I've never been able to read him

I can't read your writing — no te entiendo la letra

for `800', read `80' — donde dice 800 léase 80

I read myself to sleep — leo hasta que me quedo dormido

to read something INTO something: I think you're reading too much into it — creo que le estás dando demasiada importancia

do you read me, alpha? — ¿alfa, me recibe?

to read TO somebody — leerle* a alguien

to read ABOUT something/somebody: I read red about it in the paper lo leí en el diario; to read THROUGH something — leer* algo

your article reads well — tu artículo está bien escrito

it reads like a Victorian novel — tiene el estilo de una novela victoriana

his letter reads as follows:... — su carta dice lo siguiente...

it's a good read — es ameno, es de lectura amena

can you read Russian? — ¿sabes leer en ruso?

she can't read music — no sabe leer música

I can't read your writing — no entiendo tu letra, no puedo leer tu letra

for "boon" read "bone" — en lugar de "boon" léase "bone"

I read "good" as "mood" — al leer confundí "good" con "mood"

to read sth to sb, to read sb sth — leer algo a algn

to read sth to o.s. — leer algo para sí mismo

to read o.s. to sleep — leer hasta quedarse dormido

to read chemistry — estudiar química, cursar estudios de química

the same information can be read in different ways — la misma información se puede interpretar de varias formas

I've never been able to read him — nunca he sido capaz de entenderle

I read the disappointment in her face — le noté la decepción en la cara

to read into a sentence what is not there — ver en una frase un significado que no tiene

do you read me? — ¿me oye?

I read you loud and clear — le oigo perfectamente

I read about it in the papers — lo leí en los periódicos

I'm reading about Napoleon — me estoy documentando sobre Napoleón, estoy leyendo acerca de Napoleón

I've read through your letter very carefully — he leído tu carta minuciosamente de principio a fin

my daughter asked me to read to her — mi hija me pidió que le leyera un libro

I like being read to — me gusta que me lean

to read to o.s. — leer para sí

the book reads well — el libro está bien escrito

it would read better if you put... — quedaría mejor si pusieras...

it reads very awkwardly — al leerlo suena muy raro

his article reads like an official report — su artículo está escrito como un informe oficial

the text reads as follows — el texto dice lo siguiente

I like a good read — me gusta leer un buen libro

it's a good read — es un libro que se disfruta leyendo

I was having a quiet read in the garden — leía tranquilamente en el jardín

can I have a read of your paper? — ¿puedo echarle un vistazo a tu periódico?

I can't read your writing — no te entiendo la letra

for `800', read `80' — donde dice 800 léase 80

I read myself to sleep — leo hasta que me quedo dormido

to read something INTO something: I think you're reading too much into it — creo que le estás dando demasiada importancia

do you read me, alpha? — ¿alfa, me recibe?

to read TO somebody — leerle* a alguien

to read ABOUT something/somebody: I read [red] about it in the paper lo leí en el diario; to read THROUGH something — leer* algo

your article reads well — tu artículo está bien escrito

it reads like a Victorian novel — tiene el estilo de una novela victoriana

his letter reads as follows:... — su carta dice lo siguiente...

it's a good read — es ameno, es de lectura amena

sai dove abita? — do you know where he lives?

lo so — I know

lo so, non è colpa tua — I know, it's not your fault

non ne so nulla — I don't know anything about it

non sa l'inglese — he doesn't speak English

non ne vuole più sapere di lei — he doesn't want to have anything more to do with her

ho saputo che ti sei sposato — I hear you got married

far sapere qc a qn — to let sb know (about) sth, inform sb about sth

fagli sapere che lo sto cercando — let him know I'm looking for him

non sa far niente — he can't do anything

sai nuotare? — do you know how to swim?, can you swim?

