lo pasaron mal

they had a hard time of it

lo pasaron mal(loh pah-sah-rohn mahl)

phrase

1. (experienced difficulty or distress; third person plural)

a. they had a hard time of it

Lo pasaron mal cuando murió su padre y se quedaron sin ingresos.

They had a hard time of it when their father died and they were left with no income.

2. (experienced difficulty or distress; second person plural)

a. you had a hard time of it

Sé que lo pasaron mal, pero eso quedó atrás y ahora deben centrarse en el futuro.

I know you had a hard time of it, but that's all left behind and you should now focus on the future.

3. (were bored; third person plural)

a. they didn't enjoy themselves

Mis hijos dijeron que lo pasaron mal en el circo, que los leones no parecían de verdad.

My children said they didn't enjoy themselves at the circus, that the lions didn't look real.

b. they had a bad time

Si lo pasaron tan mal en la discoteca, no me extraña que no quieran volver.

If they had such a bad time in the club, I'm not surprised they don't want to go back.

4. (were bored; second person plural)

a. you didn't enjoy yourselves

Lo pasaron mal en el campo porque antes de ir ya estaban convencidos de que iba a ser así.

You didn't enjoy yourselves in the country because even before going you were certain that was going to be the case.

b. you had a bad time

No me digan que lo pasaron mal, si yo les vi que reírse a carcajadas con los chistes de Juan.

Don't tell me you had a bad time when I saw you roaring with laughter at Juan's jokes.