.
    * no ser nada = add up to + nothing.
    * no ser nada fácil = be hard-pushed to.
    * no ser ningún jovencito = be no chicken.
    * no ser ni una cosa ni otra = fall between + two stools.
    * no ser sino = be nothing but.
    * no ser una gran pérdida = be no great loss.
    * no ser un lecho de rosas = be not all roses.
    * no ser verdad = be untrue.
    * no somos todos iguales = one size doesn't fit all.
    * no tener razón de ser + Infinitivo = there + be + no sense in + Gerundio.
    * para ser específico = to be specific.
    * para ser franco = in all honesty.
    * para ser sincero = to be honest, in all honesty.
    * pasar a ser = become, develop into.
    * por ser + Adjetivo = as being + Adjetivo.
    * por si fuera poco = to boot, to add salt to injury, to rub salt in the wound.
    * posible de ser consultado por máquina = machine-viewable.
    * posible de ser visto en pantalla = displayable.
    * primer puesto + ser para = pride of place + go to.
    * puede muy bien ser = could well be.
    * puede muy bien ser que = it may well be that.
    * que fue = one-time.
    * que fue común antes = once-common.
    * que ha sido abordado con preguntas = accost.
    * que puede ser apilado = stacking.
    * razón de ser = point, raison d'etre, rationale, sense of purpose.
    * ser reconocido = gain + recognition.
    * resultar ser = prove + to be, turn out to be, happen + to be.
    * sea como sea = be that as it may, at all costs, at any cost, at any price, come hell or high water.
    * sea cual fuere = any... whatsoever, any... whatsoever.
    * sea cual fuese = any... whatsoever, any... whatsoever.
    * sea cual sea el criterio utilizado = by any standard(s).
    * sea lo que sea = whatever it is, be that as it may, call it what you want.
    * seamos realistas = face it, let's face it.
    * sean cuales sean = whatever they may be.
    * sentido del ser humano = human sense.
    * ser accesible a través de = be available through.
    * ser aceptado = take + hold, gain + acceptance, take off.
    * ser acertado = be spot on.
    * ser aconsejable = be welcome, be better served by, be in order.
    * ser acorde con = be commensurate with.
    * ser acuciante = be acute.
    * ser acusado de delito criminal = face + criminal charge.
    * ser adecuado = be right, stand up, fit + the bill.
    * ser + Adjetivo = get + Adjetivo.
    * ser + Adjetivo + para = have + a + Adjetivo + effect on.
    * ser afectado por = have + a high stake in.
    * ser aficionado a = be fond of.
    * ser afortunado = be lucky, strike + lucky.
    * ser agradable de oír = be good to hear.
    * ser agradable + Verbo = be neat to + Verbo.
    * ser algo bien conocido que = it + be + a (well)-known fact that.
    * ser algo bueno = be a good thing.
    * ser algo completamente distinto = be nothing of the sort.
    * ser algo común = be a fact of life, dominate + the scene, be a common occurrence, become + a common feature, be a part of life.
    * ser Algo demasiado difícil para = be in over + Posesivo + head, be out of + Posesivo + depth.
    * ser algo excepcional = be the exception rather than the rule, be in a league of its own.
    * ser algo fácil = be a cinch, be a doddle, be a breeze, be a picnic, be duck soup.
    * ser algo facilísimo = be a cinch, be a doddle, be a breeze, be a picnic, be duck soup.
    * ser algo habitual = become + a common feature, be a fact of life.
    * ser Algo imponente = loom + large.
    * ser algo inevitable = the (hand)writing + be + on the wall, see it + coming.
    * ser algo más profundo que = go + deeper than.
    * ser algo más serio que = go + deeper than.
    * ser algo (muy) bien sabido que = it + be + a (well)-known fact that.
    * ser algo muy claro = be a dead giveaway.
    * ser algo muy fácil de conseguir = be there for the taking.
    * ser Algo muy importante = loom + large.
    * ser algo muy obvio = be a dead giveaway.
    * ser algo muy poco frecuente = be a rare occurrence.
    * ser algo muy raro = be a rare occurrence.
    * ser algo muy revelador = be a giveaway.
    * ser algo natural para = be second nature to + Pronombre, come + naturally to.
    * ser algo normal = be a fact of life, become + a common feature, be a part of life.
    * ser algo permanente = be here to stay.
    * ser algo poco común = be the exception rather than the rule.
    * ser algo poco conocido que = it + be + a little known fact that.
    * ser algo poco frecuente = be a rare occurrence.
    * ser algo poco sabido que = it + be + a little known fact that.
    * ser algo por lo que = be a matter for/of.
    * ser algo por ver = be an open question.
    * ser algo que no ocurre con frecuencia = be a rare occurrence.
    * ser algo seguro = be a cinch, be a doddle, be a breeze, be a picnic, be duck soup.
    * ser algo útil para = be something in the hand for.
    * ser amado = loved-one.
    * ser amigo de = be buddies with.
    * ser analizado como una frase = be phrase parsed.
    * ser apreciado = receive + appreciation.
    * ser apropiado = be right.
    * ser aproximadamente + Número = be around + Número, be about + Número.
    * ser arrestado = be under arrest.
    * ser asequible = be available, become + available.
    * ser asequible a = be amenable to.
    * ser así = be the case (with), be just like that.
    * ser atacado = be under attack, come under + fire, be under assault.
    * ser atractivo = look + attractive, be popular in appeal.
    * ser atrevido = make + a bold statement.
    * ser atribuible a = be attributable to.
    * ser aun más = be all the more.
    * ser autosuficiente = stand on + Posesivo + own, self-serve.
    * ser autosuficiente económicamente = pay + Posesivo + own way.
    * ser avaricioso = have + Posesivo + cake and eat it.
    * ser bienvenido = be most welcome, make + welcome, be welcome.
    * ser bonito + Verbo = be neat to + Verbo.
    * ser buenísimo + Gerundio = be terrific at + Gerundio.
    * ser bueno = make + good + Nombre.
    * ser bueno en = be good at.
    * ser bueno para Alguien = be to + Posesivo + advantage.
    * ser cada vez más importante = increase in + importance.
    * ser capaz de = be capable of.
    * ser capaz de hacer cualquier cosa por = go to + any lengths to, go to + great lengths to.
    * ser característico de = be emblematic of.
    * ser carísimo = cost + be prohibitive.
    * ser caro = be steep.
    * ser casi seguro = be a good bet.
    * ser chiquito pero matón = punch above + Posesivo + weight.
    * ser chulo = be cool.
    * ser clavado a = be a dead ringer for.
    * ser cliente de una tienda = patronise + shop.
    * ser coherente = cohere.
    * ser como el día y la noche = different as night and day.
    * ser como hablar con la pared = be like talking to a brick wall.
    * ser como mínimo = be no less than.
    * ser como una esfera = wrap around.
    * ser como un círculo = wrap around.
    * ser como un libro abierto = be an open book.
    * ser complementario el uno del otro = be integral one to another.
    * ser complementarios = be integral one to another.
    * ser completamente diferente = be in a different league.
    * ser completo = be all inclusive.
    * ser común = be the case (with).
    * ser condenado a prisión = receive + prison sentence.
    * ser confuso = be deceiving.
    * ser conocido por = famously, have + a track record of.
    * ser conocido por todos = be out in the open.
    * ser consciente = sentient being.
    * ser consciente de = be alive to, be aware of, be cognisant of, be mindful of/that, become + cognisant of, be aware of, realise [realize, -USA].
    * ser consciente de + Posesivo + valía = be alive to + Posesivo + worth.
    * ser consciente + desafortunadamente = be painfully aware of.
    * ser contradictorio de = run + contrary to.
    * ser contraproducente = defeat + Posesivo + purpose, blowback.
    * ser contrario a = be contrary to, be hostile to.
    * ser conveniente + Infinitivo = be as well + Infinitivo, be well + Infinitivo.
    * ser correcto = be all right, be correct, be right.
    * ser cortés con = be civil towards.
    * ser costumbre = be customary.
    * ser creativo = be inventive.
    * ser creíble = invoke + belief.
    * ser criticado = be subjected to + criticism, be (the) subject of/to criticism, take + heat, come under + fire.
    * ser crucial (para) = be central (to).
    * ser cuestión de = come down to.
    * ser culpable = be to blame.
    * ser culpable (por/de) = be at fault (for/to).
    * ser dado a = be amenable to, be apt to, be given to.
    * ser de = be a native of.
    * ser de alto nivel = be at a high level.
    * ser de armas tomar = be a (real) handful.
    * ser de ayuda = be of assistance.
    * ser debatible = be a moot point, be open to question, be open to debate, be at issue.
    * ser de calidad = be up to snuff, be up to scratch.
    * ser decisión de + Nombre = be down to + Nombre.
    * ser de contenido + Adjetivo = be + Adjetivo + in content.
    * ser de crecimiento rápido = be a quick grower.
    * ser de difícil acceso = tuck away.
    * ser de dominio público = be public domain.
    * ser deficiente = be wanting.
    * ser definitivo = be final.
    * ser de gran ayuda para = be a boon to.
    * ser de gran beneficio para = be of great benefit to.
    * ser de importancia primordial = be of key importance.
    * ser de importancia vital = lie at + the heart of.
    * ser de interés para = be of interest (to/for).
    * ser dejado en la obligación de Uno = be derelict in + duty.
    * ser de la izquierda = be of the left.
    * ser de la noche = night creature.
    * ser de la opinión de que = be of the opinion that, be of the view that.
    * ser del gusto de Uno = be to + Posesivo + taste.
    * ser del orden de + Número = be of the order of + Número.
    * ser de los que piensan que = subscribe to + view.
    * ser demasiado = be over-provided, be a mouthful.
    * ser demasiado + Adjetivo = be too + Adjetivo + by half.
    * ser demasiado complaciente = lean over + too far backwards.
    * ser demasiado común = be all too common.
    * ser demasiado para = be too much for, be too much for.
    * ser demasiado precavido = err + on the side of caution.
    * ser demasiado preciso = put + too fine a point on, split + hairs.
    * ser demasiado quisquilloso = put + too fine a point on, split + hairs.
    * ser demasiado tarde para echar atrás = reach + the point of no return.
    * ser de mucho uso = take + Nombre + a long way.
    * ser de número limitado = be limited in number.
    * ser de origen + Adjetivo = be + Adjetivo + in origin.
    * ser de poco valor = be of little use, be of little value.
    * ser de primera categoría = be top notch.
    * ser de raza negra o de piel morena = be coloured.
    * ser de sabios = be a point of wisdom.
    * ser desacertado = miss + the mark, miss + the point.
    * ser desastroso = spell + bad news, be a shambles, be (in) a mess.
    * ser desconocido para = be alien to.
    * ser descorazonador = be dispiriting.
    * ser desoído = be unheeded.
    * ser despiadado = play + hardball.
    * ser detenido = be under arrest.
    * ser de un solo uso = be a one-trip pony.
    * ser de un tipo diferente = be different in kind, differ in + kind (from).
    * ser de un valor especial = be of particular value.
    * ser de uso general = be in general use, be generally available.
    * ser de utilidad = be of use.
    * ser de utilidad a = be of service to.
    * ser diestro en = be skilled at.
    * ser difícil = be a stretch.
    * ser difícil de bregar = be a (real) handful.
    * ser difícil de conseguir = be hard to get.
    * ser difícil de creer = beggar + belief.
    * ser difícil de encontrar = be hard to find.
    * ser difícil de lograr = be hard to get.
    * ser difícil de superar = take + some beating.
    * ser digno de = merit.
    * ser digno de admiración = deserve + admiration.
    * ser digno de crítica = merit + a critical eye.
    * ser digno de + Infinitivo = be worth + Gerundio.
    * ser diplomático = say + the right thing.
    * ser discutible = be open to question, be open to debate, be at issue.
    * ser dogmático = be dogmatic.
    * ser dos mundos completamente distintos = be poles apart.
    * ser dudoso = be doubtful.
    * ser duro = play + hardball.
    * ser eficaz para + Infinitivo = be efficient at + Gerundio.
    * ser el acabóse = take + the biscuit, take + the cake, be the limit.
    * ser el alma de = be the life of, be the life and soul of.
    * ser el asunto = be the point.
    * ser el beneficiario de = be on the receiving end of.
    * ser el blanco de = be a pushover for.
    * ser el blanco de las críticas = come under + fire.
    * ser el canalizador de = be the conduit for.
    * ser el capitán = skipper, captain.
    * ser el caso (de) = be the case (with).
    * ser el centro de atención = steal + the limelight, steal + the show, cut + a dash.
    * ser el centro de todas las miradas = cut + a dash.
    * ser el colmo = be the last straw, bring + the situation to a head, take + the biscuit, take + the cake, be the limit.
    * ser el contrincante más débil = punch above + Posesivo + weight.
    * ser el culo del mundo = be the pits.
    * ser elegido = get in.
    * ser elevado = be steep.
    * ser el éxito de la fiesta = steal + the limelight, steal + the show.
    * ser el fin de = sign + a death warrant (for).
    * ser el jefe = be in charge, call + the shots, be the boss, call + the tune, rule + the roost.
    * ser el límite = be the limit.
    * ser el mandamás = call + the shots, be the boss, call + the tune, rule + the roost.
    * ser el más afectado por = bear + the brunt of.
    * ser el máximo = be the limit.
    * ser el momento clave = mark + the watershed.
    * ser el momento (de) = be the time to.
    * ser el momento decisivo = mark + the watershed.
    * ser el momento de/para = it + be + time to/for.
    * ser el objetivo de Uno = be in business for.
    * ser el orgullo de = be the pride and joy of.
    * ser el origen de = provide + the material for.
    * ser el paraje natural de = be home to.
    * ser el preludio = usher in.
    * ser el primero = be second to none, come out on + top.
    * ser el primero en = lead + the way in.
    * ser el primero en + Infinitivo = take + the lead in + Gerundio.
    * ser el punto de partida de = form + the basis of.
    * ser el punto más débil de Alguien = be at + Posesivo + weakest.
    * ser el punto más flaco de Alguien = be at + Posesivo + weakest.
    * ser el que con mayor frecuencia = be (the) most likely to.
    * ser el que con menor frecuencia = be (the) least likely to.
    * ser el resultado de = follow from, result from.
    * ser el segundo de a bordo = play + second fiddle.
    * ser el último grito = be all the rage.
    * ser el último mono ser el último mono = feel + pulled and tugged.
    * ser emblemático de = be emblematic of.
    * ser en balde = be of no avail, be to no avail.
    * ser en cierto modo un + Nombre = be something of a + Nombre.
    * ser en vano = be of no avail, be to no avail.
    * ser enviado a = have + the lead to.
    * ser equiparable a = be commensurate with.
    * ser erróneo = be wide of the mark, be wrong.
    * ser escaso = be few and far between, be in short supply.
    * ser esclavo de = be slave to.
    * ser estupendo = sound + great, be fine and dandy.
    * ser estúpido = be off + Posesivo + rocker.
    * ser exigente al elegir = pick and choose.
    * ser exigente al escoger = pick and choose.
    * ser experto en = be skilled at.
    * ser expulsado de = be dropped from.
    * ser extraño para = be alien to.
    * ser extremadamente + Adjetivo = be too + Adjetivo + by half.
    * ser fácil = be easy.
    * ser fácil de conseguir = be readily available.
    * ser facilísimo = be a snap, be a piece of cake.
    * ser factible de = be amenable to.
    * ser familiar = strike + familiar chords, ring + a bell.
    * ser famoso = gain + recognition, be popular.
    * ser famoso por = famously, have + a track record of.
    * ser favorable = be a plus.
    * ser ficticio = be fiction.
    * ser fiel a = cleave to.
    * ser fructífero = come to + fruition.
    * ser goloso = have + a sweet tooth.
    * ser grosero con = be abusive of.
    * ser hábil para = be adroit at.
    * ser habitual = be customary.
    * ser harina de otro costal = be a different kettle of fish.
    * ser hipertenso = be hyper.
    * ser hora de = it + be + time to/for.
    * ser hora de definirse = time to climb off the fence.
    * ser hora de irse = be time to go.
    * ser hora de marcharse = be time to go.
    * ser hora ya de que = be about time (that), be high time (that/to/for).
    * ser humilde = hide + Posesivo + light under a bushel.
    * sería mejor que + Subjuntivo = better + Infinitivo.
    * ser ideal = suit + best, be just the thing, be just the ticket, be just the job.
    * ser ideal para Uno = be (right) up + Posesivo + alley, be + Posesivo + cup of tea.
    * ser idóneo para = be suited to.
    * ser ignorado = be unheeded.
    * ser igual a = be equivalent to, equal.
    * ser igual que = amount to + the same thing as.
    * ser ilegal = be against the law.
    * ser ilimitado = be boundless.
    * ser implacable = play + hardball.
    * ser imponente = be awe-inspiring.
    * ser importante = be of importance, make + a difference, be of consequence.
    * ser importantísimo = make + all the difference in the world, make + difference in the world.
    * ser importantísimo (para) = be central (to).
    * ser imposible = be dead meat.
    * ser imprescindible = be a must.
    * ser improcedente = be out of order.
    * ser imprudente = be reckless.
    * ser inalterable = set in + stone, set in + tablets of stone.
    * ser incapaz de = be unable to.
    * ser incoherente = Negativo + hold + water.
    * ser incompatible (con) = be irreconcilable (with).
    * ser inconsistente = Negativo + hold + water.
    * ser increíble = beggar + belief.
    * ser independiente = go + Posesivo + own way, stew in + Posesivo + own juice, stand on + Posesivo + own (two) feet.
    * ser indescriptible = beggar + description.
    * ser indispensable = be a must.
    * ser ineficaz = fire + blanks.
    * ser infundado = be unfounded.
    * ser inherente a = inhere in.
    * ser inimaginable = beggar + imagination.
    * ser inminente = be on the cards.
    * ser inmune a = be immune from, be immune against.
    * ser innovador = break + new ground, break + ground.
    * ser innumerable = be without number, be legion.
    * ser innumerables = run into + the thousands.
    * ser insignificante = pale into + insignificance, stick + Algo + on a pin-point, be of no consequence.
    * ser insignificante de = be slight in.
    * ser inteligente = be talented.
    * ser interesante = be of interest (to/for).
    * ser interesante + Infinitivo = be as well + Infinitivo, be well + Infinitivo.
    * ser interesante + Verbo = be neat to + Verbo.
    * ser interminable = there + be + no end to.
    * ser intransigente = play + hardball.
    * ser inútil = fire + blanks.
    * ser irrespetuoso con = disrespect, diss.
    * ser justo = play + fair.
    * ser justo con todos = give the devil his due.
    * ser justo hasta con el diablo = give the devil his due.
    * ser justo lo que se necesita = be just the thing, be just the ticket, be just the job.
    * ser justo lo que Uno necesita = be (right) up + Posesivo + alley.
    * ser justo que = there + be + justice in.
    * ser juzgado = stand + trial, stand for + trial.
    * ser la abreviatura de = be short for.
    * ser la base de = be at the core of, form + the basis of, be at the heart of.
    * ser la ciudad de = be home to.
    * ser la clave de = hold + the key to.
    * ser la comidilla del barrio = be the talk of the town.
    * ser la comidilla del pueblo = be the talk of the town.
    * ser la consecuencia de = follow from, result from.
    * ser la costumbre = be customary.
    * ser la cuestión = be the point.
    * ser la culminación de Algo = represent + the culmination of, mark + the culmination of.
    * ser la culpa de = be the fault of.
    * ser la debilidad de Alguien = be a sucker for.
    * ser la elección lógica = be a/the natural choice.
    * ser la elección natural = be a/the natural choice.
    * ser la excepción = be the exception.
    * ser la excepción a la regla = constitute + the exception to the rule.
    * ser la excepción que confirma la regla = be the exception rather than the rule.
    * ser la forma abreviada de = be short for.
    * ser la forma de = be a recipe for.
    * ser la fórmula para = be a recipe for.
    * ser la gota que colma el vaso = bring + the situation to a head.
    * ser la idea central de = be at the core of, be at the heart of.
    * ser la imagen de = be a picture of.
    * ser la intención = be the intention.
    * ser la intención de uno = be + Posesivo + intention.
    * ser la manera de = be a recipe for.
    * ser la materia prima de = be grist to + Posesivo + mill.
    * ser la mayoría = be in the majority.
    * ser la mejor alternativa = be the best bet.
    * ser la mejor manera de = be the conduit for.
    * ser lamentable = be a pity.
    * ser la minoría = be in the minority.
    * ser la norma = be the norm, be the rule, become + the norm.
    * ser la novedad = be on the scene.
    * ser la obra de = be the work of.
    * ser la persona ideal para = be the best placed to.
    * ser la persona más indicada para = be in a position to.
    * ser la propia responsabilidad de Alguien = be of + Posesivo + own making.
    * ser la prueba de fuego de Algo = test + Nombre + to the limit.
    * ser la punta de lanza de = spearhead.
    * ser la razón de = lie at + the root of.
    * ser la representación misma de = be a picture of.
    * ser la responsabilidad de = be the responsibility of.
    * ser la responsabilidad de Alguien + Infinitivo = it + lie with + Nombre/Pronombre + to + Infinitivo.
    * ser la última palabra = be all the rage.
    * ser la última persona del mundo que + Infinitivo = be one of the last people in the world to + Infinitivo.
    * ser lector de una biblioteca = library membership.
    * ser lento = be slow off the mark, be slow off the blocks.
    * ser líder en = take + the lead in + Gerundio.
    * ser lo de Uno = be cut out for, be (right) up + Posesivo + alley.
    * ser lo más parecido a = be as close as we come to.
    * ser lo mismo = be one and the same.
    * ser lo normal = be the order of the day.
    * ser lo principal de = be at the core of, be at the heart of.
    * ser lo que a Uno le encanta = be (right) up + Posesivo + alley.
    * ser lo que a Uno le gusta = be (right) up + Posesivo + alley, be + Posesivo + cup of tea.
    * ser lo que a Uno le interesa = be (right) up + Posesivo + alley, be + Posesivo + cup of tea.
    * ser lo que a Uno le va = be (right) up + Posesivo + alley.
    * ser lo que a Uno más le gusta = be + Posesivo + big scene.
    * ser lo que nos espera = be the shape of things to come.
    * ser lo suficientemente + Adjetivo + como para = be + Adjetivo + enough to.
    * ser lo suficientemente comprensivo = go + far enough.
    * ser lo suficientemente conocido como para que = be sufficiently well known for.
    * serlo todo para todos = be all things to all men, be all things to all people.
    * ser lo último = be all the rage, be the pits.
    * ser lo último en = become + the next stop in.
    * ser lo último en lo que + pensar = be the last thing of + Posesivo + mind.
    * ser lo último que + ocurrir + a Alguien = be the last thing of + Posesivo + mind.
    * ser magnífico + Gerundio = be terrific at + Gerundio.
    * ser malo = be a joke, spell + bad news, make + poor + Nombre.
    * ser maravilloso = sound + great.
    * ser más astuto que = outfox, outwit, outsmart.
    * ser más interno = inner being.
    * ser más un + Nombre = be more of a + Nombre.
    * ser mayor = be older.
    * ser mejor en = be better at.
    * ser mejor que = be superior to, compare + favourably.
    * ser mejor que + Subjuntivo = better + Infinitivo.
    * ser menor = be less.
    * ser menos + Adjetivo = be less of a(n) + Nombre.
    * ser mínimo = be at a minimum.
    * ser mirado de forma extraña = get + some funny looks.
    * ser modesto = hide + Posesivo + light under a bushel.
    * ser molesto = be disturbing.
    * ser moroso = be in default.
    * ser motivador = be motivating.
    * ser motivo de preocupación = loom + large.
    * ser mucho = be a mouthful.
    * ser mucho más = be all the more.
    * ser mucho más que = be far more than.
    * ser muy aconsejable que = be well advised to.
    * ser muy alto = be metres high.
    * ser muy amigo de = be pally with.
    * ser muy antiguo = go ba.

