help with sentence structure

Question

I have previously learned,

La vasija mediano está entre la vasija grande y la vasija pequeña.

I understand this to mean, The medium container is between the large container and the small container.

Last night, I came across

El hombre está leyendo un libro mientras el perro está de pie entre sus piernas.

I understand this to mean, The man is reading while the dog is between his legs.

My problem is that the structure is different in the second sentence, so I don't understand the specifics.

I think my question is, What does "El perro está de pie" mean in this sentence?

Will someone please help me understand this?

Answer 1

It means, literally, "The dog is of foot", which is to say the dog is standing.

It does not mean the dog is peeing... although pie is pronounced pee-eh.

Sorry for the poor joke. Upun my word, I can't help it.

The answer is nice but I'm really just voting for "upun" - bafalck, Aug 9, 2011

pretty good joke. I think of "pie" the pastry when I see the word, but think of pee when I read it. - MrSillyInc, Aug 9, 2011

Answer 2

La vasija mediana está entre la vasija grande y la (vasija) pequeña.

A little mistake there.

I think my question is, What does "El perro está de pie" mean in this sentence?

There is no verb for "to stand" in Spanish. We literally say "someone is of/on foot"

Thanks for the corrections and help. This clears up a lot. - MrSillyInc, Aug 9, 2011