è utile saper guidare — it's useful to be able to drive

non so guidare — I can't drive

non sapeva andare in bicicletta — he couldn't ride a bike

sa (come) cavarsela — he can manage

sa quello che fa — he knows what he's doing

so com'è difficile parlargli — I know how difficult it is to talk to him

senza saperlo — without realizing it, unwittingly

(fraseologia) è difficile, e io ne so qualcosa — it's difficult and don't I know it

e chi lo sa? — who knows?

si sa che... — it's well known that..., everybody knows that...

non si sa mai — you never know

non saprei dire — I couldn't say

mi dispiace, non so che farci — I'm sorry, I don't see what I can do about it

ci sa fare con le donne/macchine — he has a way with women/cars

lui sì che ci sa fare — he's very good at it

sapere di — (aver sapore) to taste of, (aver odore) to smell of, fig to smack of, resemble

sa di fragola — it tastes of strawberries

sa di pesce — it smells of fish

è un film che non sa di niente — it's a very dull film

mi sa che... — (credo) I think (that)...

mi sa che non viene — I don't think he's coming

saper fare — to be able to do

sapere come fare — to know how to do

non sa guidare — she can't drive

sa battere a macchina? — can he type?

a quattro anni sapevo leggere — I could read at the age of four

sai aggiustarlo? — do you know how to fix it?

non sa dire di no — he can't say no

saper ascoltare — to be a good listener

lo so — I know

non lo so — I don't know

sapere tutto — to know everything

sapere qcs. su qcn. — to know sth. about sb.

non so perché — I don't know why

lo so che è difficile — I know it's difficult

sapevo che l'avresti detto — I knew you would say that

non sa più quello che dice — he doesn't know what he's saying

non ne so niente — I don't know anything about it

buono a -rsi — that's handy to know

come faccio a saperlo? — how should I know?

senza saperlo — unknowingly

come ben sai — as you well know

se proprio vuoi saperlo — if you must know

caso mai non lo sapessi — in case you didn't know

ha ragione, sai — he's right, you know

sai una cosa? — (do) you know something?

sai cosa? sono proprio stufo — you know what? I'm really fed up

sappi che non lo permetterò! — I won't stand for it, I tell you!

se sapessi! — little do you know!

se sapessi come sono contento! — you can't imagine how happy I am!

che io sappia — as far as I know

non che io sappia — not that I know of

che (cosa) ne so io! — how should I know!

per quanto ne so — to my knowledge

senza che lo sapessi — without my knowledge

non saprei — I wouldn't know

vai a sapere! chi lo sa! — who knows?

non si sa mai o non si può mai sapere you never know; a saperlo! se avessi saputo! if only I had known! ne so quanto prima — I'm none the wiser

sapere il cinese — to know Chinese

sapere per esperienza — to know from experience

venire a sapere che — to hear (it said) that

ho saputo del tuo incidente — I heard about your accident

fammelo sapere — please let me know

come l'hai saputo? — how did you find out?

ha fatto sapere che — she let it be known that

un uomo che sa — a cultivated man

sapere di sale, di bruciato — to taste salty, burnt

non sa di niente — it has no taste

sa di fregatura — it sounds dodgy

mi sa che — I've got a feeling (that), something tells me (that)

con gli uomini ci sa fare — she knows how to handle men

saperla lunga in fatto di qcs. — to know a thing or two about sth.

è uno che la sa lunga — he's been around

sapere il fatto proprio — to know what's what

non voglio più saperne di lui — I don't want to hear from him any more

non ne vuole sapere — he won't hear of it

sete di sapere — thirst for knowledge

un uomo di vasto sapere — a man of great learning

go to work/to the theatre — zur Arbeit/ins Theater gehen

to Paris/France — nach Paris/Frankreich

go from town to town — von Stadt zu Stadt ziehen

appoint somebody to a post — jemanden auf einen Posten berufen

from London to Edinburgh — von London [bis] nach Edinburgh

increase from 10 % to 20 % — von 10 % auf 20 % steigen

3 is to 4 as 6 is to 8 — 3 verhält sich zu 4 wie 6 zu 8

speak to somebody — mit jemandem sprechen

a room to oneself — ein eigenes Zimmer

get four apples to the pound — vier Äpfel je Pfund bekommen

to this day — bis heute

five [minutes] to eight — fünf [Minuten] vor acht

want to know — wissen wollen

too young to marry — zu jung, um zu heiraten; zu jung zum Heiraten

too hot to drink — zu heiß zum Trinken

to use a technical term — um einen Fachausdruck zu gebrauchen

he would have phoned but forgot to — er hätte angerufen, aber er vergaß es

she didn't want to go there, but she had to — sie wollte nicht hingehen, aber sie musste

