Awful pretty, pretty awful

Question

English has many colloquial phrases like "awful pretty" (meaning very pretty) and "pretty awful" (meaning very bad). I imagine such phrases can be quite confusing to non-native speakers because the same words in different order have opposite meanings. Does Spanish have similar phrases like these?

(By the way, I know the modifier of an adjective should be an adverb, but I almost never hear English speakers say "awfully pretty" or "prettily awful.")

Answer 1

Of course there are. One that comes to mind is; Ella está terriblemente guapa. (She is terribly good looking).

Is it correct language, I'm wondering, to use these contradicting words together this way? Should we not say something like 'extremely' good looking instead? - Lise-Laroche, Jan 1, 2010

It's idiomatic and therefore correct. You may also use your idea as well, "Ella está sumamente guapa." - 005faa61, Jan 1, 2010

Right! I had forgotten about the oxymoron. - Lise-Laroche, Jan 1, 2010

Answer 2

I like the English answer to the question "What do you think my chances are?" "You've got two chances, a slim chance and a fat chance." meaning that you haven't much chance at all!

oh yeah....as in there's a slim chane you'll make the team vs. fat chance in h3ll - bdclark0423, Jan 2, 2010

Answer 3

Okay, so I thought up most of these with my English gears working, although some I have heard before (or something similar…. like the first one)

• La vida en muerte / la muerta en viva
• La luz oscura / La obscuridad lucida
• Un grito en silencio / el silencio gritando
• un jugador serio / un juego serio
• En hecho merecido / un merece por hacer
• El amor por el sentido / el sentido por amor
• Una fortuna destinada / un déstino afortunado
• Un niño cariñoso / el cariño de niñez
• La esperanza por la paz / la paz esparada
• La perdición descubierta / el descubrimiento perdido
• La probabilidad incierta / lo incierto probable
• Estar suguro de las dudas / Los seguros de los estados unidos

Answer 4

In English, it's common for me to hear awfully pretty...well from I come from...so it may just be part of mid-west dialect. Prettily technically is a word in adverbial form, but it just doesn't sound right....almost like an over-articulated antagonistic character like willie wonka in monologue....'ah, i perceive the prudent princess prettily plays Purcell Piano Pieces persistently....Perfect!'

And I know it seems like I'm going off topic, but this would be a tongue-twister or las trabalenguas. However, i believe the term trabalenguas in Spanish also includes what your example is called...an oxymoron in English. There's already some post on this site for trabalenguas, but I didn't see any thing like an oxymoron, but I knew there are some out there. I have this saved in my notes. but I have no idea where it's from or what it means:

• Arrepisa paja, arrepaja pisa.

Next to this in my notes was my own concoction....and I'm not sure if it makes sense in Spanish, but I like the images of seemingly contradictory words

• entre mezcla de mecos

• está medio-meca

  My boss, who lives in Buenos Aires told me a very funny one that is supposed to sound like someone speaking German...I've asked if he could remember it for me...