    Spanish-English dictionary > ser2

  • 6 ser

    m.
    1 being (ente).
    ser humano human being
    los seres vivos living things
    2 ens.
    v.
    1 to be (to be in some place or situation, to originate in, to belong to, to pertain, to exist really).
    fue aquí it was here
    lo importante es decidirse the important thing is to reach a decision
    ¿de dónde eres? where are you from?
    los juguetes son de mi hijo the toys are my son's
    es alto/gracioso he is tall/funny
    es azul/difícil it's blue/difficult
    es un amigo/el dueño he is a friend/the owner
    Yo soy buena I am good.
    2 to be (to be worth, quantity).
    ¿cuánto es? how much is it?
    son 300 pesos that'll be 300 pesos
    ¿qué (día) es hoy? what day is it today?, what's today?
    mañana será 15 de julio tomorrow (it) will be 15 July
    ¿qué hora es? what time is it?, what's the time?
    son las tres (de la tarde) it's three o'clock (in the afternoon), it's three (pm)
    3 to be (joined to nouns which signify employment or occupation).
    soy abogado/actriz I'm a lawyer/an actress
    son estudiantes they're students
    4 to be (to happen, to occur, to fall out).
    es muy tarde it's rather late
    era de noche/de día it was night/day
    5 to be (auxiliary verb, by which the passive is formed).
    fue visto por un testigo he was seen by a witness
    6 to exist, to live.
    7 to be for.
    Me es muy fácil aprender español It is very easy for me to learn Spanish.
    * * *
    Present Indicative
    soy, eres, es, somos, sois, son.
    Imperfect Subjunctive
    Past Indicative
    Future Indicative
    seré, serás, será, seremos, seréis, serán.
    Conditional
    sería, serías, sería, seríamos, seríais, serían.
    Present Subjunctive
    sea, seas, sea, seamos, seáis, sean.
    Imperfect Subjunctive
    Future Subjunctive
    Imperative
    sé (tú), sea (él/Vd.), seamos (nos.), sed (vos.), sean (ellos/Vds.).
    Past Participle
    \
    \
    ————————
    * * *
    1. verb 2. noun m.
    * * *
    SF ABR Esp
    = Sociedad Española de Radiodifusión radio network
    * * *
    I 1.
    [ ser expresses identity or nature as opposed to condition or state, which is normally conveyed by estar. The examples given below should be contrasted with those to be found in estar 1 cópula 1]

    es inglés/rubio/católico — he's English/fair/(a) Catholic

    era cierto/posible — it was true/possible

    sé bueno, estáte quieto — be a good boy and keep still

    que seas muy feliz — I hope you'll be very happy; (+ me/te/le etc)

    para serte sincero — to be honest with you, to tell you the truth

    siempre le he sido fiel — I've always been faithful to her; ver tb verbo intransitivo I 5

    ¿éste es o se hace?/¿tú eres o te haces? — (AmL fam) is he/are you stupid or something? (colloq)

    el mayor es casado/divorciado — the oldest is married/divorced

    es viuda — she's a widow; ver tb estar I 3)

    3) (seguido de nombre, pronombre, sintagma nominal) to be

    soy peluquera/abogada — I'm a hairdresser/a lawyer

    ábreme, soy Mariano/yo — open the door, it's Mariano/it's me

    por ser usted, haremos una excepción — for you o since it's you, we'll make an exception

    4) (con predicado introducido por `de')

    es de los vecinos — it belongs to the neighbors, it's the neighbors'

    ésa es de las que... — she's one of those people who..., she's the sort of person who...

    ser de lo que no hay — (fam) to be incredible (colloq)

    5) (hipótesis, futuro)

    ¿será cierto? — can it be true?

    2.
    ser vi
    1)
    a) ( existir) to be
    b) (liter) ( en cuentos)

    érase una vez... — once upon a time there was...

    2)
    a) (tener lugar, ocurrir)

    ¿dónde fue el accidente? — where did the accident happen?

    el asunto fue así... — it happened like this...

    ser de algo/alguien: ¿qué habrá sido de él? I wonder what happened to o what became of him; ¿qué es de Marisa? (fam) what's Marisa up to (these days)? (colloq); ¿qué va a ser de nosotros? — what will become of us?

    3) ( sumar)

    ¿cuánto es (todo)? — how much is that (altogether)?

    son 3.000 pesos — that'll be o that's 3,000 pesos

    4) (causar, significar) to be
    5) ( resultar)
    6) ( consistir en) to be

    lo importante es participar — the important o main thing is to take part

    7) (indicando finalidad, adecuación)

    fue aquí donde lo vi — this is where I saw him, it was here that I saw him

    fui yo quien or la que lo dije fui yo quien or la que lo dijo — I was the one who said it, it was me that said it

    9)

    es que...: ¿es que no lo saben? do you mean to say they don't know?; es que no sé nadar the thing is I can't swim; díselo, si es que te atreves — tell him, if you dare

    10)

    lo que es... — (fam)

    lo que es yo, no pienso hablarle más — I certainly have no intention of speaking to him again

    lo que es saber idiomas! — it sure is something to be able to speak languages! (AmE), what it is to be able to speak languages! (BrE)

    a no ser que — (+ subj) unless

    como debe ser: ¿ves como me acordé? - como debe ser! see, I did remember- I should think so too!; los presentó uno por uno, como debe ser she introduced them one by one, as you should; ¿cómo es eso? why is that?, how come? (colloq); como/cuando/donde sea: tengo que conseguir ese trabajo como sea I have to get that job no matter what; hazlo como sea, pero hazlo do it any way o however you want but get it done; puedo dormir en el sillón o donde sea I can sleep in the armchair or wherever you like o anywhere you like; como ser (CS) such as; de no ser así (frml) should this not be the case (frml); de ser así (frml) should this be so o the case (frml); de no ser por...: de no ser por él,... if it hadn't been o if it weren't for him,...; eso es! that's it!, that's right!; lo que sea: cómete una manzana, o lo que sea have an apple or something; tú pagas tus mil pesos o lo que sea... you pay your thousand pesos or whatever...; estoy dispuesta a hacer lo que sea I'm prepared to do whatever it takes o anything; no sea que or no vaya a ser que (+ subj) in case; cierra la ventana, no sea or no vaya a ser que llueva close the window in case it rains; ten cuidado, no sea or no vaya a ser que lo eches todo a perder be careful or you'll ruin everything; o sea: los empleados de más antigüedad, o sea los que llevan aquí más de... longer serving employees, that is to say those who have been here more than...; o sea que no te interesa in other words, you're not interested; o sea que nunca lo descubriste so you never found out; (ya) sea..., (ya) sea... either..., or...; (ya) sea por caridad, (ya) sea por otra razón,... whether he did it out of charity or for some other reason,...; sea como sea: hay que impedirlo, sea como sea it must be prevented now matter how o at all costs; sea cuando sea whenever it is; sea quien sea le dices que no estoy whoever it is, tell them I'm not in; si no fuera/hubiera sido por... — if it wasn't o weren't/hadn't been for...

    12) ( en el tiempo) to be

    ¿qué fecha es hoy? — what's the date today?, what's today's date

    ¿qué día es hoy? — what day is it today?

    serían las cuatro cuando llegó — it must have been (about) four (o'clock) when she arrived; ver tb verbo impersonal

    3.
    ser v impers to be
    4.

    ser + pp — to be + pp

    II
    1)
    a) ( ente) being
    b) (individuo, persona)
    2)
    b) ( carácter esencial) essence
    3) (Fil) being
    * * *
    I 1.
    [ ser expresses identity or nature as opposed to condition or state, which is normally conveyed by estar. The examples given below should be contrasted with those to be found in estar 1 cópula 1]

    es inglés/rubio/católico — he's English/fair/(a) Catholic

    era cierto/posible — it was true/possible

    sé bueno, estáte quieto — be a good boy and keep still

    que seas muy feliz — I hope you'll be very happy; (+ me/te/le etc)

    para serte sincero — to be honest with you, to tell you the truth

    siempre le he sido fiel — I've always been faithful to her; ver tb verbo intransitivo I 5

    ¿éste es o se hace?/¿tú eres o te haces? — (AmL fam) is he/are you stupid or something? (colloq)

    el mayor es casado/divorciado — the oldest is married/divorced

    es viuda — she's a widow; ver tb estar I 3)

    3) (seguido de nombre, pronombre, sintagma nominal) to be

    soy peluquera/abogada — I'm a hairdresser/a lawyer

    ábreme, soy Mariano/yo — open the door, it's Mariano/it's me

    por ser usted, haremos una excepción — for you o since it's you, we'll make an exception

    4) (con predicado introducido por `de')

    es de los vecinos — it belongs to the neighbors, it's the neighbors'

    ésa es de las que... — she's one of those people who..., she's the sort of person who...

    ser de lo que no hay — (fam) to be incredible (colloq)

    5) (hipótesis, futuro)

    ¿será cierto? — can it be true?

    2.
    ser vi
    1)
    a) ( existir) to be
    b) (liter) ( en cuentos)

    érase una vez... — once upon a time there was...

    2)
    a) (tener lugar, ocurrir)

    ¿dónde fue el accidente? — where did the accident happen?

    el asunto fue así... — it happened like this...

    ser de algo/alguien: ¿qué habrá sido de él? I wonder what happened to o what became of him; ¿qué es de Marisa? (fam) what's Marisa up to (these days)? (colloq); ¿qué va a ser de nosotros? — what will become of us?

    3) ( sumar)

    ¿cuánto es (todo)? — how much is that (altogether)?

    son 3.000 pesos — that'll be o that's 3,000 pesos

    4) (causar, significar) to be
    5) ( resultar)
    6) ( consistir en) to be

    lo importante es participar — the important o main thing is to take part

    7) (indicando finalidad, adecuación)

    fue aquí donde lo vi — this is where I saw him, it was here that I saw him

    fui yo quien or la que lo dije fui yo quien or la que lo dijo — I was the one who said it, it was me that said it

    9)

    es que...: ¿es que no lo saben? do you mean to say they don't know?; es que no sé nadar the thing is I can't swim; díselo, si es que te atreves — tell him, if you dare

    10)

    lo que es... — (fam)

    lo que es yo, no pienso hablarle más — I certainly have no intention of speaking to him again

    lo que es saber idiomas! — it sure is something to be able to speak languages! (AmE), what it is to be able to speak languages! (BrE)

    a no ser que — (+ subj) unless

    como debe ser: ¿ves como me acordé? - como debe ser! see, I did remember- I should think so too!; los presentó uno por uno, como debe ser she introduced them one by one, as you should; ¿cómo es eso? why is that?, how come? (colloq); como/cuando/donde sea: tengo que conseguir ese trabajo como sea I have to get that job no matter what; hazlo como sea, pero hazlo do it any way o however you want but get it done; puedo dormir en el sillón o donde sea I can sleep in the armchair or wherever you like o anywhere you like; como ser (CS) such as; de no ser así (frml) should this not be the case (frml); de ser así (frml) should this be so o the case (frml); de no ser por...: de no ser por él,... if it hadn't been o if it weren't for him,...; eso es! that's it!, that's right!; lo que sea: cómete una manzana, o lo que sea have an apple or something; tú pagas tus mil pesos o lo que sea... you pay your thousand pesos or whatever...; estoy dispuesta a hacer lo que sea I'm prepared to do whatever it takes o anything; no sea que or no vaya a ser que (+ subj) in case; cierra la ventana, no sea or no vaya a ser que llueva close the window in case it rains; ten cuidado, no sea or no vaya a ser que lo eches todo a perder be careful or you'll ruin everything; o sea: los empleados de más antigüedad, o sea los que llevan aquí más de... longer serving employees, that is to say those who have been here more than...; o sea que no te interesa in other words, you're not interested; o sea que nunca lo descubriste so you never found out; (ya) sea..., (ya) sea... either..., or...; (ya) sea por caridad, (ya) sea por otra razón,... whether he did it out of charity or for some other reason,...; sea como sea: hay que impedirlo, sea como sea it must be prevented now matter how o at all costs; sea cuando sea whenever it is; sea quien sea le dices que no estoy whoever it is, tell them I'm not in; si no fuera/hubiera sido por... — if it wasn't o weren't/hadn't been for...

    12) ( en el tiempo) to be

    ¿qué fecha es hoy? — what's the date today?, what's today's date

    ¿qué día es hoy? — what day is it today?

    serían las cuatro cuando llegó — it must have been (about) four (o'clock) when she arrived; ver tb verbo impersonal

    3.
    ser v impers to be
    4.

    ser + pp — to be + pp

    II
    1)
    a) ( ente) being
    b) (individuo, persona)
    2)
    b) ( carácter esencial) essence
    3) (Fil) being
    * * *
    ser1
    1 = being, creature.

    Ex: A feeling of unshielded relief filled Pope's whole being.

    Ex: Stories that lead to doing things are all the more attractive to children, who are active rather than passive creatures.
    * abducción por seres extraterrestres = alien abduction.
    * alimentación del ser humano = human nutrition.
    * llegada de seres extraterrestres = alien visitation.
    * nutrición del ser humano = human nutrition.
    * ser consecuente con Uno mismo = be true to + Reflexivo.
    * ser extraterrestre = alien creature.
    * ser fiel con Uno mismo = be true to + Reflexivo.
    * ser humano = human being, human, human person.
    * ser inteligente = intelligent being.
    * ser pensante = sentient being.
    * ser superior = supreme being, higher being, superior being.
    * ser supremo = supreme being.
    * ser todo un éxito = hit + a home run, knock it out of + the park.
    * ser vivo = living being, sentient being.
    * todo ser humano = every living soul.
    * tráfico de seres humanos = trafficking in human beings.
    * trata de seres humanos = trafficking in human beings.

    ser2
    2 = be, take + the form of, stand as.

    Ex: Systems such as Dialog, IRS, ORBIT and BLAISE may be accessed by libraries and information units.