push a door to — eine Tür anlehnen

to and fro — hin und her

to go to the station — zum Bahnhof gehen

to go to the opera/concert etc — in die Oper/ins Konzert etc gehen

to go to France/London — nach Frankreich/London fahren

to go to Switzerland —

to the left — nach links

to the west — nach Westen

he came up to where I was standing —

to fall to the ground — auf den Boden or zu Boden fallen

to turn a picture/one's face to the wall — ein Bild/sich mit dem Gesicht zur Wand drehen

hold it up to the light — halte es gegen das Licht

to count (up) to 20 —

it's 90 kms to Paris — nach Paris sind es 90 km

it's correct to a millimetre — es stimmt bis auf den Millimeter

8 years ago to the day — auf den Tag genau vor 8 Jahren

to this day — bis auf den heutigen Tag

they perished to a man — sie kamen alle bis auf den letzten Mann ums Leben

I have never been to Brussels/India — ich war noch nie in Brüssel/Indien

= secure to he nailed it to the wall/floor etc — er nagelte es an die Wand/auf den Boden etc

they tied him to the tree —

with indirect object to give sth to sb — jdm etw geben

a present from me to you —

who did you give it to? — wem haben Sie es gegeben?

I said to myself... — ich habe mir gesagt...

he was muttering/singing to himself — er murmelte/sang vor sich hin

what is it to you? — was geht dich das an?

he is kind to everyone — er ist zu allen freundlich

it's a great help to me — das ist eine große Hilfe für mich

to drink to sb — jdm zutrinken

= next to with position bumper to bumper — Stoßstange an Stoßstange

close to sb/sth — nahe bei jdm/etw

at right angles to the wall —

parallel to the wall — parallel zur Wand

to the west (of)/the left (of) — westlich/links (von)

25 to 3 — 5 (Minuten) nach halb 3

it was five to when we arrived — es war fünf vor, als wir ankamen

A is to B as C is to D —

by a majority of 10 to 7 — mit einer Mehrheit von 10 zu 7

they won by 4 goals to 2 — sie haben mit 4:2 (spoken: vier zu zwei) Toren gewonnen

3 to the 4th, 3 to the power of 4 — 3 hoch 4

= concerning what do you say to the idea? — was hältst du von der Idee?

what would you say to a beer? — was hältst du von einem Bier?

that's all there is to it — das ist alles

= according to to the best of my knowledge — nach bestem Wissen

it's not to my taste — das ist nicht nach meinem Geschmack

= accompanied by to sing to the guitar —

to sing sth to the tune of... — etw nach der Melodie von... singen

to dance to a tune/a band — zu einer Melodie/den Klängen or der Musik eines Orchesters tanzen

= of ambassador to America/the King of France — Botschafter in Amerika/am Hofe des Königs von Frankreich

secretary to the director — Sekretärin des Direktors

= producing to everyone's surprise — zu jedermanns Überraschung

infinitive to begin to do sth — anfangen, etw zu tun

he decided to come — er beschloss zu kommen

I want to do it — ich will es tun

I want him to do it — ich will, dass er es tut

conditional use of infinitive to see him now, one would never think... — wenn man ihn jetzt sieht, würde man nicht glauben,...

infinitive expressing purpose, result to eat/work to live —

to get to the point,... — um zur Sache zu kommen,...

well, not to exaggerate... — ohne zu übertreiben,...

I arrived to find she had gone — als ich ankam, war sie weg

never to be found again — und wurde nie wiedergefunden

omitting verb I don't want to — ich will nicht

I'll try to — ich werde es versuchen

you have to — du musst

I'd love to — sehr gerne

we didn't want to but we were forced to — wir wollten nicht, aber wir waren dazu gezwungen

I intended to (do it), but I forgot (to) — ich wollte es tun, aber ich habe es vergessen

buy it, it would be silly not to — kaufe es, es wäre dumm, es nicht zu tun

he often does things one doesn't expect him to — er macht oft Dinge, die man nicht von ihm erwartet

set structures __diams; noun/pronoun + to + infinitive he is not the sort to do that — er ist nicht der Typ, der das täte, er ist nicht der Typ dazu

