no se lo digas ni en broma

ni en broma — never, not on any account

estar de broma — to be in a joking mood

tomar algo a broma — to take sth as a joke

no es ninguna broma — it's no joke, this is serious

la broma me costó caro — the affair cost me dear

no hay bromas con la autoridad — you can't play games with the authorities

bromas aparte... — joking aside...

¡déjate de bromas! — quit fooling!, joke over!

gastar una broma a algn — to play a joke on sb

no está para bromas — he's in no mood for jokes

broma pesada — practical joke, hoax

no estoy para bromas — I'm not in the mood for jokes

no estoy para bromas — I'm not in the mood for jokes

no le gustan las plantas ni los animales — he doesn't like plants or animals

no bebe ni fuma — he doesn't smoke or drink

un edificio sin puertas ni ventanas — a building without doors or windows

ni... ni...: no tenía ni amigos ni familiares — he had no friends and no family (either), he had no friends or family, he had neither friends nor family

no es ni blanco ni negro — it's not black and it's not white (either), it's neither black nor white

no vinieron ni Juan ni Pedro — Juan didn't come and neither did Pedro, neither Juan nor Pedro came

ni vino ni llamó por teléfono — he didn't come and he didn't phone (either), he neither came nor phoned

ni lo sé ni me importa — I don't know and I don't care

ni que lo hagas bien ni que lo hagas mal te dirán nada — whether you do it well or badly, they won't say anything

no sabe ni dónde está Moscú — he doesn't even know where Moscow is

ni a ti te lo dirá — he won't tell even YOU

no lo compraría ni aunque tuviera dinero — I wouldn't buy it even if I had the money

no tengo ni idea — I have no idea

no ha llamado ni nada — he hasn't phoned or anything

ni se sabe — God knows, who knows?

ni siquiera nos ha visto — he didn't even see us

ni siquiera me llamó — he didn't even phone me

no hemos comprado ni un regalo — we haven't bought a single present

no me ha dicho ni una palabra desde que llegó — she hasn't said a single word to me since she got here

ni uno de sus parientes lo ha felicitado — not (a single) one of his relatives has congratulated him

no tengo ni un duro — I haven't got a penny

vaya unos humos que tiene, ¡ni que fuese un dios! — he's so arrogant, he must think he's God!

¡pero tú qué te has creído!, ¡ni que yo fuese tonto! — you must think I'm stupid or something!

¡qué curso ni qué curso! ¡yo he aprendido por mi cuenta! — what are you talking about, taking a course? I've studied by myself!

• ni bien — Arg, Uru as soon as

ni bien me fui, sonó el teléfono — as soon as I left, the phone rang

venía sin gabardina ni paraguas — he wasn't wearing a raincoat or carrying an umbrella

no se lastimó ni nada — he didn't hurt himself or anything

no vino él ni su mujer — neither he nor his wife came

yo no pienso ir - ni yo (tampoco) — I don't intend going - neither do I

ni... ni: ni fumo ni bebo I don't smoke or drink, I neither smoke nor drink; no nos avisaron ni a Sol ni a mí — they didn't tell Sol or me (either)

ni siquiera — not even

ni un/una: no vendieron ni un libro they didn't sell a single book; de sus amigos no vino ni uno — not one of his friends came

ni hablar! — out of the question!

ni aunque me lo pida de rodillas — not even if he gets down on bended knee

ni que fuera el jefe! — anyone would think he was the boss

no podemos permitírnoslo ni que fuéramos millonarios! — we can't afford it, we're not millionaires you know!

venía sin gabardina ni paraguas — he wasn't wearing a raincoat or carrying an umbrella

no se lastimó ni nada — he didn't hurt himself or anything

no vino él ni su mujer — neither he nor his wife came

yo no pienso ir - ni yo (tampoco) — I don't intend going - neither do I

ni... ni: ni fumo ni bebo I don't smoke or drink, I neither smoke nor drink; no nos avisaron ni a Sol ni a mí — they didn't tell Sol or me (either)

ni siquiera — not even

ni un/una: no vendieron ni un libro they didn't sell a single book; de sus amigos no vino ni uno — not one of his friends came

ni hablar! — out of the question!

ni aunque me lo pida de rodillas — not even if he gets down on bended knee

ni que fuera el jefe! — anyone would think he was the boss

no podemos permitírnoslo ni que fuéramos millonarios! — we can't afford it, we're not millionaires you know!

ya sabe decir varias palabras — she can already say several words, she already knows several words

- tengo prisa -dijo — "I'm in a hurry," she said

olvídalo, no he dicho nada — forget I said anything

¿decía usted? — you were saying?

como decía mi abuela — as my grandmother used to say

como iba diciendo... — as I was saying...