    Ex: Hierarchical relationships may also take the form of co-ordinate relationships, in which case they may be represented by 'RT' or related term, in a similar manner to affinitive relationships below.
    Ex: Meantime, our new library stand as as a confident symbol of the importance of ALL librarires to the nation's cultural, educational and economic success.
    * anhelar ser = ache to be.
    * a no ser que = unless.
    * así es = that's how it is.
    * así sea = amen.
    * así son las cosas = that's they way things are.
    * centrado en el ser humano = anthropocentric.
    * clonación del ser humano = human cloning.
    * como es el caso de = as it is with.
    * cómo + ser = what + be like.
    * conseguir ser el centro de atención = capture + spotlight.
    * continuar siendo importante = remain + big.
    * crearse el prestigio de ser = establish + a record as.
    * cualquiera que fuere = any... whatsoever.
    * cualquiera que fuese = any... whatsoever.
    * cualquiera que sea + Nombre = whichever + Nombre.
    * debilidad del ser humano = mankind's frailty.
    * dejar de ser útil = outlive + Posesivo + usefulness.
    * demostrar ser = prove + to be.
    * de tal forma que + ser/estar = in such form as to + be.
    * dicho sea de paso = by the by(e).
    * dime con quién andas y te diré quién eres = you are known by the company you keep.
    * dinero + ser para = money + go towards.
    * el + Nombre + es inestimable = the + Nombre + cannot be overestimated.
    * el ser barato = cheapness.
    * el sueño de todo ser viviente = the stuff dreams are made of.
    * entrar sin ser visto = sneak into.
    * es = it's [it is].
    * esa es la cuestión = herein lies the rub, there's the rub.
    * esa es la dificultad = herein lies the rub, there's the rub.
    * es decir = i.e. (latín - id est), in other words, that is, that is to say, which is to say.
    * es de deducir que = it follows that.
    * es de destacar que = significantly.
    * es de esperar = hopefully.
    * es de esperar que = all being well.
    * es de resaltar que = significantly.
    * es de suponer que = presumably.
    * ese es el asunto = herein lies the rub, there's the rub.
    * ese es el problema = herein lies the rub, there's the rub.
    * es el momento adecuado = the moment is ripe, the time is ripe.
    * es el momento oportuno = the moment is ripe, the time is ripe.
    * es evidente = clearly.
    * es importante destacar = importantly.
    * es inevitable que = inevitably.
    * es interesante que = interestingly.
    * es lo que a mí me parece = my two cents' worth.
    * es lo que yo pienso = my two cents' worth.
    * es más = more important, moreover.
    * es más fácil decirlo que hacerlo = easier said than done.
    * es mi opinión = my two cents' worth.
    * es mi parecer = my two cents' worth.
    * es por lo tanto deducible que = it therefore follows that.
    * es por lo tanto de esperar que = it therefore follows that.
    * es por lo tanto lógico que = it therefore follows that.
    * ¡esta es tu oportunidad! = here's your chance!.
    * estar siendo + Participio = be in process of + Nombre.
    * evitar ser afectado = escape + unaffected.
    * fue durante mucho tiempo = long remained.
    * haber sido aceptado = be here to stay, have come + to stay.
    * haber sido comprobado exhaustivamente = be thoroughly tested.
    * la razón de ser = the reason for being.
    * la verdad sea dicha = to tell the truth.
    * llegar a ser = become, develop into.
    * llegar a ser conocido como = become + known as.
    * lo que es aun peor = worse still.
    * lo que es peor = what's worse.
    * lo que haya que de ser, será = que sera sera, what's meant to be, will be, whatever will be, will be.
    * lo que + ser = what + be like.
    * lo que tenga que ser, será = que sera sera, whatever will be, will be, what's meant to be, will be.
    * merecer ser mencionado = deserve + mention.
    * no ser aconsejable = be undesirable.
    * no ser + Adjetivo + Infinitivo = be less than + Adjetivo + Infinitivo.
    * no ser así ya = be no longer the case.
    * no ser bien visto = be in the doghouse.
    * no ser cobarde = be no chicken.
    * no ser consciente de = remain + unaware of.
    * no ser deseable = be undesirable.
    * no + ser + de sorprender que = it + be + not surprising that.
    * no ser fácil = be no picnic, not be easy.
    * no ser gran cosa = not add up to much, add up to + nothing.
    * no ser lo suficientemente bueno = not be good enough.
    * no ser más que = be nothing more than, be nothing but.
    * no ser nada = add up to + nothing.
    * no ser nada fácil = be hard-pushed to.
    * no ser ningún jovencito = be no chicken.
    * no ser ni una cosa ni otra = fall between + two stools.
    * no ser sino = be nothing but.
    * no ser una gran pérdida = be no great loss.
    * no ser un lecho de rosas = be not all roses.
    * no ser verdad = be untrue.
    * no somos todos iguales = one size doesn't fit all.
    * no tener razón de ser + Infinitivo = there + be + no sense in + Gerundio.
    * para ser específico = to be specific.
    * para ser franco = in all honesty.
    * para ser sincero = to be honest, in all honesty.
    * pasar a ser = become, develop into.
    * por ser + Adjetivo = as being + Adjetivo.
    * por si fuera poco = to boot, to add salt to injury, to rub salt in the wound.
    * posible de ser consultado por máquina = machine-viewable.
    * posible de ser visto en pantalla = displayable.
    * primer puesto + ser para = pride of place + go to.
    * puede muy bien ser = could well be.
    * puede muy bien ser que = it may well be that.
    * que fue = one-time.
    * que fue común antes = once-common.
    * que ha sido abordado con preguntas = accost.
    * que puede ser apilado = stacking.
    * razón de ser = point, raison d'etre, rationale, sense of purpose.
    * ser reconocido = gain + recognition.
    * resultar ser = prove + to be, turn out to be, happen + to be.
    * sea como sea = be that as it may, at all costs, at any cost, at any price, come hell or high water.
    * sea cual fuere = any... whatsoever, any... whatsoever.
    * sea cual fuese = any... whatsoever, any... whatsoever.
    * sea cual sea el criterio utilizado = by any standard(s).
    * sea lo que sea = whatever it is, be that as it may, call it what you want.
    * seamos realistas = face it, let's face it.
    * sean cuales sean = whatever they may be.
    * sentido del ser humano = human sense.
    * ser accesible a través de = be available through.
    * ser aceptado = take + hold, gain + acceptance, take off.
    * ser acertado = be spot on.
    * ser aconsejable = be welcome, be better served by, be in order.
    * ser acorde con = be commensurate with.
    * ser acuciante = be acute.
    * ser acusado de delito criminal = face + criminal charge.
    * ser adecuado = be right, stand up, fit + the bill.
    * ser + Adjetivo = get + Adjetivo.
    * ser + Adjetivo + para = have + a + Adjetivo + effect on.
    * ser afectado por = have + a high stake in.
    * ser aficionado a = be fond of.
    * ser afortunado = be lucky, strike + lucky.
    * ser agradable de oír = be good to hear.
    * ser agradable + Verbo = be neat to + Verbo.
    * ser algo bien conocido que = it + be + a (well)-known fact that.
    * ser algo bueno = be a good thing.
    * ser algo completamente distinto = be nothing of the sort.
    * ser algo común = be a fact of life, dominate + the scene, be a common occurrence, become + a common feature, be a part of life.
    * ser Algo demasiado difícil para = be in over + Posesivo + head, be out of + Posesivo + depth.
    * ser algo excepcional = be the exception rather than the rule, be in a league of its own.
    * ser algo fácil = be a cinch, be a doddle, be a breeze, be a picnic, be duck soup.
    * ser algo facilísimo = be a cinch, be a doddle, be a breeze, be a picnic, be duck soup.
    * ser algo habitual = become + a common feature, be a fact of life.
    * ser Algo imponente = loom + large.
    * ser algo inevitable = the (hand)writing + be + on the wall, see it + coming.
    * ser algo más profundo que = go + deeper than.
    * ser algo más serio que = go + deeper than.
    * ser algo (muy) bien sabido que = it + be + a (well)-known fact that.
    * ser algo muy claro = be a dead giveaway.
    * ser algo muy fácil de conseguir = be there for the taking.
    * ser Algo muy importante = loom + large.
    * ser algo muy obvio = be a dead giveaway.
    * ser algo muy poco frecuente = be a rare occurrence.
    * ser algo muy raro = be a rare occurrence.
    * ser algo muy revelador = be a giveaway.
    * ser algo natural para = be second nature to + Pronombre, come + naturally to.
    * ser algo normal = be a fact of life, become + a common feature, be a part of life.
    * ser algo permanente = be here to stay.
    * ser algo poco común = be the exception rather than the rule.
    * ser algo poco conocido que = it + be + a little known fact that.
    * ser algo poco frecuente = be a rare occurrence.
    * ser algo poco sabido que = it + be + a little known fact that.
    * ser algo por lo que = be a matter for/of.
    * ser algo por ver = be an open question.
    * ser algo que no ocurre con frecuencia = be a rare occurrence.
    * ser algo seguro = be a cinch, be a doddle, be a breeze, be a picnic, be duck soup.
    * ser algo útil para = be something in the hand for.
    * ser amado = loved-one.
    * ser amigo de = be buddies with.
    * ser analizado como una frase = be phrase parsed.
    * ser apreciado = receive + appreciation.
    * ser apropiado = be right.
    * ser aproximadamente + Número = be around + Número, be about + Número.
    * ser arrestado = be under arrest.
    * ser asequible = be available, become + available.
    * ser asequible a = be amenable to.
    * ser así = be the case (with), be just like that.
    * ser atacado = be under attack, come under + fire, be under assault.
    * ser atractivo = look + attractive, be popular in appeal.
    * ser atrevido = make + a bold statement.
    * ser atribuible a = be attributable to.
    * ser aun más = be all the more.
    * ser autosuficiente = stand on + Posesivo + own, self-serve.
    * ser autosuficiente económicamente = pay + Posesivo + own way.
    * ser avaricioso = have + Posesivo + cake and eat it.
    * ser bienvenido = be most welcome, make + welcome, be welcome.
    * ser bonito + Verbo = be neat to + Verbo.
    * ser buenísimo + Gerundio = be terrific at + Gerundio.
    * ser bueno = make + good + Nombre.
    * ser bueno en = be good at.
    * ser bueno para Alguien = be to + Posesivo + advantage.
    * ser cada vez más importante = increase in + importance.
    * ser capaz de = be capable of.
    * ser capaz de hacer cualquier cosa por = go to + any lengths to, go to + great lengths to.
    * ser característico de = be emblematic of.
    * ser carísimo = cost + be prohibitive.
    * ser caro = be steep.
    * ser casi seguro = be a good bet.
    * ser chiquito pero matón = punch above + Posesivo + weight.
    * ser chulo = be cool.
    * ser clavado a = be a dead ringer for.
    * ser cliente de una tienda = patronise + shop.
    * ser coherente = cohere.
    * ser como el día y la noche = different as night and day.
    * ser como hablar con la pared = be like talking to a brick wall.
    * ser como mínimo = be no less than.
    * ser como una esfera = wrap around.
    * ser como un círculo = wrap around.
    * ser como un libro abierto = be an open book.
    * ser complementario el uno del otro = be integral one to another.
    * ser complementarios = be integral one to another.
    * ser completamente diferente = be in a different league.
    * ser completo = be all inclusive.
    * ser común = be the case (with).
    * ser condenado a prisión = receive + prison sentence.
    * ser confuso = be deceiving.
    * ser conocido por = famously, have + a track record of.
    * ser conocido por todos = be out in the open.
    * ser consciente = sentient being.
    * ser consciente de = be alive to, be aware of, be cognisant of, be mindful of/that, become + cognisant of, be aware of, realise [realize, -USA].
    * ser consciente de + Posesivo + valía = be alive to + Posesivo + worth.
    * ser consciente + desafortunadamente = be painfully aware of.
    * ser contradictorio de = run + contrary to.
    * ser contraproducente = defeat + Posesivo + purpose, blowback.
    * ser contrario a = be contrary to, be hostile to.
    * ser conveniente + Infinitivo = be as well + Infinitivo, be well + Infinitivo.
    * ser correcto = be all right, be correct, be right.
    * ser cortés con = be civil towards.
    * ser costumbre = be customary.
    * ser creativo = be inventive.
    * ser creíble = invoke + belief.
    * ser criticado = be subjected to + criticism, be (the) subject of/to criticism, take + heat, come under + fire.
    * ser crucial (para) = be central (to).
    * ser cuestión de = come down to.
    * ser culpable = be to blame.
    * ser culpable (por/de) = be at fault (for/to).
    * ser dado a = be amenable to, be apt to, be given to.
    * ser de = be a native of.
    * ser de alto nivel = be at a high level.
    * ser de armas tomar = be a (real) handful.
    * ser de ayuda = be of assistance.
    * ser debatible = be a moot point, be open to question, be open to debate, be at issue.
    * ser de calidad = be up to snuff, be up to scratch.
    * ser decisión de + Nombre = be down to + Nombre.
    * ser de contenido + Adjetivo = be + Adjetivo + in content.
    * ser de crecimiento rápido = be a quick grower.
    * ser de difícil acceso = tuck away.
    * ser de dominio público = be public domain.
    * ser deficiente = be wanting.
    * ser definitivo = be final.
    * ser de gran ayuda para = be a boon to.
    * ser de gran beneficio para = be of great benefit to.
    * ser de importancia primordial = be of key importance.
    * ser de importancia vital = lie at + the heart of.
    * ser de interés para = be of interest (to/for).
    * ser dejado en la obligación de Uno = be derelict in + duty.
    * ser de la izquierda = be of the left.
    * ser de la noche = night creature.
    * ser de la opinión de que = be of the opinion that, be of the view that.
    * ser del gusto de Uno = be to + Posesivo + taste.
    * ser del orden de + Número = be of the order of + Número.
    * ser de los que piensan que = subscribe to + view.
    * ser demasiado = be over-provided, be a mouthful.
    * ser demasiado + Adjetivo = be too + Adjetivo + by half.
    * ser demasiado complaciente = lean over + too far backwards.
    * ser demasiado común = be all too common.
    * ser demasiado para = be too much for, be too much for.
    * ser demasiado precavido = err + on the side of caution.
    * ser demasiado preciso = put + too fine a point on, split + hairs.
    * ser demasiado quisquilloso = put + too fine a point on, split + hairs.
    * ser demasiado tarde para echar atrás = reach + the point of no return.
    * ser de mucho uso = take + Nombre + a long way.
    * ser de número limitado = be limited in number.
    * ser de origen + Adjetivo = be + Adjetivo + in origin.
    * ser de poco valor = be of little use, be of little value.
    * ser de primera categoría = be top notch.
    * ser de raza negra o de piel morena = be coloured.
    * ser de sabios = be a point of wisdom.
    * ser desacertado = miss + the mark, miss + the point.
    * ser desastroso = spell + bad news, be a shambles, be (in) a mess.
    * ser desconocido para = be alien to.
    * ser descorazonador = be dispiriting.
    * ser desoído = be unheeded.
    * ser despiadado = play + hardball.
    * ser detenido = be under arrest.
    * ser de un solo uso = be a one-trip pony.
    * ser de un tipo diferente = be different in kind, differ in + kind (from).
    * ser de un valor especial = be of particular value.
    * ser de uso general = be in general use, be generally available.
    * ser de utilidad = be of use.
    * ser de utilidad a = be of service to.
    * ser diestro en = be skilled at.
    * ser difícil = be a stretch.
    * ser difícil de bregar = be a (real) handful.
    * ser difícil de conseguir = be hard to get.
    * ser difícil de creer = beggar + belief.
    * ser difícil de encontrar = be hard to find.
    * ser difícil de lograr = be hard to get.
    * ser difícil de superar = take + some beating.
    * ser digno de = merit.
    * ser digno de admiración = deserve + admiration.
    * ser digno de crítica = merit + a critical eye.
    * ser digno de + Infinitivo = be worth + Gerundio.
    * ser diplomático = say + the right thing.
    * ser discutible = be open to question, be open to debate, be at issue.
    * ser dogmático = be dogmatic.
    * ser dos mundos completamente distintos = be poles apart.
    * ser dudoso = be doubtful.
    * ser duro = play + hardball.
    * ser eficaz para + Infinitivo = be efficient at + Gerundio.
    * ser el acabóse = take + the biscuit, take + the cake, be the limit.
    * ser el alma de = be the life of, be the life and soul of.
    * ser el asunto = be the point.
    * ser el beneficiario de = be on the receiving end of.
    * ser el blanco de = be a pushover for.
    * ser el blanco de las críticas = come under + fire.
    * ser el canalizador de = be the conduit for.
    * ser el capitán = skipper, captain.
    * ser el caso (de) = be the case (with).
    * ser el centro de atención = steal + the limelight, steal + the show, cut + a dash.
    * ser el centro de todas las miradas = cut + a dash.
    * ser el colmo = be the last straw, bring + the situation to a head, take + the biscuit, take + the cake, be the limit.
    * ser el contrincante más débil = punch above + Posesivo + weight.
    * ser el culo del mundo = be the pits.
    * ser elegido = get in.
    * ser elevado = be steep.
    * ser el éxito de la fiesta = steal + the limelight, steal + the show.
    * ser el fin de = sign + a death warrant (for).
    * ser el jefe = be in charge, call + the shots, be the boss, call + the tune, rule + the roost.
    * ser el límite = be the limit.
    * ser el mandamás = call + the shots, be the boss, call + the tune, rule + the roost.
    * ser el más afectado por = bear + the brunt of.
    * ser el máximo = be the limit.
    * ser el momento clave = mark + the watershed.
    * ser el momento (de) = be the time to.
    * ser el momento decisivo = mark + the watershed.
    * ser el momento de/para = it + be + time to/for.
    * ser el objetivo de Uno = be in business for.
    * ser el orgullo de = be the pride and joy of.
    * ser el origen de = provide + the material for.
    * ser el paraje natural de = be home to.
    * ser el preludio = usher in.
    * ser el primero = be second to none, come out on + top.
    * ser el primero en = lead + the way in.
    * ser el primero en + Infinitivo = take + the lead in + Gerundio.
    * ser el punto de partida de = form + the basis of.
    * ser el punto más débil de Alguien = be at + Posesivo + weakest.
    * ser el punto más flaco de Alguien = be at + Posesivo + weakest.
    * ser el que con mayor frecuencia = be (the) most likely to.
    * ser el que con menor frecuencia = be (the) least likely to.
    * ser el resultado de = follow from, result from.
    * ser el segundo de a bordo = play + second fiddle.
    * ser el último grito = be all the rage.
    * ser el último mono ser el último mono = feel + pulled and tugged.
    * ser emblemático de = be emblematic of.
    * ser en balde = be of no avail, be to no avail.
    * ser en cierto modo un + Nombre = be something of a + Nombre.
    * ser en vano = be of no avail, be to no avail.
    * ser enviado a = have + the lead to.
    * ser equiparable a = be commensurate with.
    * ser erróneo = be wide of the mark, be wrong.
    * ser escaso = be few and far between, be in short supply.
    * ser esclavo de = be slave to.
    * ser estupendo = sound + great, be fine and dandy.
    * ser estúpido = be off + Posesivo + rocker.
    * ser exigente al elegir = pick and choose.
    * ser exigente al escoger = pick and choose.
    * ser experto en = be skilled at.
    * ser expulsado de = be dropped from.
    * ser extraño para = be alien to.
    * ser extremadamente + Adjetivo = be too + Adjetivo + by half.
    * ser fácil = be easy.
    * ser fácil de conseguir = be readily available.
    * ser facilísimo = be a snap, be a piece of cake.
    * ser factible de = be amenable to.
    * ser familiar = strike + familiar chords, ring + a bell.
    * ser famoso = gain + recognition, be popular.
    * ser famoso por = famously, have + a track record of.
    * ser favorable = be a plus.
    * ser ficticio = be fiction.
    * ser fiel a = cleave to.
    * ser fructífero = come to + fruition.
    * ser goloso = have + a sweet tooth.
    * ser grosero con = be abusive of.
    * ser hábil para = be adroit at.
    * ser habitual = be customary.
    * ser harina de otro costal = be a different kettle of fish.
    * ser hipertenso = be hyper.
    * ser hora de = it + be + time to/for.
    * ser hora de definirse = time to climb off the fence.
    * ser hora de irse = be time to go.
    * ser hora de marcharse = be time to go.
    * ser hora ya de que = be about time (that), be high time (that/to/for).
    * ser humilde = hide + Posesivo + light under a bushel.
    * sería mejor que + Subjuntivo = better + Infinitivo.
    * ser ideal = suit + best, be just the thing, be just the ticket, be just the job.
    * ser ideal para Uno = be (right) up + Posesivo + alley, be + Posesivo + cup of tea.
    * ser idóneo para = be suited to.
    * ser ignorado = be unheeded.
    * ser igual a = be equivalent to, equal.
    * ser igual que = amount to + the same thing as.
    * ser ilegal = be against the law.
    * ser ilimitado = be boundless.
    * ser implacable = play + hardball.
    * ser imponente = be awe-inspiring.
    * ser importante = be of importance, make + a difference, be of consequence.
    * ser importantísimo = make + all the difference in the world, make + difference in the world.
    * ser importantísimo (para) = be central (to).
    * ser imposible = be dead meat.
    * ser imprescindible = be a must.
    * ser improcedente = be out of order.
    * ser imprudente = be reckless.
    * ser inalterable = set in + stone, set in + tablets of stone.
    * ser incapaz de = be unable to.
    * ser incoherente = Negativo + hold + water.
    * ser incompatible (con) = be irreconcilable (with).
    * ser inconsistente = Negativo + hold + water.
    * ser increíble = beggar + belief.
    * ser independiente = go + Posesivo + own way, stew in + Posesivo + own juice, stand on + Posesivo + own (two) feet.
    * ser indescriptible = beggar + description.
    * ser indispensable = be a must.
    * ser ineficaz = fire + blanks.
    * ser infundado = be unfounded.
    * ser inherente a = inhere in.
    * ser inimaginable = beggar + imagination.
    * ser inminente = be on the cards.
    * ser inmune a = be immune from, be immune against.
    * ser innovador = break + new ground, break + ground.
    * ser innumerable = be without number, be legion.
    * ser innumerables = run into + the thousands.
    * ser insignificante = pale into + insignificance, stick + Algo + on a pin-point, be of no consequence.
    * ser insignificante de = be slight in.
    * ser inteligente = be talented.
    * ser interesante = be of interest (to/for).
    * ser interesante + Infinitivo = be as well + Infinitivo, be well + Infinitivo.
    * ser interesante + Verbo = be neat to + Verbo.
    * ser interminable = there + be + no end to.
    * ser intransigente = play + hardball.
    * ser inútil = fire + blanks.
    * ser irrespetuoso con = disrespect, diss.
    * ser justo = play + fair.
    * ser justo con todos = give the devil his due.
    * ser justo hasta con el diablo = give the devil his due.
    * ser justo lo que se necesita = be just the thing, be just the ticket, be just the job.
    * ser justo lo que Uno necesita = be (right) up + Posesivo + alley.
    * ser justo que = there + be + justice in.
    * ser juzgado = stand + trial, stand for + trial.
    * ser la abreviatura de = be short for.
    * ser la base de = be at the core of, form + the basis of, be at the heart of.
    * ser la ciudad de = be home to.
    * ser la clave de = hold + the key to.
    * ser la comidilla del barrio = be the talk of the town.
    * ser la comidilla del pueblo = be the talk of the town.
    * ser la consecuencia de = follow from, result from.
    * ser la costumbre = be customary.
    * ser la cuestión = be the point.
    * ser la culminación de Algo = represent + the culmination of, mark + the culmination of.
    * ser la culpa de = be the fault of.
    * ser la debilidad de Alguien = be a sucker for.
    * ser la elección lógica = be a/the natural choice.
    * ser la elección natural = be a/the natural choice.
    * ser la excepción = be the exception.
    * ser la excepción a la regla = constitute + the exception to the rule.
    * ser la excepción que confirma la regla = be the exception rather than the rule.
    * ser la forma abreviada de = be short for.
    * ser la forma de = be a recipe for.
    * ser la fórmula para = be a recipe for.
    * ser la gota que colma el vaso = bring + the situation to a head.
    * ser la idea central de = be at the core of, be at the heart of.
    * ser la imagen de = be a picture of.
    * ser la intención = be the intention.
    * ser la intención de uno = be + Posesivo + intention.
    * ser la manera de = be a recipe for.
    * ser la materia prima de = be grist to + Posesivo + mill.
    * ser la mayoría = be in the majority.
    * ser la mejor alternativa = be the best bet.
    * ser la mejor manera de = be the conduit for.
    * ser lamentable = be a pity.
    * ser la minoría = be in the minority.
    * ser la norma = be the norm, be the rule, become + the norm.
    * ser la novedad = be on the scene.
    * ser la obra de = be the work of.
    * ser la persona ideal para = be the best placed to.
    * ser la persona más indicada para = be in a position to.
    * ser la propia responsabilidad de Alguien = be of + Posesivo + own making.
    * ser la prueba de fuego de Algo = test + Nombre + to the limit.
    * ser la punta de lanza de = spearhead.
    * ser la razón de = lie at + the root of.
    * ser la representación misma de = be a picture of.
    * ser la responsabilidad de = be the responsibility of.
    * ser la responsabilidad de Alguien + Infinitivo = it + lie with + Nombre/Pronombre + to + Infinitivo.
    * ser la última palabra = be all the rage.
    * ser la última persona del mundo que + Infinitivo = be one of the last people in the world to + Infinitivo.
    * ser lector de una biblioteca = library membership.
    * ser lento = be slow off the mark, be slow off the blocks.
    * ser líder en = take + the lead in + Gerundio.
    * ser lo de Uno = be cut out for, be (right) up + Posesivo + alley.
    * ser lo más parecido a = be as close as we come to.
    * ser lo mismo = be one and the same.
    * ser lo normal = be the order of the day.
    * ser lo principal de = be at the core of, be at the heart of.
    * ser lo que a Uno le encanta = be (right) up + Posesivo + alley.
    * ser lo que a Uno le gusta = be (right) up + Posesivo + alley, be + Posesivo + cup of tea.
    * ser lo que a Uno le interesa = be (right) up + Posesivo + alley, be + Posesivo + cup of tea.
    * ser lo que a Uno le va = be (right) up + Posesivo + alley.
    * ser lo que a Uno más le gusta = be + Posesivo + big scene.
    * ser lo que nos espera = be the shape of things to come.
    * ser lo suficientemente + Adjetivo + como para = be + Adjetivo + enough to.
    * ser lo suficientemente comprensivo = go + far enough.
    * ser lo suficientemente conocido como para que = be sufficiently well known for.
    * serlo todo para todos = be all things to all men, be all things to all people.
    * ser lo último = be all the rage, be the pits.
    * ser lo último en = become + the next stop in.
    * ser lo último en lo que + pensar = be the last thing of + Posesivo + mind.
    * ser lo último que + ocurrir + a Alguien = be the last thing of + Posesivo + mind.
    * ser magnífico + Gerundio = be terrific at + Gerundio.
    * ser malo = be a joke, spell + bad news, make + poor + Nombre.
    * ser maravilloso = sound + great.
    * ser más astuto que = outfox, outwit, outsmart.
    * ser más interno = inner being.
    * ser más un + Nombre = be more of a + Nombre.
    * ser mayor = be older.
    * ser mejor en = be better at.
    * ser mejor que = be superior to, compare + favourably.
    * ser mejor que + Subjuntivo = better + Infinitivo.
    * ser menor = be less.
    * ser menos + Adjetivo = be less of a(n) + Nombre.
    * ser mínimo = be at a minimum.
    * ser mirado de forma extraña = get + some funny looks.
    * ser modesto = hide + Posesivo + light under a bushel.
    * ser molesto = be disturbing.
    * ser moroso = be in default.
    * ser motivador = be motivating.
    * ser motivo de preocupación = loom + large.
    * ser mucho = be a mouthful.
    * ser mucho más = be all the more.
    * ser mucho más que = be far more than.
    * ser muy aconsejable que = be well advised to.
    * ser muy alto = be metres high.
    * ser muy amigo de = be pally with.
    * ser muy antiguo = go ba

