Spanish words with no direct English word equivalent?
Are there any Spanish words that have no direct translation to the English language?
For example, there is a German word that translates to something like "standing on top of a mountain and watching your shadow across the land". Yeah, there really is.
Are there any words in Spanish like this? I'm just curious.
Thanks
-Julia
16 Answers
Well I have one: "faltar" You have to use all different kinds of phrases to convey it's meaning (and not sound stilted or silly), depending on the context.
Falta Maria. (We're missing Maria.) Nos faltan 6 ladrillos. (We need six more bricks) ¡No te faltas! (Be there for sure!) etc.
And if we're talking words without a single-word translation, I love the word "hay" (there is, there are)... most useful word ever!
My wife once asked me: how do you say in Spanish the phrase "a woman in labour or who has just given birth". My answer was "parturienta".
Another example is "gentilicio", which my dictionary translates as "name of the inhabitants of a country or region etc"
Tuerto - a man who is missing one eye. Empalagoso - sickeningly sweet Abrigate - Command for "bundle up"
To my knowledge, there are no single word translations for 'santiguar' and 'persignar', both of which refer to the Catholic practice of crossing oneself, or making the sign of the cross.
Then there's 'tutear' which means 'to address somebody as tú.' The concept itself cannot exist in English.
In the language of software engineering, we also have a plethora of words describing one general concept -- (in no particular order...):
bug
glitch
defect
issue
feature
quirk
error
failure
fault
flaw
hitch
problem
something wrong
odd behavior
trouble
Houston, we have a problem
Another is "aprovechar": to take advantage of, to make the most of, to make good use of. Very cool there is a word for that.
Friolero - A person who is especially sensitive to cold weather and temperatures.
Sobremesa - The time spent after lunch or dinner talking to the people you shared the meal with.
Tocayo - a person who has the same name as you
Botellón - A gathering in which youths meet in a street or a public area in order to consume alcohol. People bring their own alcohol which is bought from the stores, making it a cheap alternative to going to bars or night clubs. Literally means “big bottle.”
Pena Ajena - Shame experienced on behalf of another person, even though that person may not experience shame.
Duende - A climactic show of spirit in a performance or work of art, often applied to flamenco dancing or bull-fighting. A moment of inspiration.
Amigovio/a - A friend with benefits; a combination of amiga/o and novia/o. Also “un amiga/o con derechos a roce” (a friend with the rights to rub against–where “roce” is from the verb “rozar” to rub against, to touch lightly).
Atolondrar - To become so overwhelmed by something that you get scatter-brained and do something careless. For example, if you are being bombarded by emails, phone calls, text messages, etc, all at the same time, while trying to write an email, that you become so overwhelmed that you send it without an attachment.
Embalagarse - The sensation your tongue has after eating too many sweets. It the feeling you get when you need some milk to go with that chocolate cake.
Estrenar - To wear or use something for the first time.
Pelada - a pick up soccer game. Literally it means peeled or bare. I believe it's used in South America.
surely No hay de que must be one example since it cannot be translated literally and still make sense
On the contrary. This is the most nearly universal expression that I have ever encountered. In French "II n'y a pas de quoi", in English "It was nothing.", in Vietnamese "Khom co chi.", in Chinese "Bu que chi.", in Italian "Prego." is the most common but "Non fa niente." is (I believe) also possible, in Japanese "Do itasshima****e." ("Why do you say it.") is common but a simple "IIe." ("No." is also common [and wins the prize for conciseness]).
To my mind German's "Bitte schoen." and Arabic's "Afwan." stand out as exceptions.
P.S. The stupid anti-obscenity checker has replaced the 's' + 'h'+'i'+'t' in the Japanese expression with asterisks (despite it's being in the middle of a word)..
Since you are talking of concepts/phrases then surely No hay de que must be one example since it cannot be translated literally and still make sense It would come out as: there is not anything of that. Loosely translated It means: ''Don't mention it'' and is usually used:
a After someone apologises and the person reponds No hay de que
b or in response to someone thanking you, You could say: No hay de que
I hope that helps 
The Sami language is said to have hundreds of distinct words to describe different types of snow. I'm pretty sure that each of these could probably be explained in other languages, but doubt that many would have single word translations.
What is that German word that means standing on top of a mountain and watching your shadow across the land????? I must know!
It depends in part on what you mean by having a "direct" translation. If you mean a single word in language B that conveys the meaning of a single word in language A, then there are many examples (for many pairs of languages). If, on the other hand, you mean a concept that cannot be expressed with a word or a short phrase, there would certainly be fewer. For the most part, the latter would involve concepts that are so culturally dependent that a person from another culture cannot begin to appreciate/understand (much less, express) the significance in the original culture.
Hmmm, to look forward to has no good translation in English, I might come up with something else.
Nevermind Spanish words that have no English equivalent, there are Argentinian castellano words that have no Spanish equivalent!
Consuegro/a...