¿cómo ha dicho usted? — pardon?, what did you say?

mi amigo dice que eres muy guapa — my friend says (that) you're very pretty

dicen que... — they say (that)..., people say (that)...

el cartel dice claramente que... — the sign says clearly {o} clearly states that...

decir que sí/no — to say yes/no

-¿viene? -dice que sí — "is she coming?" - "she says she is {o} she says so"

la miré y me dijo que sí/no con la cabeza — I looked at her and she nodded/shook her head

¿quién te lo dijo? — who told you?

se lo dije bien claro, pero no me hizo caso — I told her quite clearly, but she didn't take any notice of me

tengo algo que decirte — there's something I want to tell you, I've got something to tell you

hoy nos dicen las notas — they're telling {o} giving us our results today

me dijo que no vendría — he told me (that) he wouldn't come

ya te dije que no tiene ni idea — I told you he hasn't got a clue

¿no te digo que no puedo ir? — I've already told you I can't go

la profesora me dijo que esperara fuera — the teacher told me to wait outside

le dije que fuera más tarde — I told her to go later

dile que venga a cenar mañana con nosotros — ask him to come and have supper with us tomorrow

te digo que te calles — I said shut up

decir tonterías — to talk nonsense

¿cómo le dicen a esto en Perú? — what do they call this in Peru?

se llama Francisco, pero le dicen Paco — his name is Francisco, but he's known as Paco

le dicen "el torero" — he's known as "el torero"

en México se le dice "recámara" al dormitorio — in Mexico they say "recámara" instead of "dormitorio"

podemos ir a Portugal, ¿tú qué dices? — we could go to Portugal, what do you say?

¿tu familia qué dice de la boda? — what does your family say about the wedding?

había 8, digo 9 — there were 8, I mean 9

dirá usted aquel otro — you must mean that other one

¡qué digo! — what am I saying?

no puedo leer lo que dice — I can't read what it says

no me dice nada este libro — this book leaves me cold

mis súbditos se presentarán ante mí ¡he dicho! — my subjects shall appear before me: I have spoken!

aunque no es el director es, como quien dice, el que manda en la empresa — although he isn't the manager, he's the person in charge, so to speak, of the company

está, como quien dice, aquí al lado — it's just round the corner, as they say

como quien no dice nada — quite casually, as though it wasn't important

- gracias por todo -lo mismo digo — "thank you for everything" - "likewise!" {o} "thanks to you too!"

deberías buscar trabajo, vamos, digo yo — you ought to look for a job, that's what I say, if you ask me, you ought to look for a job

¡si te lo digo yo! — of course it's true!

¡lo digo yo y basta! — you will do it because I say so!

mi prima, es decir, la hija de Ana — my cousin, that is (to say) Ana's daughter

¿qué quiere decir "spatha"? — what does "spatha" mean?

¿qué quiere usted decir con eso? — what do you mean by that?

¿querrás decir un millón, no un billón? — do you mean a million rather than a billion?

les ha costado más cara que mi casa, y eso ya es decir — it cost them more than my house did, and that's saying something

no es que yo lo diga, pero... — it's not because I say so, but...

es, digamos, un comerciante — he's a dealer, for want of a better word, he's a sort of dealer

¡haberlo dicho!, ¡me lo hubieras dicho! — you could have told me {o} said!

y su madre, no digamos — not to mention his mother

no estuvo muy cortés, que digamos — he wasn't what you'd call polite, he wasn't exactly polite

¿cómo (lo) diría yo? — how shall I put it?

¿cómo diríamos? — how shall I put it?

¡quién lo diría! — would you believe it!, who would have thought it!

pero no quiso por el qué dirán — but she didn't want to because of what people might say

se preocupa mucho por el qué dirán — she's always worried about what people will say {o} think

-¿te puedo pedir un favor? -dime — "can I ask you a favour?" - "go ahead"

-¿te gustaría cambiar de coche? -¡hombre, ya me dirás! — "would you like a new car?" - "you bet I would!"

su nombre no me dice nada — her name doesn't mean anything to me

su mirada lo dice todo — her expression says it all {o} speaks volumes

una situación que tan mal dice de nuestro gobierno — a situation which shows our government in such a bad light

¿cientos de personas? - bueno, es un decir — hundreds of people? - well, figuratively speaking

ya dice `mamá' — he says `mama' now

no digas esas cosas, por favor — please don't say things like that

no digas estupideces — don't talk nonsense!

¿cómo pudiste decir eso? — how could you say that?