    * * *
    /ser/
    = Sociedad Española de Radiodifusión
    * * *

     

    ser ( conjugate ser) cópula
    1 ( seguido de adjetivos) to be
    ◊ ser expresses identity or nature as opposed to condition or state, which is normally conveyed by estar. The examples given below should be contrasted with those to be found in estar 1 cópula 1 es bajo/muy callado he's short/very quiet;

    es sorda de nacimiento she was born deaf;
    es inglés/católico he's English/(a) Catholic;
    era cierto it was true;
    sé bueno, estate quieto be a good boy and keep still;
    que seas muy feliz I hope you'll be very happy;

    (+ me/te/le etc)

    ver tb imposible, difícil etc
    2 ( hablando de estado civil) to be;

    es viuda she's a widow;
    ver tb estar 1 cópula 2
    3 (seguido de nombre, pronombre) to be;

    ábreme, soy yo open the door, it's me
    4 (con predicado introducido por `de'):

    soy de Córdoba I'm from Cordoba;
    es de los vecinos it belongs to the neighbors, it's the neighbors';
    no soy de aquí I'm not from around here
    5 (hipótesis, futuro):

    ¿será cierto? can it be true?
    verbo intransitivo
    1

    b) (liter) ( en cuentos):

    ◊ érase una vez … once upon a time there was …

    2
    a) (tener lugar, ocurrir):


    ¿dónde fue el accidente? where did the accident happen?

    ◊ ¿qué habrá sido de él? I wonder what happened to o what became of him;

    ¿qué es de Marisa? (fam) what's Marisa up to (these days)? (colloq);
    ¿qué va a ser de nosotros? what will become of us?
    3 ( sumar):
    ◊ ¿cuánto es (todo)? how much is that (altogether)?;

    son 3.000 pesos that'll be o that's 3,000 pesos;
    somos diez en total there are ten of us altogether
    4 (indicando finalidad, adecuación) ser para algo to be for sth;

    ( en locs)
    ◊ a no ser que (+ subj) unless;

    ¿cómo es eso? why is that?, how come? (colloq);
    como/cuando/donde sea: tengo que conseguir ese trabajo como sea I have to get that job no matter what;
    hazlo como sea, pero hazlo do it any way o however you want but get it done;
    el lunes o cuando sea next Monday or whenever;
    puedo dormir en el sillón o donde sea I can sleep in the armchair or wherever you like o anywhere you like;
    de ser así (frml) should this be so o the case (frml);
    ¡eso es! that's it!, that's right!;
    es que …: ¿es que no lo saben? do you mean to say they don't know?;
    es que no sé nadar the thing is I can't swim;
    lo que sea: cómete una manzana, o lo que sea have an apple or something;
    estoy dispuesta a hacer lo que sea I'm prepared to do whatever it takes;
    o sea: en febrero, o sea hace un mes in February, that is to say a month ago;
    o sea que no te interesa in other words, you're not interested;
    o sea que nunca lo descubriste so you never found out;
    (ya) sea …, (ya) sea … either …, or …;
    sea como sea at all costs;
    sea cuando sea whenever it is;
    sea donde sea no matter where;
    sea quien sea whoever it is;
    si no fuera/hubiera sido por … if it wasn't o weren't/hadn't been for …
    ( en el tiempo) to be;
    ◊ ¿qué fecha es hoy? what's the date today?, what's today's date;

    serían las cuatro cuando llegó it must have been (about) four (o'clock) when she arrived;
    ver tb v impers
    ser v impers to be;

    ser v aux ( en la voz pasiva) to be;
    fue construido en 1900 it was built in 1900
    ■ sustantivo masculino
    1
    a) ( ente) being;

    ◊ ser humano/vivo human/living being

    b) (individuo, persona):


    2 ( naturaleza):

    ser
    I sustantivo masculino
    1 being: es un ser despreciable, he's despicable
    ser humano, human being
    ser vivo, living being
    2 (esencia) essence: eso forma parte de su ser, that is part of him
    II verbo intransitivo
    1 (cualidad) to be: eres muy modesto, you are very modest
    2 (fecha) to be: hoy es lunes, today is Monday
    ya es la una, it's one o'clock
    3 (cantidad) eran unos cincuenta, there were about fifty people
    (al pagar) ¿cuánto es?, how much is it?
    son doscientas, it is two hundred pesetas
    Mat dos y tres son cinco, two and three make five
    4 (causa) aquella mujer fue su ruina, that woman was his ruin
    5 (oficio) to be a(n): Elvira es enfermera, Elvira is a nurse
    6 (pertenencia) esto es mío, that's mine
    es de Pedro, it is Pedro's
    7 (afiliación) to belong: es del partido, he's a member of the party
    es un chico del curso superior, he is a boy from the higher year
    8 (origen) es de Málaga, she is from Málaga
    ¿de dónde es esta fruta? where does this fruit come from?
    9 (composición, material) to be made of: este jersey no es de lana, this sweater is not (made of) wool
    10 ser de, (afinidad, comparación) lo que hizo fue de tontos, what she did was a foolish thing
    11 (existir) Madrid ya no es lo que era, Madrid isn't what it used to be
    12 (suceder) ¿qué fue de ella?, what became of her?
    13 (tener lugar) to be: esta tarde es el entierro, the funeral is this evening 14 ser para, (finalidad) to be for: es para pelar patatas, it's for peeling potatoes
    (adecuación, aptitud) no es una película para niños, the film is not suitable for children
    esta vida no es para ti, this kind of life is not for you
    15 (efecto) era para llorar, it was painful
    es (como) para darle una bofetada, it makes me want to slap his face
    no es para tomárselo a broma, it is no joke
    16 (auxiliar en pasiva) to be: fuimos rescatados por la patrulla de la Cruz Roja, we were rescued by the Red Cross patrol
    17 ser de (+ infinitivo) era de esperar que se marchase, it was to be expected that she would leave
    ♦ Locuciones: a no ser que, unless
    como sea, anyhow
    de no ser por..., had it not been for
    es más, furthermore
    es que..., it's just that...
    lo que sea, whatever
    o sea, that is (to say)
    sea como sea, in any case o be that as it may
    ser de lo que no hay, to be the limit
    ' ser' also found in these entries:
    Spanish:
    A
    - acceder
    - además
    - aficionada
    - aficionado
    - alardear
    - alcanzar
    - alimentar
    - alta
    - alto
    - ambicionar
    - antigüedad
    - aparición
    - arma
    - atinar
    - atorarse
    - aúpa
    - babear
    - básica
    - básico
    - bendición
    - caber
    - cacho
    - cada
    - cafetera
    - cafetero
    - calco
    - callo
    - canela
    - cansada
    - cansado
    - cantar
    - capaz
    - capirote
    - carácter
    - cardo
    - carne
    - carné
    - caso
    - cero
    - colarse
    - comida
    - comidilla
    - comido
    - conmigo
    - conquistador
    - conquistadora
    - contagiarse
    - contemplar
    - contienda
    English:
    accountable
    - addicted
    - adjust
    - allow
    - allowance
    - ambition
    - amount to
    - anathema
    - anomaly
    - arduous
    - around
    - aspire
    - aware
    - bad
    - be
    - beating
    - being
    - belong
    - betray
    - big
    - bill
    - bind over
    - bird
    - booby trap
    - boring
    - bounce
    - can
    - carry
    - catch up
    - cerebral
    - ceremonial
    - ceremony
    - charm
    - chip
    - claim
    - come into
    - come under
    - connoisseur
    - court
    - degree
    - deserve
    - destroy
    - differ
    - do
    - dodger
    - doubly
    - due
    - ear
    - easy
    - edit
    * * *
    ser The auxiliary verb ser is used with the past participle of a verb to form the passive (e.g. la película fue criticada the movie was criticized).
    ♦ v aux
    [para formar la voz pasiva] to be;
    fue visto por un testigo he was seen by a witness;
    la propuesta es debatida o [m5] está siendo debatida en el parlamento the proposal is being debated in parliament
    ♦ v copulativo
    1. [con adjetivos, sustantivos, pronombres] [indica cualidad, identidad, condición] to be;
    es alto/gracioso he's tall/funny;
    soy chileno/chiapaneco I'm Chilean/from Chiapas;
    es azul/difícil it's blue/difficult;
    sé discreta/paciente be discreet/patient;
    es un amigo/el dueño he's a friend/the owner;
    son unos amigos míos they're friends of mine;
    es el cartero/tu madre it's the postman o US mailman/your mother;
    soy yo, ábreme open up, it's me;
    soy Víctor [al teléfono] it's Víctor;
    la casa es aquella de ahí the house is that one over there;
    es un tipo muy simpático he's a very nice guy;
    ¿es eso verdad? is that true?;
    eso no es cierto that isn't true;
    es obvio que le gustas it's obvious that he likes you;
    no es necesario ir it isn't necessary to go;
    es posible que llueva it may rain;
    no está mal para ser de segunda mano it's not bad considering it's second-hand;
    no pierde sus derechos por ser inmigrante just because he's an immigrant doesn't mean he doesn't have any rights;
    te lo dejo en la mitad por ser tú seeing as o because it's you, I'll let you have it half-price;
    por ser usted, señora, 15 euros to you, madam, 15 euros;
    que seas muy feliz I wish you every happiness, I hope you'll be very happy;
    ¡será imbécil el tipo! the guy must be stupid!;
    este restaurante ya no es lo que era this restaurant isn't as good as it used to be o isn't what it used to be;
    RP Fam
    ser loco por algo to be wild about sth
    2. [con sustantivos, adjetivos] [indica empleo, dedicación, estado civil, religión] to be;
    soy abogado/actriz I'm a lawyer/an actress;
    son estudiantes they're students;
    para ser juez hay que trabajar mucho you have to work very hard to be o become a judge;
    es padre de tres hijos he's a father of three;
    es soltero/casado/divorciado he's single/married/divorced;
    era viuda she was a widow;
    son budistas/protestantes they are Buddhists/Protestants;
    el que fuera gobernador del estado the former governor of the state;
    Am Fam
    ¿tú eres o te haces? are you stupid or what?;
    RP Fam
    ¿vos sos o te hacés? are you stupid or what?
    3. [con "de"] [indica material, origen, propiedad]
    ser de [estar hecho de] to be made of;
    [provenir de] to be from; [pertenecer a] to belong to;
    un juguete que es todo de madera a completely wooden toy, a toy made completely of wood;
    ¿de dónde eres? where are you from?;
    estas pilas son de una linterna these batteries are from a torch;
    ¿es de usted este abrigo? is this coat yours?, does this coat belong to you?;
    los juguetes son de mi hijo the toys are my son's;
    portarse así es de cobardes only cowards behave like that, it's cowardly to behave like that
    4. [con "de"] [indica pertenencia a grupo]
    ser de [club, asociación, partido] to be a member of;
    ¿de qué equipo eres? [aficionado] which team o who do you support?;
    soy del Barcelona I support Barcelona;
    ser de los que… to be one of those people who…;
    ése es de los que están en huelga he is one of those on strike;
    no es de las que se asustan por cualquier cosa she's not one to get scared easily
    ♦ vi
    1. [ocurrir, tener lugar] to be;
    fue aquí it was here;
    ¿cuándo es la boda? when's the wedding?;
    la final era ayer the final was yesterday;
    ¿cómo fue lo de tu accidente? how did your accident happen?;
    ¿qué fue de aquel amigo tuyo? what happened to that friend of yours?;
    ¿qué es de Pablo? how's Pablo (getting on)?
    2. [constituir, consistir en] to be;
    fue un acierto que nos quedáramos en casa we were right to stay at home;
    lo importante es decidirse the important thing is to reach a decision;
    su ambición era dar la vuelta al mundo her ambition was to travel round the world;
    tratar así de mal a la gente es buscarse problemas treating people so badly is asking for trouble
    3. [con fechas, horas] to be;
    ¿qué (día) es hoy? what day is it today?, what's today?;
    hoy es jueves today's Thursday, it's Thursday today;
    ¿qué (fecha) es hoy? what's the date today?, what date is it today?;
    mañana será 15 de julio tomorrow (it) will be 15 July;
    ¿qué hora es? what time is it?, what's the time?;
    son las tres (de la tarde) it's three o'clock (in the afternoon), it's three (pm);
    serán o [m5] deben de ser las tres it must be three (o'clock)
    4. [con precios] to be;
    ¿cuánto es? how much is it?;
    son 300 pesos that'll be 300 pesos;
    ¿a cómo son esos tomates? how much are those tomatoes?
    5. [con cifras, en operaciones] to be;
    ellos eran unos 500 there were about 500 of them;
    11 por 100 son 1.100 11 times 100 is 1,100
    6. [servir, ser adecuado]
    ser para to be for;
    este trapo es para (limpiar) las ventanas this cloth is for (cleaning) the windows;
    este libro es para niños this book is for children;
    la ciudad no es para mí the city isn't for me
    7. [con "de" más infinitivo] [indica necesidad, posibilidad]
    es de desear que… it is to be hoped that…;
    era de esperar que pasara algo así it was to be expected that something like that would happen;
    es de suponer que aparecerá presumably, he'll turn up;
    es de temer cuando se enoja she's really scary when she gets angry
    8. [para recalcar, poner énfasis]
    ése es el que me lo contó he's the one who told me;
    lo que es a mí, no me llamaron they certainly didn't call me, they didn't call me, anyway;
    ¿es que ya no te acuerdas? don't you remember any more, then?, you mean you don't remember any more?
    9. [indica excusa, motivo]
    es que no me hacen caso but o the thing is they don't listen to me;
    es que no vine porque estaba enfermo the reason I didn't come is that I was ill, I didn't come because I was ill, you see;
    ¿cómo es que no te han avisado? how come they didn't tell you?
    10. Literario [existir]
    Platón, uno de los grandes sabios que en el mundo han sido Plato, one of the wisest men ever to walk this earth
    11. [en frases]
    a no ser que venga unless she comes;
    tengo que conseguirlo (sea) como sea I have to get it one way or another;
    hay que evitar (sea) como sea que se entere we have to prevent her from finding out at all costs o no matter what;
    hazlo cuando sea do it whenever;
    de no ser/haber sido por… if it weren't/hadn't been for…;
    de no ser por él no estaríamos vivos if it weren't for him, we wouldn't be alive;
    de no ser así otherwise;
    de ser así if that should happen;
    déjalo donde sea leave it anywhere o wherever;
    érase una vez, érase que se era once upon a time;
    dile lo que sea, da igual tell her anything o whatever, it doesn't make any difference;
    haré lo que sea para recuperar mi dinero I will do whatever it takes o anything to get my money back;
    se enfadó, y no era para menos she got angry, and not without reason;
    no sea que…, no vaya a ser que… in case…;
    la llamaré ahora no sea que luego me olvide I'll call her now in case I forget later;
    Estados Unidos y Japón, o sea, las dos economías mundiales más importantes the United States and Japan, that is to say o in other words, the two most important economies in the world;
    50 euros, o sea unas 8.300 pesetas 50 euros, that's about 8,300 pesetas;
    o sea que no quieres venir so you don't want to come then?;
    por si fuera poco as if that wasn't enough;
    habla con quien sea talk to anyone;
    sea quien sea no abras la puerta don't open the door, whoever it is;
    si no fuera/hubiera sido por… if it weren't/hadn't been for…;
    Am
    siendo que… seeing that o as…, given that…;
    Am
    siendo que tienes la plata, cómprate el vestido más caro seeing as o since you've got the money, buy yourself the more expensive dress
    ♦ v impersonal
    [indica tiempo] to be;
    es muy tarde it's rather late;
    era de noche/de día it was night/day
    ♦ nm
    1. [ente] being;
    seres de otro planeta beings from another planet
    ser humano human being;
    Ser Supremo Supreme Being;
    los seres vivos living things
    2. [persona] person;
    sus seres queridos his loved ones
    3. [existencia]
    mis padres me dieron el ser my parents gave me my life
    4. [esencia, naturaleza] being;
    la quiero con todo mi ser I love her with all my being o soul
    * * *
    f abr (= Sociedad Española de Radiodifusión) network of independent Spanish radio stations
    * * *
    ser {77} vi
    1) : to be
    él es mi hermano: he is my brother
    Camila es linda: Camila is pretty
    2) : to exist, to live
    ser, o no ser: to be or not to be
    3) : to take place, to occur
    el concierto es el domingo: the concert is on Sunday
    4) (used with expressions of time, date, season)
    son las diez: it's ten o'clock
    hoy es el 9: today's the 9th
    5) : to cost, to come to
    ¿cuánto es?: how much is it?
    6) (with the future tense) : to be able to be
    ¿será posible?: can it be possible?
    7)
    ser de : to come from
    somos de Managua: we're from Managua
    8)
    ser de : to belong to
    ese lápiz es de Juan: that's Juan's pencil
    9)
    es que : the thing is that
    es que no lo conozco: it's just that I don't know him
    ¡sea! : agreed!, all right!
    sea... sea : either... or
    la cuenta ha sido pagada: the bill has been paid
    él fue asesinado: he was murdered
    ser nm
    : being
    ser humano: human being
    * * *
    ser1 n (ente) being
    ser2 vb
    1. (en general) to be
    2. (estar hecho) to be made
    3. (pertenecer) to belong
    este libro es de María this book belongs to María / this book is María's