I have done nothing to deserve this — ich habe nichts getan, womit ich das verdient hätte

he was the first to arrive — er kam als Erster an, er war der Erste, der ankam

who was the last to see her? —

there is much to be done — es gibt viel zu tun

what is there to do here? —

now is the time to do it — jetzt ist die (beste) Zeit, es zu tun

the book is still to be written — das Buch muss noch geschrieben werden

are you ready to go at last? — bist du endlich fertig?

it's hard to understand — es ist schwer zu verstehen

it's impossible to believe — das kann man einfach nicht glauben

you are foolish to try it — du bist dumm, das überhaupt zu versuchen

is it good to eat? —

it's too heavy to lift too young to marry — es ist zu schwer zum Heben zu jung zum Heiraten

go to work/to the theatre — zur Arbeit/ins Theater gehen

to Paris/France — nach Paris/Frankreich

go from town to town — von Stadt zu Stadt ziehen

throw the ball to me — wirf mir den Ball zu

appoint somebody to a post — jemanden auf einen Posten berufen

from London to Edinburgh — von London [bis] nach Edinburgh

increase from 10 % to 20 % — von 10 % auf 20 % steigen

with one's back to the wall — mit dem Rücken zur Wand

[compared] to — verglichen mit; im Vergleich zu

3 is to 4 as 6 is to 8 — 3 verhält sich zu 4 wie 6 zu 8

it's ten to one he does something — die Chancen stehen zehn zu eins, dass er etwas tut

speak to somebody — mit jemandem sprechen

secretary to the Minister — Sekretär des Ministers

a room to oneself — ein eigenes Zimmer

get four apples to the pound — vier Äpfel je Pfund bekommen

that's all there is to it — mehr ist dazu nicht zu sagen

what's that to you? — was geht das dich an?

to the end — bis zum Ende

to this day — bis heute

five [minutes] to eight — fünf [Minuten] vor acht

want to know — wissen wollen

do something to annoy somebody — etwas tun, um jemanden zu ärgern

too young to marry — zu jung, um zu heiraten; zu jung zum Heiraten

too hot to drink — zu heiß zum Trinken

to rebel is pointless — es ist sinnlos zu rebellieren

he woke to find himself in a strange room — er erwachte und fand sich in einem fremden Zimmer wieder

to use a technical term — um einen Fachausdruck zu gebrauchen

he would have phoned but forgot to — er hätte angerufen, aber er vergaß es

she didn't want to go there, but she had to — sie wollte nicht hingehen, aber sie musste

push a door to — eine Tür anlehnen

to and fro — hin und her

¿qué haces? — what are you doing?

¿qué haces ahí? — what are you doing there?

no sé qué hacer — I don't know what to do

hace y deshace las cosas a su antojo — she does as she pleases

¡eso no se hace! — that's not done!

no hizo nada por ayudarnos — she didn't do anything to help us

haz todo lo posible por llegar a tiempo — do everything possible to arrive on time

hacer algo por hacer —

no tiene sentido hacer las cosas por hacerlas — there's no point doing things just for the sake of it

él protestó y yo hice lo mismo — he protested and I did the same

no viene tanto como lo solía hacer — he doesn't come as much as he used to

hacer dinero — to make money

el gato hizo miau — the cat went miaow, the cat miaowed

el árbol no hace mucha sombra — the tree isn't very shady, the tree doesn't provide a lot of shade

¿me puedes hacer el nudo de la corbata? — could you knot my tie for me?

hacer el pelo/las uñas a algn — to do sb's hair/nails

hacer la barba a algn — to trim sb's beard

¿qué hace tu padre? — what does your father do?