¿eso lo dices por mí? — are you referring to me?

no lo dirás en serio! — you can't be serious!

dijo que sí con la cabeza — he nodded

no se dice `andé', se dice `anduve' — it isn't `andé', it's `anduve'

eso no se dice! — you mustn't say that!

¿cómo se dice `amor' en ruso? — how do you say `love' in Russian?

bonita, lo que se dice bonita, no es — she's not what you would call pretty

es el sábado; ni que decir tiene que estás invitado — it's on Saturday; you're invited, but that goes without saying

haberlo dicho antes — why didn't you say so before?

¿tendrá tiempo de hacerlo? - dice que sí — will he have time to do it? - he says he will

¿no lo encontró? - dice que no — didn't he find it? - no, he says he didn't

digan lo que digan — whatever people say

decirle algo a alguien — to tell somebody something

eso no es lo que me dijo a mí — that's not what he told me

¿sabes qué me dijo? — do you know what he told me?; (expresando sorpresa, indignación, etc) do you know what he said to me?

se lo voy a decir a papá — I'm going to tell Dad

hoy nos dicen el resultado — they're going to give us the result today

Andrés me dijo lo de tu hermano — Andrés told me about your brother

a mí me lo vas a decir! — you're telling me!

ya te lo decía yo! — I told you so!

fue algo espantoso, todo lo que te diga es poco — it was terrible, I can't begin to tell you how terrible

no me digas que no es precioso! — isn't it beautiful?

dime con quién andas y te diré quién eres — you can judge a man by the company he keeps

porque lo digo yo! — because I say so!

harás lo que yo diga — you'll do as I say

papá dice que vayas — Dad wants you

dice que llames cuando llegues — she says (you are) to phone when you get there

dijo que tuviéramos cuidado — she said to be careful

decirle a alguien que + subj — to tell somebody to + inf

diles que empiecen — tell them to start

le dije que no lo hiciera — I told him not to do it

decir adiós — to say goodbye

decirle adiós a alguien — to say goodbye to somebody

di adiós a tu vida de estudiante — you'd better say goodbye to your student days

¿qué dice aquí? — what does it say here?

el diario no dice nada sobre el asunto — there's nothing in the paper about it

se llama Rosario pero le dicen Charo — her name is Rosario but people call her Charo

la forma de vestir dice mucho de una persona — the way someone dresses says a lot/tells you a lot about them

el tiempo lo dirá — time will tell

algo me decía que no iba a ser fácil — something told me it wasn't going to be easy

¿te dice algo ese nombre? — does that name mean anything to you?

decir misa — to say mass

querer decir — to mean

¿qué quiere decir esta palabra? — what does this word mean?

¿qué quieres decir con eso? — what do you mean by that?

¿quieres decir que ya no te interesa? — do you mean (to say) that you're no longer interested?

¿y los padres qué dicen? — what do her parents think of it?, how do her parents feel about it?

habría que regalarle algo, no sé, digo yo — we ought to buy her a present, well, I think so anyway

es muy fácil - si tú lo dices... — it's very easy - if you say so...

a decir verdad — to tell you the truth, to be honest

como quien dice — so to speak

papá - dime, hijo — dad - yes, son?

quería pedirle un favor - usted dirá — I wanted to ask you a favor - certainly, go ahead

se decían secretos al oído — they were whispering secrets to each other

se dijeron de todo — they called each other every name under the sun

yo sé lo que me digo — I know what I'm talking about

tú te lo dices todo — you seem to have all the answers

¿cientos de personas? - bueno, es un decir — hundreds of people? - well, figuratively speaking

ya dice `mamá' — he says `mama' now

no digas esas cosas, por favor — please don't say things like that

no digas estupideces — don't talk nonsense!

¿cómo pudiste decir eso? — how could you say that?

¿eso lo dices por mí? — are you referring to me?

no lo dirás en serio! — you can't be serious!

dijo que sí con la cabeza — he nodded

no se dice `andé', se dice `anduve' — it isn't `andé', it's `anduve'

eso no se dice! — you mustn't say that!

¿cómo se dice `amor' en ruso? — how do you say `love' in Russian?

bonita, lo que se dice bonita, no es — she's not what you would call pretty

es el sábado; ni que decir tiene que estás invitado — it's on Saturday; you're invited, but that goes without saying

haberlo dicho antes — why didn't you say so before?