    Spanish-English dictionary > ser

  • 7 ninguno

    pron.
    1 no one, none, nobody, not a single one.
    2 none, none of it.
    * * *
    1 no, not any
    1 (persona) nobody, no one
    2 (objeto) not any, none
    \
    ninguna cosa nothing
    ninguno,-a de nosotros (ellos etc) none of us (them etc) Table 1 NOTA See also ningún/Table 1
    * * *
    1. (f. - ninguna)
    adj.
    no, none
    2. (f. - ninguna)
    pron.
    1) none
    3) no one, no other
    * * *
    1.
    ADJ [con verbo negativo en inglés] any; [con verbo afirmativo en inglés] no

    no practica ningún deporte — he doesn't do any sport, he does no sport

    2. PRON
    1) [entre más de dos] [con verbo negativo en inglés] any; [con verbo afirmativo en inglés] none

    -¿cuál te gusta? -ninguno — "which one do you like?" - "none of them"

    ninguno de: no me creo ninguna de sus historias — I don't believe any of his stories

    2) [entre dos] [con verbo negativo en inglés] either; [con verbo afirmativo en inglés] neither

    ninguno de los dos equipos pasará a la final — neither of the teams o neither team will get through to the final

    3) (=nadie) nobody, no-one
    NINGUNO Adjetivo ► Se traduce por any si el verbo va en forma negativa y por no si el verbo va en forma afirmativa. En general es más frecuente usar not + any (salvo como sujeto, posición en la que se debe emplear no), ya que no se utiliza normalmente con carácter más enfático: No tengo ninguna pregunta I haven't got any questions No se ha cometido ningún delito No crime has been committed No fui a ningún sitio I didn't go anywhere No hay ningún peligro There is no danger, There isn't any danger Hay que tener en cuenta que el sustantivo que sigue a any va en plural si es contable, como en el primer ejemplo. ► Con palabras que poseen un sentido negativo tales como hardly, without y never hay que utilizar any: Conseguí hacerlo sin ninguna ayuda I managed to do it without any help Pronombre ► El uso de los pronombres any y none sigue las mismas pautas que los adjetivos any y no, ya que se emplea preferiblemente la forma any con verbos en forma negativa y none si la forma es afirmativa, e igualmente se prefiere la forma none para la posición de sujeto: No quiero ninguno de estos I don't want any of these No me gusta ninguno de ellos I don't like any of them No queda ninguno There are none left No va a venir ninguno de sus amigos None of her friends is o are coming Si el verbo va detrás de none puede ir tanto en singular como en plural. ► En lugar de none y any, si ninguno se refiere a dos personas o cosas se emplea neither y either, siguiendo las mismas reglas anotadas anteriormente: Ninguno de los dos equipos está jugando bien Neither of the teams o Neither team is playing well No conozco a ninguno de los dos I don't know either of them El verbo va en singular si sigue a neither. Para otros usos y ejemplos ver la entrada see ALGUNO, ALGO
    * * *
    I

    no lo encuentro por ningún lado or ninguna parte — I can't find it anywhere

    no es tonta, pero tampoco es ninguna lumbrera — she's not stupid, but she's no genius either

    II
    - na pronombre
    2) ( nadie) nobody, no-one
    * * *
    = none.
    Ex. None of the entries in the system is specific.
    ----
    * aunque sin ningún resultado = but (all) to no avail.
    * bajo ninguna circunstancia = under no/any circumstances.
    * bajo ningún concepto = on no account, not on any account, under no/any circumstances.
    * como en casa no se está en ningún sitio = there's no place like home.
    * demostrar sin ninguna duda = prove + beyond all doubt, demonstrate + beyond any doubt, prove + beyond any doubt.
    * demostrar sin ningún género de duda = demonstrate + beyond (all) doubt, demonstrate + emphatically, prove + beyond all doubt, demonstrate + beyond any doubt, demonstrate + beyond any doubt, prove + beyond any doubt.
    * de ninguna forma = in any way at all.
    * de ninguna manera = at all, in any sense of the word, not at all, under no/any circumstances, on no account, not on any account, in any way at all.
    * !de ninguna manera! = Not on your life!, over + Posesivo + dead body.
    * de ninguna otra forma = in any other way.
    * de ningún modo = by no means, in no way, on no account, in no sense, by any means, not at all, under no/any circumstances, in any shape or form, for the life of me, not on any account, by no stretch of the imagination.
    * en ninguna parte = nowhere.
    * en ningún lugar = nowhere.
    * en ningún momento = at no time, at no time, anywhere along the line.
    * en ningún sentido de la palabra = in any sense of the word.
    * en ningún sitio = anywhere along the line, nowhere.
    * ganar sin ninguna dificultad = beat + Nombre + hands down, win + hands down.
    * más allá de ninguna duda = beyond doubt.
    * más que ninguna otra cosa = beyond all else.
    = no one, not... any.
    Ex. No one catalogue can satisfy all the requirements of all users simultaneously.
    Ex. Right now it would not win any great prize for alphabetization.
    ----
    * ninguna otra persona = no one else.
    * ninguna probabilidad = fat chance.
    * ningún + Nombre = no + Nombre, no single + Nombre, no two + Nombre.
    * ningún + Nombre + del mundo = all + Nombre + in the world.
    * ninguno de los dos = neither, neither of them.
    * ningún otro = no other.
    * no concebirse desde ningún punto de vista = be impossible under any hypothesis.
    * no dar ningún resultado = give + zero results, be of no avail, be to no avail.
    * no dejar ninguna duda = leave + no doubt.
    * no existir ningún indicio de que = there + be + no sign of.
    * no hacer ninguna gracia = not take + kindly to.
    * no hacer ningún cambio = stand + pat.
    * no llevar a ninguna parte = achieve + nothing, achieve + nothing, go + nowhere.
    * no llevar a ningún fin = fart + in the wind.
    * no llevar a ningún sitio = go + nowhere.
    * no ser ningún jovencito = be no chicken.
    * no tener ningún escrúpulo en = have + no qualms about.
    * no tener ningún fundamento = not have a leg to stand on.
    * no tener ningún interés = can't/couldn't be bothered.
    * no tener ningún problema con = be okay with.
    * no tener ningún remilgo en = have + no qualms about.
    * no tener ningún reparo = have + no qualms about.
    * que no posee ninguna conexión = disjoint.
    * sin ninguna duda = without question, without any doubt, beyond doubt, no mistake, no doubt.
    * sin ningún coste = without charge, without cost, free of charge, at no cost, free of cost, cost free, for free, costless, at no charge.
    * sin ningún esfuerzo mental = thought-free.
    * sin ningún género de duda = without any doubt whatsoever.
    * sin ningún género de dudas = indisputably.
    * sin ningún motivo = for no reason, for no specific reason, for no particular reason, for no good reason.
    * sin ningún nivel de especialización = unskilled.
    * sin ningún otro motivo = (just) for the hell of (doing) it.
    * sin ningún remedio posible = beyond redemption.
    * sin ningún reparo = unabashed.
    * sin ningún resultado = to no avail, without any avail, of no avail.
    * sin ningún tipo de restricciones = no holds barred.
    * si no hay ningún contratiempo = all being well.
    * si no ocurre ningún imprevisto = all (other) things being equal.
    * sin sentir ningún reparo = unashamed.
    * tan bueno como ningún otro = as good as any.
    * * *
    I

    no lo encuentro por ningún lado or ninguna parte — I can't find it anywhere

    no es tonta, pero tampoco es ninguna lumbrera — she's not stupid, but she's no genius either

    II
    - na pronombre
    2) ( nadie) nobody, no-one
    * * *
    = none.

    Ex: None of the entries in the system is specific.

    * aunque sin ningún resultado = but (all) to no avail.
    * bajo ninguna circunstancia = under no/any circumstances.
    * bajo ningún concepto = on no account, not on any account, under no/any circumstances.
    * como en casa no se está en ningún sitio = there's no place like home.
    * demostrar sin ninguna duda = prove + beyond all doubt, demonstrate + beyond any doubt, prove + beyond any doubt.
    * demostrar sin ningún género de duda = demonstrate + beyond (all) doubt, demonstrate + emphatically, prove + beyond all doubt, demonstrate + beyond any doubt, demonstrate + beyond any doubt, prove + beyond any doubt.
    * de ninguna forma = in any way at all.
    * de ninguna manera = at all, in any sense of the word, not at all, under no/any circumstances, on no account, not on any account, in any way at all.
    * !de ninguna manera! = Not on your life!, over + Posesivo + dead body.
    * de ninguna otra forma = in any other way.
    * de ningún modo = by no means, in no way, on no account, in no sense, by any means, not at all, under no/any circumstances, in any shape or form, for the life of me, not on any account, by no stretch of the imagination.
    * en ninguna parte = nowhere.
    * en ningún lugar = nowhere.
    * en ningún momento = at no time, at no time, anywhere along the line.
    * en ningún sentido de la palabra = in any sense of the word.
    * en ningún sitio = anywhere along the line, nowhere.
    * ganar sin ninguna dificultad = beat + Nombre + hands down, win + hands down.
    * más allá de ninguna duda = beyond doubt.
    * más que ninguna otra cosa = beyond all else.
    = no one, not... any.
    Ex: No one catalogue can satisfy all the requirements of all users simultaneously.
    Ex: Right now it would not win any great prize for alphabetization.
    * ninguna otra persona = no one else.
    * ninguna probabilidad = fat chance.
    * ningún + Nombre = no + Nombre, no single + Nombre, no two + Nombre.
    * ningún + Nombre + del mundo = all + Nombre + in the world.
    * ninguno de los dos = neither, neither of them.
    * ningún otro = no other.
    * no concebirse desde ningún punto de vista = be impossible under any hypothesis.
    * no dar ningún resultado = give + zero results, be of no avail, be to no avail.
    * no dejar ninguna duda = leave + no doubt.
    * no existir ningún indicio de que = there + be + no sign of.
    * no hacer ninguna gracia = not take + kindly to.
    * no hacer ningún cambio = stand + pat.
    * no llevar a ninguna parte = achieve + nothing, achieve + nothing, go + nowhere.
    * no llevar a ningún fin = fart + in the wind.
    * no llevar a ningún sitio = go + nowhere.
    * no ser ningún jovencito = be no chicken.
    * no tener ningún escrúpulo en = have + no qualms about.
    * no tener ningún fundamento = not have a leg to stand on.
    * no tener ningún interés = can't/couldn't be bothered.
    * no tener ningún problema con = be okay with.
    * no tener ningún remilgo en = have + no qualms about.
    * no tener ningún reparo = have + no qualms about.
    * que no posee ninguna conexión = disjoint.
    * sin ninguna duda = without question, without any doubt, beyond doubt, no mistake, no doubt.
    * sin ningún coste = without charge, without cost, free of charge, at no cost, free of cost, cost free, for free, costless, at no charge.
    * sin ningún esfuerzo mental = thought-free.
    * sin ningún género de duda = without any doubt whatsoever.
    * sin ningún género de dudas = indisputably.
    * sin ningún motivo = for no reason, for no specific reason, for no particular reason, for no good reason.
    * sin ningún nivel de especialización = unskilled.
    * sin ningún otro motivo = (just) for the hell of (doing) it.
    * sin ningún remedio posible = beyond redemption.
    * sin ningún reparo = unabashed.
    * sin ningún resultado = to no avail, without any avail, of no avail.
    * sin ningún tipo de restricciones = no holds barred.
    * si no hay ningún contratiempo = all being well.
    * si no ocurre ningún imprevisto = all (other) things being equal.
    * sin sentir ningún reparo = unashamed.
    * tan bueno como ningún otro = as good as any.

    * * *
    ninguno1 -na
    (see note under ningún) [ Grammar notes (Spanish) ]
    no prestó ninguna atención he paid no attention, he didn't pay any attention
    en ningún momento never, at no time
    no lo encuentro por ningún lado or ninguna parte I can't find it anywhere
    no hay ningún problema there's no problem
    no le dio ninguna importancia he didn't consider it to be important, he didn't attach any importance to it
    no es tonta, pero tampoco es ninguna lumbrera she's not stupid, but she's no genius either
    (uso enfático): no hay problema ninguno there's absolutely no problem
    ninguno2 -na
    A [ Grammar notes (Spanish) ] (refiriéndose — a dos personas o cosas) neither; (— a más de dos) none
    ninguno de los dos vino or no vino ninguno de los dos neither of them came
    no trajo ninguno de los dos she didn't bring either of them
    se le presentaron tres alternativas pero ninguna le pareció aceptable he was presented with three options but he found none of them acceptable o he didn't find any of them acceptable
    le dije que comprara dos/cinco y no compró ninguno I told her to buy two/five and she didn't buy any
    empezó cuatro libros y no terminó ninguno he started four books and didn't finish any (of them) o didn't finish one (of them)
    de las siete personas que entrevistaron ninguna tenía experiencia none of the seven people they interviewed had any experience, of the seven people they interviewed none had any experience
    se fue sin que ninguno de nosotros se diera cuenta she left without any of us realizing
    B (nadie) nobody, no-one
    ninguno me dijo nada nobody o no one told me anything
    toca mejor que ninguno he plays better than anybody o anyone
    * * *

     

    ninguno
    ◊ -na adjetivo (see note under ningún)



    en ningún momento never;
    no lo encuentro por ningún lado I can't find it anywhere


    ■ pronombre

    (— a más de dos) none;

    no trajo ninguno de los dos she didn't bring either of them;
    ninguno de nosotros la conoce none of us know her

    ninguno,-a
    I adjetivo
    1 no: no tienes ninguna vergüenza, you have no shame
    (con otro negativo) not... any: no queda ninguna galleta, there aren't any biscuits left
    de ninguna manera, no way
    en ningún momento, never
    por/en ninguna parte, nowhere
    2 (intensificador) no es ningún maníaco, he isn't a maniac at all
    no es ninguna extraña, she is no stranger
    II pron
    1 (persona) no one: él tiene un hermano y yo ninguno, he has a brother and I don't
    (referido a dos personas) neither: ninguno de nosotros (dos) tiene hermanas, neither of us has a sister
    (referido a un grupo) ninguno vino a misa, none of them came to mass
    (nadie) nobody, no one: ninguno lo sabía, nobody knew it
    2 (objeto) yo tengo una oportunidad, pero él ninguna, I have a chance, but he has none
    (referido a dos objetos) neither: ninguno es útil, neither is useful
    (referido a un grupo) ninguno era rojo, none of them was red
    no quiso ninguno, she didn't want any of them ➣ Ver nota en neither
    ' ninguno' also found in these entries:
    Spanish:
    maldita
    - maldito
    - ningún
    - ninguna
    - alimento
    English:
    any
    - anybody
    - either
    - elderly
    - neither
    - no
    - none
    - them
    - whatever
    * * *
    ninguno, -a Ningún is used instead of ninguno before singular masculine nouns (e.g. ningún hombre no man).
    ♦ adj
    1. [antes de sustantivo] no;
    no se dio ninguna respuesta no answer was given;
    no tengo ningún interés en hacerlo I've no interest in doing it, I'm not at all interested in doing it;
    no tengo ningún hijo/ninguna buena idea I don't have any children/any good ideas;
    no lo veo por ninguna parte I can't see it anywhere;
    no tiene ninguna gracia it's not funny;
    en ningún momento at no time;
    yo no soy ningún mendigo, ¿sabe usted? I'm not a beggar, you know;
    ¿tijeras? yo no veo ningunas tijeras scissors? I can't see any scissors;
    no tengo ningunas ganas de ir I don't feel like going at all
    2. [después de sustantivo] [enfático]
    no es molestia ninguna it's no trouble
    ♦ pron
    [cosa] none, not any; [persona] nobody, no one;
    ninguno funciona none of them works;
    no hay ninguno there aren't any, there are none;
    ninguno lo sabrá no one o nobody will know;
    ninguno de none of;
    ninguno de ellos/nosotros none of them/us;
    ninguno de los dos neither of them o of the two;
    no me gusta ninguno de los dos I don't like either of them
    * * *
    adj no;
    no hay ninguna razón there’s no reason why, there isn’t any reason why
    * * *
    no es ninguna tonta: she's no fool
    no debe hacerse en ningún momento: that should never be done
    ninguno, -na pron
    1) : neither, none
    ninguno de los dos ha vuelto aún: neither one has returned yet
    2) : no one, no other
    te quiero más que a ninguna: I love you more than any other
    * * *
    ninguno pron
    1. none
    2. nobody
    ¿ninguno quiere venir? doesn't anybody want to come?
    3. neither