está haciendo turismo en África — he's gone touring in Africa

hacer un papel — to play a role {o} part

hacer el papel de malo — to play the (part of the) villain

6 y 3 hacen 9 — 6 and 3 make 9

este hace 100 — this one makes 100

y cincuenta céntimos, hacen diez euros — and fifty cents change, which makes ten euros

este hace el corredor número 100 en atravesar la meta — he's the 100th runner to cross the finishing line

voy a hacer 30 años la próxima semana — I'm going to be 30 next week, it's my 30th birthday next week

les hice venir — I made them come

siempre consigue hacerme reír — she always manages to make me laugh

le gustaba hacerme rabiar — he enjoyed making me mad

yo haré que vengan — I'll make sure they come

hizo construirse un palacio — she had a palace built

hicieron pintar la fachada del colegio — they had the front of the school painted

esto lo hará más difícil — this will make it more difficult

hacer feliz a algn — to make sb happy

te hace más delgado — it makes you look slimmer

has hecho de mí un hombre muy feliz — you've made me a very happy man

yo le hacía más viejo — I thought he was older, I had him down as being older

te hacíamos en el Perú — we thought you were in Peru

hacer el cuerpo al frío — to get one's body used to the cold

hacer dedos — to do finger exercises

hacer piernas — to stretch one's legs

• hacer a algn [con] (=proveer) —

me hizo con dinero — he provided me with money

haces bien en esperar — you're right to wait

haces mal no contestando a sus llamadas — it's wrong of you not to answer his calls

hizo como que no se daba cuenta {o} como si no se diera cuenta — he made as if he hadn't noticed, he pretended not to have noticed

hizo como si me fuera a pegar — he made as if to strike me

• [dar que] hacer — to cause trouble

dieron que hacer a la policía — they caused {o} gave the police quite a bit of trouble

la llave hace a todas las puertas — the key fits all the doors

hace a todo — he's good for anything

¿te hace que vayamos a tomar unas copas? — how about going for a drink?, what do you say we go for a drink?

¿te hace un cigarrillo? — how about a cigarette?, do you fancy a cigarette?

hacer de malo — to play the villain

haz por verlo si puedes — try to get round to seeing him if you can

hacer por hacer algo — to try to do sth, make an effort to do sth

hace calor/frío — it's hot/cold

hizo dos grados bajo cero — it was two degrees below zero

¿qué tiempo hace? — what's the weather like?

ojalá haga buen tiempo — I hope the weather's nice

hace tres años que se fue — he left three years ago, it's three years since he left

hace tres años que no lo veo — I haven't seen him for three years, it's three years since I (last) saw him

ha estado aquí hasta hace poco — he was here only a short while ago

no hace mucho — not long ago

hace un mes que voy — I've been going for a month

¿hace mucho que esperas? — have you been waiting long?

hace de esto varios años — it is some years since this happened

está perdido desde hace 15 días — it's been missing for a fortnight

hace sed — I'm thirsty

hace sueño — I'm sleepy

hacen buena pareja — they make a lovely couple

me hicieron una visita — they paid me a visit

me hizo un regalo — she gave me a gift

¿me haces un favor? — will you do me a favor?

aún queda mucho por hacer — there is still a lot (left) to do

dar que hacer — to make a lot of work

nadie hizo ninguna objeción — nobody raised any objections

nos hizo un relato de sus aventuras — he related his adventures to us

este jabón no hace espuma — this soap doesn't lather

esos chistes no me hacen gracia — I don't find those jokes funny

estos zapatos me hacen daño — these shoes hurt my feet

las vacas hacen `mu' — cows go `moo'

el visitante que hacía el número mil — the thousandth visitor

no hace más que quejarse — she does nothing but complain

no hice más que cumplir con mi deber — I only did my duty

le gustaría hacer teatro — she would like to work in the theater

hacer un curso de cocina — to do a cookery course

niño, eso no se hace! — you mustn't do that!

aquí se hace lo que digo yo — around here what I say goes

no sé qué hice con los recibos — I don't know what I did with the receipts

hacerle algo a alguien — to do something to somebody

yo no le hice nada — I didn't do anything to her

el perro no te hace nada — the dog won't hurt you

toca bien el piano - antes lo hacía mejor — she plays the piano well - she used to play better

voy a escribirle - deja, yo lo haré — I'm going to write to him - don't bother, I'll do it

¿qué le hace? — so what? what does it matter?