¿tendrá tiempo de hacerlo? - dice que sí — will he have time to do it? - he says he will

¿no lo encontró? - dice que no — didn't he find it? - no, he says he didn't

digan lo que digan — whatever people say

decirle algo a alguien — to tell somebody something

eso no es lo que me dijo a mí — that's not what he told me

¿sabes qué me dijo? — do you know what he told me?; (expresando sorpresa, indignación, etc) do you know what he said to me?

se lo voy a decir a papá — I'm going to tell Dad

hoy nos dicen el resultado — they're going to give us the result today

Andrés me dijo lo de tu hermano — Andrés told me about your brother

a mí me lo vas a decir! — you're telling me!

ya te lo decía yo! — I told you so!

fue algo espantoso, todo lo que te diga es poco — it was terrible, I can't begin to tell you how terrible

no me digas que no es precioso! — isn't it beautiful?

dime con quién andas y te diré quién eres — you can judge a man by the company he keeps

porque lo digo yo! — because I say so!

harás lo que yo diga — you'll do as I say

papá dice que vayas — Dad wants you

dice que llames cuando llegues — she says (you are) to phone when you get there

dijo que tuviéramos cuidado — she said to be careful

decirle a alguien que + subj — to tell somebody to + inf

diles que empiecen — tell them to start

le dije que no lo hiciera — I told him not to do it

decir adiós — to say goodbye

decirle adiós a alguien — to say goodbye to somebody

di adiós a tu vida de estudiante — you'd better say goodbye to your student days

¿qué dice aquí? — what does it say here?

el diario no dice nada sobre el asunto — there's nothing in the paper about it

se llama Rosario pero le dicen Charo — her name is Rosario but people call her Charo

la forma de vestir dice mucho de una persona — the way someone dresses says a lot/tells you a lot about them

el tiempo lo dirá — time will tell

algo me decía que no iba a ser fácil — something told me it wasn't going to be easy

¿te dice algo ese nombre? — does that name mean anything to you?

decir misa — to say mass

querer decir — to mean

¿qué quiere decir esta palabra? — what does this word mean?

¿qué quieres decir con eso? — what do you mean by that?

¿quieres decir que ya no te interesa? — do you mean (to say) that you're no longer interested?

¿y los padres qué dicen? — what do her parents think of it?, how do her parents feel about it?

habría que regalarle algo, no sé, digo yo — we ought to buy her a present, well, I think so anyway

es muy fácil - si tú lo dices... — it's very easy - if you say so...

a decir verdad — to tell you the truth, to be honest

como quien dice — so to speak

papá - dime, hijo — dad - yes, son?

quería pedirle un favor - usted dirá — I wanted to ask you a favor - certainly, go ahead

se decían secretos al oído — they were whispering secrets to each other

se dijeron de todo — they called each other every name under the sun

yo sé lo que me digo — I know what I'm talking about

tú te lo dices todo — you seem to have all the answers

yo no le veo la gracia — I don't see what's so funny

si no lo cuentas bien se le va la gracia — if you don't tell it well the joke is lost

ahí está la gracia — that's the whole point

• hacer gracia a algn, a mí no me hace gracia ese humorista — I don't find that comedian funny

me hace gracia ver a mi padre en la televisión — it's funny seeing my father on television

me hace gracia que me llamen conservador precisamente ellos — it's funny that they of all people should call me conservative

no me hacía gracia su aire de superioridad — I didn't like his air of superiority

al jefe no le va a hacer ninguna gracia que nos vayamos a casa — our boss is not going to be at all happy about us going home

• tener gracia — [broma, chiste] to be funny; [persona] (=ser ingenioso) to be witty; (=ser divertido) to be funny, be amusing

la broma no tuvo gracia — the joke wasn't funny

tiene mucha gracia contando chistes — his jokes are really funny

• ¡ qué gracia! — [gen] how funny!; iró it's great, isn't it?

¿así que tu hermano y mi hermano se conocen? ¡qué gracia! — so your brother and mine know each other - how funny!

y, ¡qué gracia!, me dice el profesor: -señorita, compórtese — and the teacher said to me, it was so funny, "behave yourself, young lady"

• dar en la gracia de hacer algo — to take to doing sth

se mueve con gracia — she moves gracefully

tener gracia — to be graceful

no es guapo, pero tiene cierta gracia — he's not good-looking but he has a certain charm

no tiene ninguna gracia vistiendo — she has no dress sense

hizo una de sus gracias — he showed himself up once again

¡gracias! — thank you!

no nos dio ni las gracias — he didn't even say thank you, he didn't even thank us

llamaba para darte las gracias por todo — I am phoning to thank you for everything

• gracias a — thanks to

hemos conseguido esta casa gracias a ellos — it's thanks to them that we got this house

la familia se mantiene gracias a que el padre y la madre trabajan — the family manages to support itself thanks to the fact that both parents work

estar en gracia (de Dios) — to be in a state of grace

por la gracia de Dios — by the grace of God

medida de gracia — pardon

te concederé la gracia que me pidas — I will grant you whatever favour you request