    Spanish-English dictionary > ninguno

  • 8 KOMA

    * * *
    I)
    (kem; kom or kvam, kómum or kvamúm; kominn), v.
    1) to come (litlu síðarr kómu Finnar aptr heim);
    2) to come, arrive (bréf kómu frá Skúla jarli);
    kom svá, at (it came to pass, that) Bárði var heitit meyjunni;
    3) with dat. of the object, to make to come, to take, bring, carry, etc.;
    hann skyldi koma Þór í Geirröðargarða, he should make Th. come to G.;
    hann kom Þórhaddi heilum yfir ána, he brought Th. safe across the river;
    koma e-m í hel, to put one to death;
    koma e-m til falls, to make one fall;
    koma e-m í sætt við e-n, to reconcile one with another;
    koma sér vel hjá e-m, to bring oneself into favour with, be agreeable to (þeir kómu sér vel við alla);
    koma e-u til leiðar (til vegar), to effect, bring about;
    koma orðum við e-n, to speak with a person (hann gørði sik svá reiðan, at ekki mátti orðum við hann koma);
    4) with preps.:
    koma e-u af sér, to get rid of (allt mun ek til vinna at koma af mér yðvarri reiði);
    koma e-u af, to abolish (Þvi hafði eigi orðit af komitmeði öllu);
    koma at e-m, to come upon one (kómu þessir at honum fyrir Sjólandi með tveim skipum);
    koma at hendi, to happen (mikill vandi er kominn at hendi);
    impers., Gunnarr játaði því, en þá er at kom, vildi hann eigi, G. agreed to it, but when it came to the point he would not;
    koma at e-u, to come at, regain, recover (koma at hamri);
    koma sér at e-u, to bring oneself to (Þ. kom sér ekki at því);
    koma á e-t, to come on, hit (höggit kom á lærit);
    koma e-u á, to bring about, effect (máttu þeir øngum flutningum á koma);
    koma kristni (dat.) á England, to christianize E.;
    koma fram, to come forth, appear, emerge (sigldi E. suðr með landi ok kom fram í Danmörk); to be produced, brought forward (nú mun pat fram koma sem ek sagða);
    koma e-u fram, to bring about, effect (koma fram hefndum);
    koma fyrir e-t, to be an equivalent for (fyrir víg Hjartar skyldi koma víg Kols);
    allt mun koma fyrir eitt, it will all come to the same;
    koma fyrir ekki, to come to naught, be of no avail;
    e-m þykkir fyrir ván komit, at, one thinks it past all hope, that;
    koma e-u fyrir, to destroy (hann kom hverjum hesti fyrir);
    koma í e-t, to come into, enter;
    koma niðr, to come down;
    hann reyndi eptir, hvar G. væri niðr kominn, what had become of G.;
    kom þar niðr tal hennar, at hon sagði honum, hversu, the end of her talk was, that she told him how koma;
    koma hart niðr, to pay dearly for it (ek hafða illa til gört, enda kom ek hart niðr);
    koma saman, to come together, gather (er saman kom liðit); to agree;
    þat kom saman (or ásamt) með þeim, they agreed on it;
    impers., kom þeim vel saman (ásamt), they agreed well;
    koma e-u saman, to bring about, effect;
    koma saman sættum með e-m, to reconcile them;
    koma til e-s, to come to a person or place (jarlinn kom með allan her sinn til Dyflinnar);
    koma till ríkis, to come to, or succeed to, the throne;
    koma til e-s, to cause: þat kemr til þess, at, the reason is, that; to help, avail: koma til lítils, to come to little, be of small avail (= koma fyrir lítit); to concern: þetta mál kemr ekki til þín, this quarrel is no business of thine; þat er til mín kemr, so far as I am concerned; to mean, signify (Þ. kvezk skilja, hvar orð hans kómu til); to be of value: sverð þat, er til kom mörk gulls, that was worth a ‘mark’ of gold; mikit þykkir til e-s koma, one is much thought of, is thought to be of great importance;
    koma til, to be born;
    koma e-m undan, to help one to escape;
    koma undir e-n, to come unto one;
    ef undir oss skal koma kjörit, if we are to choose;
    koma e-m undir, to get one down, overcome one;
    koma upp, to come up;
    tungl kemr upp, the moon rises;
    eldr kom upp, fire broke out;
    kom þá upp af tali þeirra, at, the end of their talk was, that; to come out, become known (kom þat þá upp, at hann hafði beðit hennar);
    koma e-u upp, to open (kerling tekr hörpuna ok vildi upp koma);
    hann mátti lengi eigi orði upp koma, it was long before he could utter a word;
    koma við e-t, to touch (komit var við hurðina);
    þeir kómu við sker, they struck on a reef;
    hann kemr við margar sögur, he appears in many sagas; to be added to (koma þær nætr við hinar fyrri);
    koma við, to fit, be convenient, suit;
    koma e-u við, to employ, make use of (ek mátta eigi boganum við koma); hann kom því við (he brought about), at engi skyldi fara með vápn; urðu þeir at flýja sem því kómu við, all fled that could;
    koma sér við, to bring about, effect, be able to do (ek mun veita þér slíkt lið sem ek má mér við koma); to behave (hversu hann kom sér við í þessum málum);
    koma yfir, to pass over (hvert kveld, er yfir kom);
    5) refl., komast;
    * * *
    pres. sing. kem, kemr, kemr; an older form komr is used constantly in very old and good vellum MSS., as the Kb. of Sæm.; and even spelt keomr or ceomr (in Eluc., Greg., etc.); reflex. komsk, 2nd pers. kømztu ( pervenis), Sdm. 10: pret. kom, kom-k, I came, Skm. 18: 2nd pers. komt, 17, mod. komst: the pret. plur. varies, kvámu being the oldest form; kvómu, often in the MSS.; kómu, as it is still pronounced in the west of Icel.; the usual and latest form is komu, with a short vowel; the spelling of the MSS. cannot always be ascertained, as the word is usually written kumu or qumu: pret. subj. kvæmi and kꝍmi (kæmi): imperat. kom, kom-ðú, proncd, kondu, come thou! pret. infin. kómu ( venisse), Fms. i. 224 (in a verse), Geisli 62:—with suff. neg., pres. kmr-at or kømr-að, Akv. 11, Grág. ii. 141, Gkv. 3. 8; pret. kom-a, kom-að, came not, Ls. 56, Þorf. Karl. (in a verse), Þd. 18; 2nd pers. komtaðu ( non venisti), Am. 99; subj. kømi-a ( non veniret), Gs. 10: reflex., pres. kømsk-at, Grág. ii. 180; pret. komsk-at ( could not come), Am. 3:—a middle form, pres. 1st pers. komum-k (komumsk), Ó. H. 140, 214, Skm. 10, 11; subj. pres. komimk, Ó. H. 85; pret. kømomc, Hbl. 33 (Bugge); part. pass. kominn, see Gramm. p. xix. The preterite forms kvam and kvaminn, used in the Edition of the Sturl. and in a few other mod. Editions without warrant in the MSS., are due to the fact that the Edition of Sturl. was published from a transcript now in the Advocates’ Library in Edinburgh, made by the learned priest Eyjolf á Völlum (died A. D. 1745), who used this spelling: in prehistoric times, before the age of writing, it may be assumed for certain that this verb had a v throughout, as in Gothic: [Ulf. qiman, i. e. qwiman, = ἔρχεσθαι; A. S. cuman; Engl. come; O. H. G. queman; Germ. kommen; Dutch komen; Dan. komme; Swed. komma; Lat. venio, qs. gvenio; the Ormul. spells cumenn, indicating a long root vowel; cp. North. E. coom.]
    A. To come; sá þeirra sem fyrr kæmi, Fms. ix. 373; konungr kom norðr til Túnsbergs, 375; kómu Finnar heim, i. 9; þeir mágar kómu ór hjúkólfi, Sturl. ii. 124; kömr hann á konungs fund, Fms. ix. 221; þá vóru þeir norðan komnir, 308; hér er nú komin ær ein kollótt, Sturl. i. 159, passim.
    2. to become, arrive; bréf kómu frá Skúla jarli, Fms. ix. 375; ef svá síðarliga kömr skip til hlunns, Sks. 28; en er vár kom, Eg. 167; koma at máli við e-n, to have an interview, talk with one, 467; konungi kom njósn, Fms. vii. 57; þá komu honum þau tíðendi, i. 37; þetta kom allt fyrir Ingimar, vii. 114; kom honum þat (it came to him, he got it) fyrir útan fé, en engum kom fyrr, x. 394; hvat sem á bak kemr, whatsoever may befall, Nj. 193; koma e-m at haldi, or í hald, to avail oneself, 192, Fms. x. 413; koma at gagni, to ‘come in useful,’ be of use, Nj. 264; koma at úvörum, to come at unawares, Ld. 132; koma e-m fyrir úvart, id., Fms. xi. 290; koma á úvart, Nj. 236; koma í þörf = koma í gagn, Fms. vii. 14; hvar kom kapp þitt þá? Bs. i. 18; mál koma í dóm, to be brought up for judgment, Fms. vii. 115; líðr vetrinn, kemr þar ( that time comes) er menn fara til Gulaþings, Eg. 340; var þá svá komit, at allir menn vóru sofa farnir, 376; kom svá ( it came to pass) at Bárði var heitið meyjunni, 26; svá kemr, kemr þar, at, it comes to pass. Fb. i. 174, ii. 48, 68; láta koma, to let come, put; síðan létu þeir koma eld í spánuna, Fms. xi. 34.
    3. in greeting; kom heill, welcome! kom heill ok sæll, frændi! Nj. 175: mod. komdu (kondu) sæll! komið þér sælir!
    II. with prepp.; koma á, to hit; ef á kömr, Grág. ii. 7:—koma at, to come to, arrive, happen; láttu at því koma, let it be so, Dropl. 24; kom þat mjök optliga at honum, of sickness, Fms. vii. 150; kom at þeim svefnhöfgi, sleep came upon them, Nj. 104; koma at hendi, to happen; mikill vandi er kominn at hendi, 177, Hom. 80; koma at e-u, to come at, regain, recover; koma at hamri, Þkv. 32:—koma fram, to come forth, appear, stund var í milli er þeir sá framstafninn ok inn eptri kom fram, Fms. ii. 304; engin kom önnur vistin fram, Eg. 549; nú eru öll sóknar-gögn fram komin, Nj. 143: to emerge, hann kom fram í Danmörk, Hkr. i. 210, 277, Ísl. ii. 232, Eg. 23, Landn. 134, Orkn. 152: to arrive, sendimenn fóru ok fram kómu, Fms. xi. 27; reifa mál þau fyrst er fyrst eru fram komin, each in its turn, Grág. i. 64: to be fulfilled, happen, því er á þínum dögum mun fram koma, Ld. 132; nú mun þat fram komit sem ek sagða, Eg. 283; kom nú fram spásagan Gests, Ld. 286; öll þessi merki kómu fram ok fylldusk, Stj. 444; aldrei skal maðr arf taka eptir þann mann er hann vegr, eðr ræðr bana fram kominn, whom he has slain, or whose death he has devised with effect, Grág. ii. 113; staðar-prýði flest fram komin, Bs. i. 146; vera langt fram kominn, mod. áfram kominn, to be ‘in extremis,’ at the point of death, 644; er sú frásögn eigi langt fram komin, this story comes from not far off, i. e. it is derived from first, not second hand, Fms. viii. 5:—koma fyrir, to come as payment, tvau hundrað skyldu koma fyrir víg Snorra (of weregild), Sturl. ii. 158; henni kvaðsk aldri hefnt þykkja Kjartans, nema Bolli kæmi fyrir, Ld. 240; allt mun koma fyrir eitt, it will come to the same, Lv. 11, Nj. 91, Fms. i. 208; koma fyrir ekki, to come to naught, be of no avail, Ísl. ii. 215, Fms. vi. 5:—koma í, to enter, come in, a fisherman’s term; koma í drátt, to hook a fish; at í komi með ykkr Þorbrandssonum, that ye and the Th. come to loggerheads, Eb. 80:—koma með, to come with a thing, to bring; kondu með það, fetch it!—koma til, to come to; vera kann at eigi spillisk þótt ek koma til, Eg. 506; nú er rétt lögruðning til ykkar komin, Nj. 236; koma til ríkis, to come to a kingdom, Eg. 268; þeir létu til hans koma um alla héraðs-stjórn, Fs. 44: to befall, kom svá til efnis, it so happened, Mar.; þeim hlutum sem hafinu kunni opt til at koma, Stj. 105, Sks. 323: to mean, signify, en hvar kom þat til er hann sagði, Ó. H. 87; ef þat kom til annars, en þess er hann mælti, id.: to cause, hygg ek at meir komi þar til lítilmennska, Eb. 172; konungr spurði hvat til bæri úgleði hans, hann kvað koma til mislyndi sína, Fms. vi. 355, Fb. ii. 80, Band. 29 new Ed.: to concern, þetta mál er eigi kom síðr til yðvar en vár, Fms. vii. 130; þetta mál kemr ekki til þín, Nj. 227; þat er kemr til Knúts, Fms. v. 24; þat er til mín kemr, so far as I am concerned, iv. 194; hann kvað þetta mál ekki til sín koma, vi. 100; þeir eru orðmargir ok láta hvervetna til sín koma, meddle in all things, 655 xi. 2: to belong to, skulu þeir gjalda hinum slíka jörð sem til þeirra kemr, proportionally, Jb. 195; kemr þat til vár er lögin kunnum, Nj. 149; sú sök er tylptar-kviðr kömr til, Grág. i. 20; tylptar-kviðar á jafnan á þingi at kveðja, þar sem hann kömr til saka, ii. 37; þá er komit til þessa gjalds ( it is due), er menn koma í akkeris-sát, 408: to help, avail, koma til lítils, to come to little, be of small avail, Nj. 149, Fms. vi. 211; at göra litla fésekt, veit ek eigi hvat til annars kemr, I am not aware what else will do, I believe that will meet the case best, Band. 36 new Ed.; koma til, to ‘come to,’ of a person in a swoon, etc.; veit ek eigi til hvers koma mun sú tiltekja Fb. i. 177, Fms. xi. 103; hvar til þessi svör skulu koma, i. 3; það kemr til, it will all come right; kom þar til með kóngum tveim, two kings came to a quarrel, Skíða R. 48: to be of value, importance, authority, þótti allt meira til hans koma, Fas. i. 16; hvart sem til hans kæmi meira eðr minna, Fms. xi. 76; sverð þat er til kom hálf mörk gulls, Ld. 32; svá fémikill at til kómu tuttugu merkr gulls, Fms. xi. 85; mér þykir lítið til hans koma, I think little of him:—koma saman, to come together, live together, marry, K. Á. 134: to agree, þat kom saman með þeim, they agreed on it, Dropl. 9, Gísl. 41; kom þat ásamt með þeim, id., Fb. i. 168; koma vel ásamt, to agree well, Nj. 25:—koma undir e-n, to come unto one, ef undir oss bræðr skal koma kjörit, if we are to choose, Nj. 192; öll lögmæt skil þau er undir mik koma á þessu þingi, 239: to depend on, það er mikit undir komið, at …, be of importance:—koma upp, to come up, break out; kom þá upp grátr fyrir henni, she burst into tears, Fms. ix. 477; er lúðrar kvæði við, ok herblástr kæmi upp, v. 74; er seiðlætin kómu upp, Ld. 152; eldr kom upp, fire came up, Ölk. 35, (hence elds-uppkoma, an upcome of fire, an eruption); ef nokkut kemr síðan sannara upp, Fms. vii. 121: þá kom þat upp at hann hafði beðit hennar, Eg. 587; kom þat upp af tali þeirra, at …, Fms. vii. 282; þat kom upp ( it ended so) at hverr skyldi vera vin annars, i. 58: to turn up, ek ætla mér góðan kost hvárn sem upp kemr, Eg. 715; mun nú hamingjan skipta hverr upp kemr, 418; at sakar görðisk eða upp kæmi, Grág. i. 27; skaut til Guðs sínu máli, ok bað hann láta þat upp koma er hann sæi at bazt gegni, Ó. H. 195, Stj. 385:—koma við, to touch, hit; sé eigi komið við, if it is not touched, Grág. ii. 65; komit var við hurðina, Fas. i. 30; at þeir skyldi koma við torfuna, Ld. 60; hefi ek aldrei svá reitt vápn at manni, at eigi hafi við komit, Nj. 185; hann kemr við margar sögur, he comes up, appears in many Sagas, Ld. 334; koma þeir allir við þessa sögu síðan, Nj. 30; sem ek kom við (as I mentioned, touched upon) í morgin, Fms. ii. 142; er mestr er, ok úskapligast komi við, Ld. 118: to fit, þat kemr lítt við, ‘tis not meet, it won’t do, Lv. 20; mun ek gefa þér tveggja dægra byr þann er bezt kemr við, Fas. iii. 619: koma við, to land, call; þeir vóru komnir við Ísland, Eg. 128; þeir kómu við Hernar, Nj. 4; þeir kómu suðr við Katanes, 127; þeir kómu við sker ( struck on a skerry) ok brutu stýri sín, Fms. ix. 164; hann hafði komit við hval, he had struck against a whale, Sturl. ii. 164; hence in mod. usage, koma við, to call, make a short stay, also on land: to be added to, tekr heldr at grána gamanit ok koma kveðlingar við, i. 21; koma þær nætr við inar fyrri, Rb. 58; þá koma enn ellefu nætr við, 22:—koma yfir, to overcome, pass over; íss er yfir kömr, Hm. 81; hvert kveld er yfir kom, Finnb. 230; hryggleikr kom yfir, 623. 57; at sá dagr myndi ekki yfir koma, Sks. 111.
    B. With the dat. of the object, to make to come, put, bring, carry; páfa þess, er Kristni (dat.) kom á England, who Christianised England, Íb. 14; koma mönnum til réttrar trúar, Fms. i. 146; koma orðum við e-n, to speak to a person; görðisk hann styggr svá at fáir menn máttu orðum við hann koma, i. e. that no one could come to words with him, Eg. 3; hann görði sik svá reiðan, at ekki mátti orðum við hann koma, Fms. i. 83, xi. 293; koma vélræðum við e-n, to plan against one, Eg. 49; koma flugu í munn e-m, Nj. 64, 68; þú skalt ekki láta í skorta at koma þeim í (málit) með þér, 271; hann skyldi koma Þór í Geirröðar-garða, make Thor come to G., Edda 60; hann kom Þorhaddi heilum yfir ána, he brought Th. safe across the river, Þorst. Síðu H. 181; koma kaupi, to bring about a bargain, Gþl. 415; koma e-m í hel, to put one to death, Anal. 233; koma e-m til falls, to make one fall, Edda 34; koma e-m í sætt, Fs. 9; mun ek koma þér í sætt við konung, Eg. 227; hann kom sér í mikla kærleika við jarlinn, Nj. 268; koma sér í þjónustu, Fs. 84; koma sér vel, to put oneself in favour, be engaging; ek hefi komit mér vel hjá meyjum, Kormak; þeir komu sér vel við alla, Fas. iii. 529, Fs. 96, Nj. 66; koma sér ílla, to make oneself hated; það kemr sér ílla, it is ill seen, unpleasant; as also, það kemr sér vel, a thing is agreeable, acceptable; koma e-u til leiðar, to effect, make, Nj. 250, Eb. 118; koma e-u til vegar, id., Ld. 320; koma tölu á, to put, count on, count, number, Anal. 217; koma friði, sættum á, to bring peace, agreement about: hann kom þeim á flótta, he put them to flight, Fms. vii. 235; tóku þar allt er þeir kómu höndum á, all they could catch, ix. 473; koma e-m ór eldi, Fb. i. 300; tók hann merkit ok kom því (put it, hid it) í millum klæða sinna, Nj. 274: Gunnarr kom þangat at þeim örunum, 115; allt þat er bitið var ok blóði kom út á, where it was bitten so as to make blood flow, Fms. vii. 187.
    II. with prepp.; koma e-u fram, to effect; koma fram ferð, máli, Nj. 102; til lítils þætti þat koma, en enginn kvæmi sínu máli fram þótt til alþingis væri stefnt, 149, Fb. ii. 90; þat skal aldri verða at hann komi þessu fram, Eg. 765; ef ek kem hefndum fram, Ld. 262; koma fram lögum við e-n. Eg. 722:—koma e-u á, to bring about, introduce:—koma e-u af, to abolish; þó fékk hann því ekki af komit, Bs. i. 165; koma e-u af sér, to get rid of, Fs. 96, Eb. 40, 41:—koma e-u fyrir, to arrange; koma e-m fyrir, to get a place for one; hann kom honum fyrir í skóla: to destroy (fyrir-koma), hann kom hverjum hesti fyrir, Glúm. 356:—koma e-u upp, to open; áðr ek kom henni upp, before I could open it, Fms. iii. 74; kerling tekr hörpuna ok vildi upp koma ( open), nú fær hón upp komit hörpunni, Fas. i. 233; hann mátti lengi eigi orði upp koma fyrir harmi, it was long before he could speak, utter a word, Fms. vi. 234; sá svarar er mátti máli upp koma, vii. 288:—koma e-m undir, to overthrow one, get one down; varð at kenna afls-munar áðr hann kæmi honum undir, Eb. 172:—koma e-m undan, to make one escape. Fms. vii. 265, 623. 18:—ek ætla at koma mér útan, I think to go abroad, Nj. 261:—koma e-u við, to bring about, effect, to be able to do; ek mun veita þér slíkt sem ek má mér við koma, as I can, Nj.; þú munt öðru koma við en gabba oss, Anal. 77; hann kom því við ( brought about) at engi skyldi fara með vápn, Fms. vii. 240; ef váttum kvæmi við, in a case where witnesses were at hand, Íb. 12; liðit flýði allt þat er því kom við, all that could fled, Eg. 529; Guðmundr hafði almanna-lof hversu hann kom sér við ( how he behaved) þessum málum, Nj. 251; komi þeir til er því koma við, who can, Gþl. 371; menn skyldi tala hljótt ef því kæmi við, Sturl. iii. 147; ef því kemr við, if it is possible, Gþl. 429; urðu þeir at flýja sem því kómu við, Fb. ii. 187; ekki mun oss þetta duga, at hann komi boganum við, Nj. 96.
    C. Reflex. komask, to come to the end, get through, reach, Lat. pervenire; the difference between the active and reflex. is seen from such phrases as, hann kemr ef hann kemst, he will come if he can; or, eg komst ekki á stað, I could not get off; eg komst ekki fyrir íllviðri, I could not come for bad weather; or, to come into a certain state, with the notion of chance, hap, komask í lífs háska, to come into danger of life; komask í skipreika, to be shipwrecked, and the like; Þorfinnr kom öngu hljóði í lúðrinn, ok komsk eigi upp blástrinn, Fms. ix. 30; komask á fætr, to get on one’s legs, Eg. 748; hann komsk við svá búit í ríki sitt, Hkr. i. 76; meina honum vötn eða veðr svá at hann má ekki komask til þess staðar, Grág. i. 496; hann komsk með sundi til lands, Eg. 261; kómusk sauðirnir upp á fjallit fyrir þeim, Nj. 27; ef Gunnarr færi eigi utan ok mætti hann komask, 111; ef maðr byrgir mann inni í húsi, svá at hann má eigi út komask, so that he cannot get out, Grág. ii. 110; en allt fólk flýði með allt lausa-fé er með fékk komisk, with all the property they could carry with them, Fms. i. 153; ek komumk vel annar-staðar út, þótt hér gangi eigi, Nj. 202; komask á milli manna, to get oneself among people, intrude oneself, 168; komsk hann í mestu kærleika við konung, Eg. 12; komask at orði, to come by a word, to express oneself; einsog hann að orði komsk, passim.
    II. with prepp.; komast á, to get into use; það komst á:—komask af, to get off, escape, save one’s life; hann bað menn duga svá at af kæmisk skipit, Fms. x. 98; tveir druknuðu, en hinir kómusk af:—komask at e-u, to get at a thing, procure; mörgum manns-öldrum síðarr komsk at bók þeirri Theodosius, Niðrst. 10; Hrani gat komisk at trúnaði margra ríkra manna, Fms. iv. 62; þú hefir at þessum peningum vel komisk, ‘tis money well gotten, i. 256; eigi skaltú ílla at komask, thou shall not get it unfairly, vii. 124:—komast eptir, to enquire into, get information of:—komask fyrir, to prevent, come in another’s way:—koma hjá e-u, to evade, pass by, escape doing:—komast til e-s, to come towards, and metaph. to have time for a thing, ek komst ekki til þess, I have no time; eg komst ekki til að fara:—komask undan, to escape; allt þat lið er undan komsk, Eg. 261; ekki manns barn komsk undan, Fms. xi. 387; komask undan á flótta, Eg. 11:—komask við, to be able; komusk þeir ekki í fyrstu við atlöguna, Fms. vii. 264; ef hann vill refsa údáða-mönnum, ok má þó við komask, N. G. L. i. 123; brenn allt ok bæl, sem þú mátt við komask, Fær. 64; ef ek viðr of kœmimk, Hbl. 33; þá er ek komumk við, Eg. 319; komask við veðri, to get abroad, Rd. 252; hann lét þat ekki við veðri komask, Fms. vii. 165: to be touched (við-kvæmni), hann komsk við mjök ok felldi tár, iii. 57; eða hann komisk við ( repent) ok hverfi aptr at íllsku sinni, Greg. 41; þá komsk mjök við inn válaði, svá at hann matti eigi lengi orði upp koma fyrir harmi, Fms. vi. 234; þá komsk hón við ákaflega mjök, Clem. 32; með við komnu hjarta, with a touched heart, Bs. i. 561, Karl. 166:—komask yfir e-t, to overcome, get hold of; er hann komsk yfir fét, Bárð. 175.
    D. Part. kominn, in special phrases; inn komni maðr, a new comer, stranger, Gullþ. 47; at kominn, arrived; hinn aðkomni maðr, a guest; at kominn, just come to, on the brink of; kominn at andláti, at dauða, to be at the last gasp; var at komit, at …, it was on the point of happening, that …, Str. 8; vóru þeir mjök at komnir ( much exhausted) svá magrir vóru þeir, Fas. iii. 571:—heill kominn, hail! Blas. 42; vel kominn, welcome! vertu vel kominn! ver með oss vel kominn, Þiðr. 319, Fs. 158; hann bað þá vera vel komna, passim; so also, það er vel komið, ‘it is welcome,’ i. e. with great pleasure, granting a favour:—placed, ertu maðr sannorðr ok kominn nær frétt, Nj. 175; Pétri var svá nær komit, P. was so closely pursued, Fms. ix. 48; ok nú eigi allfjarri yðr komit, xi. 123; svá vel er sá uppsát komin, at …, ix. 368: situated, hann (the hospital) er kominn á fjall upp, is situated on a fell, Symb. 18; útsker þat er komit af þjóðleið, Eg. 369: metaph., vel, ílla kominn, well placed, in good, bad estate; ek þykjumk hér vel kominn; hann var vel til náms kominn, he was in a good place for learning, Bs. i. 153; þat fé er ílla komit er fólgit er í jörðu, Grett. 39 new Ed.; mér þykkir son minn hvergi betr kominn, methinks my son is nowhere better off, in better hands, Fms. vi. 5; lítt ertú nú kominn, Njarð. 376; þykkjumk ek hér vel kominn með þér, Nj. 258:—kominn af, or frá e-m, come of, descended from, Landn., Eb., passim:—kominn á sik vel, in a good state, accomplished, Orkn. 202; hverjum manni betr á sik kominn, Ld. 110; kominn á sik manna bezt, Ísl. ii. 203: vera á legg kominn, to be grown up, Fms. xi. 186; vera svá aldrs kominn, to be of such an age, Fs. 4, 13, Sturl. iii. 100, Fms. xi. 56; hér er allvel á komit, it suits well enough, Bs. i. 531: hann sagði henni hvar þá var komit, how matters stood, Nj. 271, Fms. ii. 152; hann undi vel við þar sem komit var, as it stood, in statu quo, Nj. 22; Sveinn segir honum sem komit var þessu máli, Fms. ii. 159; at svá komnu, as matters stand, Bs. i. 317; málum várum er komit í únýtt efni, Nj. 164, 190:—vera kominn til e-s, to be entitled to, have due to one; ef hann fengi þat er hann var eigi til kominn, Fms. x. 7; þeir er til einskis eru komnir, ix. 248; fá þeir margir af yðr sæmd mikla er til minna eru komnir, en hann, Eg. 111; þeim til sæmdar er til þess er kominn, Sks. 311, rétt komnir til konungdóms, rétt kominn til Noregs, right heir to the kingdom, to Norway, Fms. ix. 332; lézk Sigvaldi nú kominn til ráða við Astríði, xi. 104: fit for, entitled to, hann þótti vel til kominn at vera konungr yfir Danmörk, i. 65: shapen, þetta mál er svá til komit, vii. 130; sagðisk hann eigi verr til manns kominn en Sturla bróðir hans, Sturl.; eigi þóttusk þeir til minna vera komnir fyrir ættar sakir, entitled to less, Eb. 17.
    II. part. pres. komandi, a new comer, stranger, Fbr. 168, Stj. 525: one to come, future generations, verandum ok viðr-komendum, N. G. L. i. 121; allir menn verandi ok eptir-komandi, D. I. i. 3; komendr, pl. guests, comers.