eso no le hace nada — that doesn't matter at all

te hará hombre, hijo mío — it will make a man of you, my son

la hizo su mujer — he made her his wife

hizo pedazos la carta — she tore the letter into tiny pieces

ella lo hizo posible — she made it possible

hacer algo de algo — to turn something into something

hacer algo de alguien — to make something of somebody

quiero hacer de ti un gran actor — I want to make a great actor of you

ese vestido te hace más delgada — that dress makes you look thinner

hacer algo/a alguien + inf — to make something/somebody + inf

me hizo llorar — it made me cry

hizo caer al niño — he knocked the child over

hágalo pasar — tell him to come in

hacer que algo/alguien + subj — to make something/somebody + inf

vas a hacer que pierda la paciencia! — you're going to make me lose my temper!

hacer + inf a alguien — to make somebody + inf

me hizo esperar tres horas — she kept me waiting for three hours

me hizo abrirla — he made me open it

hacer que alguien + subj — to make somebody + inf

hizo que todos se sentaran — he made everybody sit down

hacer hacer algo — to have o get something done/made

hice acortar las cortinas — I had o got the curtains shortened

te hacía en Buenos Aires — I thought you were in Buenos Aires

yo que lo hacía casado! — I had the idea that he was married!

¿cómo se hace para que te den la beca? — what do you have to do to get the scholarship?

¿cómo hacen para vivir con ese sueldo? — how do they manage to live on that salary?

le hace a todo — she does a bit of everything

yo no le hago a la pintura — I don't go in for painting

hacer y deshacer — to do as one pleases, do what one likes

haces mal en mentir — it's wrong of you to lie

hice como que no oía — I pretended not to hear

hacer de algo/alguien — to play (the part of) something/somebody

hacía de `malo' — he played the bad guy

le va a hacer bien salir un poco — it'll do her good to get out a bit

hacerle a algo — to fit something

esta tapa no le hace al frasco — this lid doesn't fit the jar

no le hace — ( no tiene importancia) it doesn't matter; ( no sirve de excusa) that's no excuse

¿no le hace que tire la ceniza aquí? — do you mind if I drop the ash here?

hace frío/calor/sol/viento — it's cold/hot/sunny/windy

hace tres grados — it's three degrees

(nos) hizo un tiempo espantoso — the weather was terrible

hace sed ¿verdad? — it's thirsty weather/work, isn't it?

parece que hace hambre — you/they seem to be hungry

hace dos años que murió — he's been dead for two years

¿cuánto hace que se fue? — how long ago did she leave?

hace poco/un año — a short time/a year ago

hace mucho que lo conozco — I've known him for a long time

no lo veo desde hace años — I haven't seen him for years

hasta hace poco — until recently

se me hizo un nudo en el hilo — I got a knot in the thread

se hace toda la ropa — she makes all her (own) clothes

se hicieron una casita — they built themselves a little house

se hicieron una casita — they had a little house built

se hizo la cirugía estética — she had plastic surgery

voy a hacerme las manos — I'm going to have a manicure

me hice un tajo en el dedo — I cut my finger

¿qué te hiciste en el brazo? — what did you do to your arm?

¿te hiciste daño? — did you hurt yourself?

hacerse un nombre — to make a name for oneself

hacerse enemigos — to make enemies

hacerse famoso/monja — to become famous/a nun

se hace de noche muy pronto — it gets dark very early

se está haciendo tarde — it's getting late; (+ me/te/le etc)

se nos hizo de noche esperándolo — it got dark while we were waiting for him

¿qué se habrá hecho María? — what can have happened to María?

esto se hace muy pesado — this gets very boring; (+ me/te/le etc)

se me hizo interminable — it seemed interminable

se me hace difícil creerlo — I find it very hard to believe

hacerse a algo/+ inf — to get used to something/-ing

no consigo hacerme a la idea — I can't get used to the idea

no te hagas el inocente — don't act the innocent

me vio pero se hizo el loco — he saw me but pretended he hadn't

hacerse atrás/a un lado — to move back/to one side

el ejército se hizo con la ciudad — the army took the city

tengo que hacerme con esa carta — I must get hold of that letter

logró hacerse con el control de la compañía — he managed to gain control of the company

se hicieron de gran fama — they became very famous

se hizo de muchos amigos — he made a lot of friends