    Íslensk-ensk orðabók > KOMA

  • 9 menor

    adj.
    1 smaller.
    2 younger, junior.
    3 minor, lesser.
    f. & m.
    m.
    1 minor, young man, youngster.
    2 minor, young girl.
    * * *
    1 (comparativo - en tamaño) smaller; (- en calidad, importancia) lesser; (- en edad) younger
    2 (superlativo - en tamaño) smallest; (- en calidad, importancia) least; (- en edad) youngest
    3 (inferior) minor
    4 MÚSICA minor
    1 DERECHO minor
    \
    al por menor retail
    apto,-a para menores (gen) suitable for all ages 2 (película) U-certificate, US rated G
    ser menor de edad to be under age
    tribunal de menores juvenile court
    * * *
    1. noun mf. 2. adj.
    2) smaller, smallest
    3) lesser, least
    4) younger, youngest
    •
    * * *
    1. ADJ
    1) [comparativo]
    a) [de tamaño] smaller

    los libros están ordenados de menor a mayor — the books are arranged by size, from small to large

    b) [de cantidad] fewer, less

    • menor que algo — less than sth

    c) [de importancia, tiempo]

    • en menor grado — to a lesser extent

    d) [de edad] younger

    • menor que algn — younger than sb

    • ser menor de edad — to be under age; (Jur) to be a minor

    e) (Mús) minor
    f) (Rel) [orden] minor
    2) [superlativo]
    a) [de tamaño] smallest
    b) [de cantidad] lowest, smallest
    c) [de importancia, tiempo] least
    idea 4)
    d) [de edad] youngest

    este es Miguel, mi hijo menor — this is Miguel, my youngest son

    2.
    SMF (=niño) child, minor frm

    • apto/ no apto para menores — suitable/not suitable for (young) children

    apto para menores acompañados — (Cine) ≈ certificate PG

    menor de edad — (Jur) minor

    los menores de edad — those who are under age, minors

    tribunal 1)
    3. SM
    1) (Com)

    • (al) por menor — retail antes de s

    2) Esp

    • contar algo al por menor — to recount sth in detail

    * * *
    I
    1)

    en menor medida/grado — to a lesser extent o degree

    un porcentaje menor — a lower o smaller percentage

    X < Z — (Mat) (read as: equis es menor que zeta) X < Z; (léase: X is less than Z)

    2) ( en edad)

    ¿tienes hermanas menores? — do you have any younger sisters?

    ¿cuál es el menor de los hermanos? — who's the youngest of the brothers?

    3) ( secundario) <escritor/obra> minor
    4) (Mús) minor
    5) (Com)
    II
    masculino y femenino (Der) minor
    * * *
    I
    1)

    en menor medida/grado — to a lesser extent o degree

    un porcentaje menor — a lower o smaller percentage

    X < Z — (Mat) (read as: equis es menor que zeta) X < Z; (léase: X is less than Z)

    2) ( en edad)

    ¿tienes hermanas menores? — do you have any younger sisters?

    ¿cuál es el menor de los hermanos? — who's the youngest of the brothers?

    3) ( secundario) <escritor/obra> minor
    4) (Mús) minor
    5) (Com)
    II
    masculino y femenino (Der) minor
    * * *
    el menor
    = least, the

    Ex: Of these three connectors, 'and' focusses your search with the least precision since it retrieves all records that contain both words anywhere in the record.

    menor1
    1 = infant, juvenile, juvenile, minor.

    Ex: The article 'Sitting pretty: infants, toddlers, & lapsits' outlines the procedures followed at San Francisco public library to help parents introduce their babies to appropriate literature.

    Ex: The construction of the hypothesis, however, should be limited to such considerations as whether the subject heading list is designed to serve the adult or the juvenile user.
    Ex: The library provides services to 2,903 adults and juveniles who have been sentenced or remanded to the care of the Department.
    Ex: This new Act requires US libraries to block obscenity, child pornography and all material deemed harmful to minors on all computers used by minors.
    * abandono de menores = child neglect.
    * abuso de menores = child abuse.
    * apto para mayores de 13 años o menores acompañados = PG-13.
    * centro de menores = young offender institution.
    * centro tutelar de menores = juvenile detention centre.
    * consumo de bebidas alcohólicas por menores de edad = underage drinking.
    * departamento de corrección de menores = department of corrections.
    * embarazo de menores = teenage pregnancy.
    * escuela de niños menores = infant school.
    * explotación de menores = child labour.
    * grupo de protección a menores = Shelter group.
    * juzgado de asuntos menores = magistrates' court.
    * manutención del menor = child maintenance.
    * manutención de menores = child support.
    * menor de edad = underage.
    * menores de cinco años, los = under-fives, the.
    * no apto para menores = X-rated.
    * pensión de menores = child support.
    * protección de menores = child protection, child welfare.
    * sexo de menores = underage sex.
    * trabajo de menores = child labour.
    * tribunal de menores = juvenile court, minors' court.

    menor2
    2 = minor, reduced, slight [sligther -comp., slightest -sup.], low-key [low key], lesser, lower-key, diminished, low-keyed.

    Ex: A study of bibliographic classification could concentrate solely upon the major, and some of the more minor bibliographic classification schemes used today.

    Ex: The model shows that market concentration rises with inelastic demand, reduced marginal costs and efficient technology.
    Ex: The ISBD(CP)'s recommendations are very similar in principle to those for AACR2's 'in' analytics, except for slight changes in punctuation and order.
    Ex: Activity is still low key, but will increase when the British Library puts up data bases on its own computer in 1977.
    Ex: The catalog's deterioration is leading us down the road to lesser quality library service.
    Ex: After all, print technology can be represented by pencial, pen, type, laser output, and so forth, but the effect is lower-key.
    Ex: This volume comes at a time when increasingly frequent criticisms have been leveled at superpower nations for their diminished interest in problems in Africa.
    Ex: Overall, he provides a low-keyed, lucid account that, with its many-leveled approach, does more than justice to the complex themes it studies.
    * a menor escala = at a reduced rate.
    * cada vez menor = decreasing, dwindling, diminishing, declining, falling, shrinking, receding, sinking, ebbing, descending.
    * con un menor nivel educativo = lesser-educated.
    * delito de menor grado = misdemeanour [misdimeanor, -USA].
    * delito menor = petty offense, petty crime, minor offence.
    * demanda cada vez menor = falling demand.
    * de mayor o menor importancia = great and small.
    * de menor impacto = low impact [low-impact].
    * de menor importancia = fringe subject, of fringe interest.
    * de menor importancia para = on the fringe of.
    * desajuste cada vez menor entre... y = narrowing gap between... and, narrowing of the gap between... and.
    * de venta al por menor = retail.
    * diferencia cada vez menor entre... y = narrowing gap between... and, narrowing of the gap between... and.
    * en mayor o menor grado = to a greater or lesser degree.
    * en mayor o menor medida = to a greater or lesser extent.
    * en menor cantidad = less copiously.
    * en menor grado = to a lesser extent, to a lesser degree.
    * en paños menores = in + Posesivo + underclothes.
    * la menor duda de que = no doubt whatsoever.
    * menor de + Número = fewer than + Número.
    * menor, el = least, the.
    * no tener la menor importancia = be of no particular concern.
    * paños menores = undies.
    * presupuesto cada vez menor = shrinking budget.
    * ser el que con menor frecuencia = be (the) least likely to.
    * ser menor = be less.
    * símbolo de menor-que (<) = left angled bracket (<), less-than sign (<).
    * sin el menor asomo de duda = without a shadow of a doubt, beyond a shadow of a doubt, beyond a shadow of a doubt.
    * sin la menor duda = no mistake, no doubt.
    * sin la menor idea = clueless.
    * sin la menor sombra de duda = without a shadow of a doubt.
    * vender al por menor = retail.
    * venta al por menor = retailing, retail trade.
    * ventas al por menor = retail sales.

    * * *
    A
    un período de menor interés histórico que el anterior a period of less historical interest than the previous one
    nuestro poder adquisitivo es cada vez menor our purchasing power decreases every day
    en menor medida to a lesser extent o degree
    en mayor o menor grado to a greater or lesser extent o degree
    alimentos de menor contenido calórico food which is lower in calories
    menor QUE algo:
    un ingreso tres veces menor que el mío an income three times lower than mine
    un porcentaje de indecisos menor que el del último sondeo a lower o smaller percentage of don't knows than in the last poll
    ( Mat): X Z (read as: equis es menor que zeta) X Z (léase: X is less than Z)
    esto sucede con menor frecuencia que antes this happens less often o less frequently than before
    haciendo el menor ruido posible making as little noise as possible
    eligió el de menor tamaño she chose the smallest one
    ¿cuál es la menor de las islas Baleares? which is the smallest of the Balearic islands?
    1
    (comparativo): ¿tienes hermanas menores? do you have any younger sisters?
    menor QUE algn younger THAN sb
    es un año menor que yo she's a year younger than me
    2
    (superlativo): ¿cuál es el menor de los hermanos? who's the youngest of the brothers?
    mi hijo menor my youngest son
    el menor de los dos niños the younger of the two boys
    C (secundario) ‹escritor/obra› minor
    sufrió lesiones de menor importancia she received minor injuries
    D ( Mús) minor
    E ( Com):
    [ S ] venta (al) por menor retail sales
    los distribuidores (al) por menor retail shops o outlets
    ( Der) minor
    [ S ] película no apta para menores movie not suitable for under-18s, certificate 18
    Compuesto:
    ser menor de edad to be a minor, be underage
    * * *

     

    menor adjetivo
    1

    ◊ pequeño) ‹número/porcentaje› lower, smaller;

    en menor medida/grado to a lesser extent o degree;
    menor que algo lower than sth;
    un ingreso menor que el mío an income lower than mine

    ◊ pequeño): el país con el menor número de parados the country with the lowest unemployment figures;

    haciendo el menor ruido posible making as little noise as possible;
    el de menor tamaño the smallest one
    2 ( en edad)

    menor que algn younger than sb

    ◊ ¿cuál es el menor de los hermanos? who's the youngest of the brothers?;

    el menor de los dos niños the younger of the two boys
    3 ( secundario) ‹escritor/obra› minor;

    4 (Mús) minor
    5 (Com):

    ■ sustantivo masculino y femenino: tb
    ◊ menor de edad minor; ser menor de edad to be a minor, to be under age;

    película no apta para menores film not suitable for under-18s
    menor
    I adjetivo
    1 (comparativo de tamaño) smaller: una habitación menor que la mía, a room smaller than mine
    (superlativo) smallest
    el tamaño menor, the smallest size
    2 (comparativo de grado) less: su alegría es menor que la mía, his happiness is less than mine
    (superlativo) least, slightest: no tiene la menor idea, he hasn't the slightest idea
    3 (comparativo de edad) younger: es menor de sesenta años, she is under sixty
    es menor que mi prima, he's younger than my cousin
    (superlativo) youngest
    la menor de nosotras, the youngest of us
    4 Mús minor
    5 Com al por menor, retail
    II mf Jur minor

    ' menor' also found in these entries:
    Spanish:
    abusar
    - Asia
    - caza
    - edad
    - efecto
    - menos
    - mínima
    - mínimo
    - osa
    - re
    - relevancia
    - sol
    - sombra
    - trascendencia
    - vender
    - venta
    - cazar
    - compás
    - de
    - duda
    - enfadado
    - enfadar
    - enojado
    - enojar
    - intención
    - movimiento
    - noción
    English:
    age
    - Asia Minor
    - barge in
    - clue
    - deaf
    - doubt
    - extent
    - fact
    - foggy
    - guardian
    - junior
    - juvenile
    - least
    - lesser
    - may
    - minor
    - misdemeanor
    - misdemeanour
    - retail
    - retail sale
    - retailing
    - show
    - under
    - young
    - magistrate
    - marginal
    - offender
    - out
    - rough
    - slight
    * * *
    ♦ adj
    1. [comparativo] [en tamaño] smaller ( que than); [en edad] younger ( que than); [en importancia] less, lesser ( que than); [en número] lower ( que than);
    este apartamento es menor que el otro this Br flat o US apartment is smaller than the other one;
    mi hermana menor my younger sister;
    es ocho años menor que yo he's eight years younger than me;
    reciben menor formación que nosotros they receive less training than us;
    en menor grado to a lesser extent;
    un menor número de víctimas a lower o smaller number of victims;
    una menor tasa de inflación a lower rate of inflation;
    apartamentos menores de 100 metros cuadrados Br flats o US apartments of less than o under 100 square metres;
    ayudas para empresarios menores de veinticinco años grants for businessmen (of) under twenty-five;
    sólo la menor parte de los encuestados estaba en contra only a minority of those interviewed were opposed;
    Mat
    menor que less than
    2. [superlativo]
    el/la menor… [en tamaño] the smallest…;
    [en edad] the youngest…; [en importancia] the slightest…; [en número] the lowest…;
    la menor de las islas the smallest island, the smallest of the islands;
    la menor de todos nosotros/de la clase the youngest of all of us/in the class;
    la menor de las dos hermanas the younger of the two sisters;
    el menor ruido le molesta the slightest noise disturbs him;
    no creo que tenga el menor interés I don't think it's at all o the slightest bit interesting;
    no te preocupes, no tiene la menor importancia don't worry, it doesn't matter at all o in the least;
    no tengo la menor idea I haven't the slightest idea
    3. [intrascendente, secundario] minor;
    un problema menor a minor problem
    4. [joven]
    aún es menor para salir solo he's still a bit young to go out on his own;
    ser menor de edad [para votar, conducir] to be under age;
    Der to be a minor
    5. Mús minor;
    en do menor in C minor
    6. Com
    al por menor retail;
    vender algo al por menor to retail sth;
    ♦ nmf
    1. [superlativo]
    el/la menor [hijo, hermano] the youngest
    2. Der [niño] minor;
    es una película no apta para menores this film has been classified as unsuitable for children;
    no apta para menores [en letrero] = unsuitable for children
    menor de edad minor
    * * *
    I adj
    1 comp less; en tamaño smaller; en edad younger;
    ser menor de edad be a minor
    2 sup
    :
    el menor en tamaño the smallest; en edad the youngest;
    el número menor the lowest number;
    no tengo la menor idea I don’t have the slightest idea
    3 MÚS tono, modo minor;
    mi menor E minor
    4 COM
    :
    al por menor retail
    II m/f minor
    * * *
    menor adj
    1) (comparative of pequeño) : smaller, lesser, younger
    2) (superlative of pequeño) : smallest, least, youngest
    3) : minor
    4)
    al por menor : retail
    5)
    ser menor de edad : to be a minor, to be underage
    menor nmf
    : minor, juvenile
    * * *
    menor1 adj
    2. (ningún) slightest
    menor2 n
    1. (más joven) youngest

    Spanish-English dictionary > menor

  • 10 Artificial Intelligence

       In my opinion, none of [these programs] does even remote justice to the complexity of human mental processes. Unlike men, "artificially intelligent" programs tend to be single minded, undistractable, and unemotional. (Neisser, 1967, p. 9)
       Future progress in [artificial intelligence] will depend on the development of both practical and theoretical knowledge.... As regards theoretical knowledge, some have sought a unified theory of artificial intelligence. My view is that artificial intelligence is (or soon will be) an engineering discipline since its primary goal is to build things. (Nilsson, 1971, pp. vii-viii)
       Most workers in AI [artificial intelligence] research and in related fields confess to a pronounced feeling of disappointment in what has been achieved in the last 25 years. Workers entered the field around 1950, and even around 1960, with high hopes that are very far from being realized in 1972. In no part of the field have the discoveries made so far produced the major impact that was then promised.... In the meantime, claims and predictions regarding the potential results of AI research had been publicized which went even farther than the expectations of the majority of workers in the field, whose embarrassments have been added to by the lamentable failure of such inflated predictions....
       When able and respected scientists write in letters to the present author that AI, the major goal of computing science, represents "another step in the general process of evolution"; that possibilities in the 1980s include an all-purpose intelligence on a human-scale knowledge base; that awe-inspiring possibilities suggest themselves based on machine intelligence exceeding human intelligence by the year 2000 [one has the right to be skeptical]. (Lighthill, 1972, p. 17)
       4) Just as Astronomy Succeeded Astrology, the Discovery of Intellectual Processes in Machines Should Lead to a Science, Eventually
       Just as astronomy succeeded astrology, following Kepler's discovery of planetary regularities, the discoveries of these many principles in empirical explorations on intellectual processes in machines should lead to a science, eventually. (Minsky & Papert, 1973, p. 11)
       Many problems arise in experiments on machine intelligence because things obvious to any person are not represented in any program. One can pull with a string, but one cannot push with one.... Simple facts like these caused serious problems when Charniak attempted to extend Bobrow's "Student" program to more realistic applications, and they have not been faced up to until now. (Minsky & Papert, 1973, p. 77)
       What do we mean by [a symbolic] "description"? We do not mean to suggest that our descriptions must be made of strings of ordinary language words (although they might be). The simplest kind of description is a structure in which some features of a situation are represented by single ("primitive") symbols, and relations between those features are represented by other symbols-or by other features of the way the description is put together. (Minsky & Papert, 1973, p. 11)
       [AI is] the use of computer programs and programming techniques to cast light on the principles of intelligence in general and human thought in particular. (Boden, 1977, p. 5)
       The word you look for and hardly ever see in the early AI literature is the word knowledge. They didn't believe you have to know anything, you could always rework it all.... In fact 1967 is the turning point in my mind when there was enough feeling that the old ideas of general principles had to go.... I came up with an argument for what I called the primacy of expertise, and at the time I called the other guys the generalists. (Moses, quoted in McCorduck, 1979, pp. 228-229)
       9) Artificial Intelligence Is Psychology in a Particularly Pure and Abstract Form
       The basic idea of cognitive science is that intelligent beings are semantic engines-in other words, automatic formal systems with interpretations under which they consistently make sense. We can now see why this includes psychology and artificial intelligence on a more or less equal footing: people and intelligent computers (if and when there are any) turn out to be merely different manifestations of the same underlying phenomenon. Moreover, with universal hardware, any semantic engine can in principle be formally imitated by a computer if only the right program can be found. And that will guarantee semantic imitation as well, since (given the appropriate formal behavior) the semantics is "taking care of itself" anyway. Thus we also see why, from this perspective, artificial intelligence can be regarded as psychology in a particularly pure and abstract form. The same fundamental structures are under investigation, but in AI, all the relevant parameters are under direct experimental control (in the programming), without any messy physiology or ethics to get in the way. (Haugeland, 1981b, p. 31)
       There are many different kinds of reasoning one might imagine:
        Formal reasoning involves the syntactic manipulation of data structures to deduce new ones following prespecified rules of inference. Mathematical logic is the archetypical formal representation. Procedural reasoning uses simulation to answer questions and solve problems. When we use a program to answer What is the sum of 3 and 4? it uses, or "runs," a procedural model of arithmetic. Reasoning by analogy seems to be a very natural mode of thought for humans but, so far, difficult to accomplish in AI programs. The idea is that when you ask the question Can robins fly? the system might reason that "robins are like sparrows, and I know that sparrows can fly, so robins probably can fly."
        Generalization and abstraction are also natural reasoning process for humans that are difficult to pin down well enough to implement in a program. If one knows that Robins have wings, that Sparrows have wings, and that Blue jays have wings, eventually one will believe that All birds have wings. This capability may be at the core of most human learning, but it has not yet become a useful technique in AI.... Meta- level reasoning is demonstrated by the way one answers the question What is Paul Newman's telephone number? You might reason that "if I knew Paul Newman's number, I would know that I knew it, because it is a notable fact." This involves using "knowledge about what you know," in particular, about the extent of your knowledge and about the importance of certain facts. Recent research in psychology and AI indicates that meta-level reasoning may play a central role in human cognitive processing. (Barr & Feigenbaum, 1981, pp. 146-147)
       Suffice it to say that programs already exist that can do things-or, at the very least, appear to be beginning to do things-which ill-informed critics have asserted a priori to be impossible. Examples include: perceiving in a holistic as opposed to an atomistic way; using language creatively; translating sensibly from one language to another by way of a language-neutral semantic representation; planning acts in a broad and sketchy fashion, the details being decided only in execution; distinguishing between different species of emotional reaction according to the psychological context of the subject. (Boden, 1981, p. 33)
       Can the synthesis of Man and Machine ever be stable, or will the purely organic component become such a hindrance that it has to be discarded? If this eventually happens-and I have... good reasons for thinking that it must-we have nothing to regret and certainly nothing to fear. (Clarke, 1984, p. 243)
       The thesis of GOFAI... is not that the processes underlying intelligence can be described symbolically... but that they are symbolic. (Haugeland, 1985, p. 113)
        14) Artificial Intelligence Provides a Useful Approach to Psychological and Psychiatric Theory Formation
       It is all very well formulating psychological and psychiatric theories verbally but, when using natural language (even technical jargon), it is difficult to recognise when a theory is complete; oversights are all too easily made, gaps too readily left. This is a point which is generally recognised to be true and it is for precisely this reason that the behavioural sciences attempt to follow the natural sciences in using "classical" mathematics as a more rigorous descriptive language. However, it is an unfortunate fact that, with a few notable exceptions, there has been a marked lack of success in this application. It is my belief that a different approach-a different mathematics-is needed, and that AI provides just this approach. (Hand, quoted in Hand, 1985, pp. 6-7)
       We might distinguish among four kinds of AI.
       Research of this kind involves building and programming computers to perform tasks which, to paraphrase Marvin Minsky, would require intelligence if they were done by us. Researchers in nonpsychological AI make no claims whatsoever about the psychological realism of their programs or the devices they build, that is, about whether or not computers perform tasks as humans do.
       Research here is guided by the view that the computer is a useful tool in the study of mind. In particular, we can write computer programs or build devices that simulate alleged psychological processes in humans and then test our predictions about how the alleged processes work. We can weave these programs and devices together with other programs and devices that simulate different alleged mental processes and thereby test the degree to which the AI system as a whole simulates human mentality. According to weak psychological AI, working with computer models is a way of refining and testing hypotheses about processes that are allegedly realized in human minds.
    ... According to this view, our minds are computers and therefore can be duplicated by other computers. Sherry Turkle writes that the "real ambition is of mythic proportions, making a general purpose intelligence, a mind." (Turkle, 1984, p. 240) The authors of a major text announce that "the ultimate goal of AI research is to build a person or, more humbly, an animal." (Charniak & McDermott, 1985, p. 7)
       Research in this field, like strong psychological AI, takes seriously the functionalist view that mentality can be realized in many different types of physical devices. Suprapsychological AI, however, accuses strong psychological AI of being chauvinisticof being only interested in human intelligence! Suprapsychological AI claims to be interested in all the conceivable ways intelligence can be realized. (Flanagan, 1991, pp. 241-242)
        16) Determination of Relevance of Rules in Particular Contexts
       Even if the [rules] were stored in a context-free form the computer still couldn't use them. To do that the computer requires rules enabling it to draw on just those [ rules] which are relevant in each particular context. Determination of relevance will have to be based on further facts and rules, but the question will again arise as to which facts and rules are relevant for making each particular determination. One could always invoke further facts and rules to answer this question, but of course these must be only the relevant ones. And so it goes. It seems that AI workers will never be able to get started here unless they can settle the problem of relevance beforehand by cataloguing types of context and listing just those facts which are relevant in each. (Dreyfus & Dreyfus, 1986, p. 80)
       Perhaps the single most important idea to artificial intelligence is that there is no fundamental difference between form and content, that meaning can be captured in a set of symbols such as a semantic net. (G. Johnson, 1986, p. 250)
        18) The Assumption That the Mind Is a Formal System
       Artificial intelligence is based on the assumption that the mind can be described as some kind of formal system manipulating symbols that stand for things in the world. Thus it doesn't matter what the brain is made of, or what it uses for tokens in the great game of thinking. Using an equivalent set of tokens and rules, we can do thinking with a digital computer, just as we can play chess using cups, salt and pepper shakers, knives, forks, and spoons. Using the right software, one system (the mind) can be mapped into the other (the computer). (G. Johnson, 1986, p. 250)
        19) A Statement of the Primary and Secondary Purposes of Artificial Intelligence
       The primary goal of Artificial Intelligence is to make machines smarter.
       The secondary goals of Artificial Intelligence are to understand what intelligence is (the Nobel laureate purpose) and to make machines more useful (the entrepreneurial purpose). (Winston, 1987, p. 1)
       The theoretical ideas of older branches of engineering are captured in the language of mathematics. We contend that mathematical logic provides the basis for theory in AI. Although many computer scientists already count logic as fundamental to computer science in general, we put forward an even stronger form of the logic-is-important argument....
       AI deals mainly with the problem of representing and using declarative (as opposed to procedural) knowledge. Declarative knowledge is the kind that is expressed as sentences, and AI needs a language in which to state these sentences. Because the languages in which this knowledge usually is originally captured (natural languages such as English) are not suitable for computer representations, some other language with the appropriate properties must be used. It turns out, we think, that the appropriate properties include at least those that have been uppermost in the minds of logicians in their development of logical languages such as the predicate calculus. Thus, we think that any language for expressing knowledge in AI systems must be at least as expressive as the first-order predicate calculus. (Genesereth & Nilsson, 1987, p. viii)
        21) Perceptual Structures Can Be Represented as Lists of Elementary Propositions
       In artificial intelligence studies, perceptual structures are represented as assemblages of description lists, the elementary components of which are propositions asserting that certain relations hold among elements. (Chase & Simon, 1988, p. 490)
       Artificial intelligence (AI) is sometimes defined as the study of how to build and/or program computers to enable them to do the sorts of things that minds can do. Some of these things are commonly regarded as requiring intelligence: offering a medical diagnosis and/or prescription, giving legal or scientific advice, proving theorems in logic or mathematics. Others are not, because they can be done by all normal adults irrespective of educational background (and sometimes by non-human animals too), and typically involve no conscious control: seeing things in sunlight and shadows, finding a path through cluttered terrain, fitting pegs into holes, speaking one's own native tongue, and using one's common sense. Because it covers AI research dealing with both these classes of mental capacity, this definition is preferable to one describing AI as making computers do "things that would require intelligence if done by people." However, it presupposes that computers could do what minds can do, that they might really diagnose, advise, infer, and understand. One could avoid this problematic assumption (and also side-step questions about whether computers do things in the same way as we do) by defining AI instead as "the development of computers whose observable performance has features which in humans we would attribute to mental processes." This bland characterization would be acceptable to some AI workers, especially amongst those focusing on the production of technological tools for commercial purposes. But many others would favour a more controversial definition, seeing AI as the science of intelligence in general-or, more accurately, as the intellectual core of cognitive science. As such, its goal is to provide a systematic theory that can explain (and perhaps enable us to replicate) both the general categories of intentionality and the diverse psychological capacities grounded in them. (Boden, 1990b, pp. 1-2)
       Because the ability to store data somewhat corresponds to what we call memory in human beings, and because the ability to follow logical procedures somewhat corresponds to what we call reasoning in human beings, many members of the cult have concluded that what computers do somewhat corresponds to what we call thinking. It is no great difficulty to persuade the general public of that conclusion since computers process data very fast in small spaces well below the level of visibility; they do not look like other machines when they are at work. They seem to be running along as smoothly and silently as the brain does when it remembers and reasons and thinks. On the other hand, those who design and build computers know exactly how the machines are working down in the hidden depths of their semiconductors. Computers can be taken apart, scrutinized, and put back together. Their activities can be tracked, analyzed, measured, and thus clearly understood-which is far from possible with the brain. This gives rise to the tempting assumption on the part of the builders and designers that computers can tell us something about brains, indeed, that the computer can serve as a model of the mind, which then comes to be seen as some manner of information processing machine, and possibly not as good at the job as the machine. (Roszak, 1994, pp. xiv-xv)
       The inner workings of the human mind are far more intricate than the most complicated systems of modern technology. Researchers in the field of artificial intelligence have been attempting to develop programs that will enable computers to display intelligent behavior. Although this field has been an active one for more than thirty-five years and has had many notable successes, AI researchers still do not know how to create a program that matches human intelligence. No existing program can recall facts, solve problems, reason, learn, and process language with human facility. This lack of success has occurred not because computers are inferior to human brains but rather because we do not yet know in sufficient detail how intelligence is organized in the brain. (Anderson, 1995, p. 2)

    Historical dictionary of quotations in cognitive science > Artificial Intelligence

  • 11 History

       For, as I take it, Universal History, the history of what man has accomplished in this world, is at bottom the History of the great Men who have worked here. They were the leaders of men, these great ones; the modellers, patterns, and in a wide sense creators, of whatsoever the general mass of men contrived to do or attain; all things that we see standing accomplished in the world are properly the outer material result, the practical realisation and embodiment, of Thoughts that dwelt in the great Men sent into the world: the soul of the world's history, it may justly be considered, were the history of these. (Carlyle, 1966, p. 1)
       It is generally thought to be of importance to a man that he should know himself: where knowing himself means knowing not his merely personal peculiarities, the things that distinguish him from other men, but his nature as a man.... Knowing yourself means knowing what you can do; and since nobody knows what he can do until he tries, the only clue to what man can do is what man has done. The value of history, then, is that it teaches us what man has done and thus what man is. (Collingwood, 1972, p. 10)
       To regard [psychology] as rising above the sphere of history, and establishing the permanent and unchanging laws of human nature, is therefore possible only to a person who mistakes the transient conditions of a certain historical age for the permanent conditions of human life. (Collingwood, 1972, p. 224)

    Historical dictionary of quotations in cognitive science > History

  • 12 hiç

    ",-çi 1. never, not at all. 2. (in questions and negative sentences) ever; at all. 3. nothing, nothing at all. 4. zero. - bir see hiçbir. - biri see hiçbiri. - de not at all. - de öyle değil. It´s not like that at all. - değil no, not at all, not so. - değilse at least. - kimse (used with a negative verb) no one, nobody; anyone, anybody. - kuşku yok beyond a doubt, undoubtedly. - mi hiç never once: Ankara´ya hiç mi hiç gitmedin? Have you never once been to Ankara? - olmak 1. to lose one´s importance. 2. to perish, vanish. - olmazsa at least. - olur mu? Is it possible?/It won´t do. -e saymak/indirgemek /ı/ to disregard (someone, something) completely, take no notice whatsoever of, ignore (someone, something) completely, regard (someone, something) as completely unimportant. - yoktan for no reason at all. - yoktan iyi. He´s/She´s/It´s better than no one/nothing at all. "

    Saja Türkçe - İngilizce Sözlük > hiç

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