Y después de amamantarlos tanto a unos como otros
And after nursing them each one like the other
Captions 45-46, José Luís Acacio - Simón Bolívar
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José's patriotic tune personifies Venezuela as a mother and in so doing introduces us to some great words for motherly attention.
Amamantar means "to nurse" or even more literally "to breast feed" (coming from the root for mammary glands, mama), and so here we have "And later to nurse them...". This really reinforces the notion of amor carnal ("bodily love") that Madre Venezuela shows her people.
Con ese amor tan carnal meciéndolos en su hamaca
With such a carnal love rocking them in her swing
Captions 47-48, José Luís Acacio - Simón Bolívar
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Mecer means "to cradle," "to swing," or "to sway." So here he sings of Madre Venezuela cradling or swinging her children "in their hammock."
Los dormía y arrullaba con nuestro himno nacional
She put them to sleep and lulled them with our national anthem
Captions 49-50, José Luís Acacio - Simón Bolívar
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Arrullar means "to lull" or "to coo" (refering to the noise made by pigeons and that made by mothers to lull their babies). Therefore, "She put them to sleep and lulled them."
So a late afternoon routine for a mother might go like this:
En la tarde, la madre amamanta el bebe si tiene hambre. Después para que sea quieto, le arrulla en sus brazos. Entonces, cuando ya está más quieto, ella pone el bebe en la cuna ("cradle") y le mece hasta que entra el sueño.
In the afternoon, the mother breastfeeds the baby if he is hungry. Then for him to be still, she cradles him in her arms. So, when he is more still, she puts the baby in her crib ("cradle") and rocks him until he falls asleep.
The verb gustar, or Spanish equivalent of "to like," tends to confuse English speakers because, in terms of the relationship between a sentence's subject and object, it functions in exactly the opposite way. To better understand this, let's define these two terms:
Generally speaking, the subject of a sentence is the person, place, thing, or idea that performs an action.
The object of a sentence is the person, place, thing, or idea that receives the action of the sentence's verb.
A very simple example of this concept would be: "I threw the ball," where "I" is the subject, or performer of the action, and "the ball" is the object, or recipient of the action.
That said, with the English verb "to like," it is the subject of the sentence that "does the liking." Let's look at a few simple examples:
She likes pizza ("She" is the subject who performs the action of liking onto the object, "pizza").
Anna and John like dogs ("Anna and John" is the subject; they perform the action of liking onto the object, "dogs").
We like you ("We" is the subject that performs the action of liking onto the object, "you").
In Spanish, on the other hand, the subject, or performer of the action, is the person, place, or thing that, in English, is "being liked." To see this in action, let's take a look at some captions from a Yabla video on this very topic:
Me gusta mucho este parque. A ti también te gusta ¿verdad? Sí, me gustan las plantas. Sí, a mí me gustan las plantas y las flores y los árboles.
I really like this park. You like it too, right? Yes, I like the plants. Yes, I like the plants and the flowers and the trees.
Captions 9-13, Conversaciones en el parque - Cap. 5: Me gusta mucho este parque.
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In Spanish, este parque (this park), las plantas (the plants), and las plantas y las flores y los árboles (the plants and the flowers and the trees) are the subjects of these sentences, as they are thought to "cause" the implied objects yo (I) and tú (you) to like them. In their English translations, on the other hand, "I" and "you" are the subjects of the sentences, whereas "this park," "it," "the plants," and "the plants and the flowers and the trees" are the objects that receive the action of liking.
While this difference in perception may confuse English speakers, it is useful to note that the English verb "to please" functions similarly to "gustar" in terms of the subject-object relationship. Therefore, it may be a good exercise to substitute this verb for "to like" when translating Spanish sentences with "gustar" or attempting to formulate new ones. Let's take a look at our previous example, this time translated with the verb "to please":
Me gusta mucho este parque. A ti también te gusta ¿verdad? Sí, me gustan las plantas. Sí, a mí me gustan las plantas y las flores y los árboles.
This park really pleases me. It also pleases you, right? Yes, the plants please me. Yes, the plants and the flowers and the trees please me.
To reiterate this concept, let's take a look at some additional examples where the verb gustar has been translated as "to like" while providing their alternative translations with "to please":
1.
Me gustan mucho las chaquetas de piel.
I really like leather jackets.
Caption 32, 75 minutos - Gangas para ricos - Part 14
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ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION:
Me gustan mucho las chaquetas de piel.
Leather jackets really please me.
2.
Yo te quiero así y me gustas porque eres diferente
I love you like that, and I like you because you're different
Caption 12, Carlos Vives, Shakira - La Bicicleta
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ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION:
Yo te quiero así y me gustas porque eres diferente
I love you like that, and you please me because you're different
3.
¿Te gusta trabajar aquí, te gusta? -No, no me gusta, no.
Do you like working here, do you like it? -No, I don't like it, no.
Caption 77, 75 minutos - Del campo a la mesa - Part 12
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ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION:
¿Te gusta trabajar aquí, te gusta? -No, no me gusta, no.
Does working here please you, does it please you? -No, it doesn't please me, no.
Note that while the alternative translations are grammatically correct, their primary purpose here is to help us to understand how the Spanish verb "gustar" functions. As in everyday speech, it would be far less common to hear someone say "You please me" than "I like you," the translations with "to like" are preferable in most cases.
Now that we are familiar with the different manners in which the English and Spanish languages express the concept of "liking," it's time to learn how to conjugate the verb "gustar," which we'll cover in the next lesson. That's all for today, and don't forget to leave us your comments and suggestions.
¿No me digas que arrugaste?
Don't tell me you're backing out?
Caption 12, Verano Eterno - Fiesta Grande
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In the same scene, Benjamin rekindles the fire of the apuesta ("bet") to see whether Mauro has won the heart of Violeta. At one point, he asks Mauro if their bet is still on. To do so, he uses the verb arrugar, which means "to wrinkle" or "to crumble" in other contexts. But in the context of their bet, arrugar would mean crumble in a way, but a more straightforward translation is "to back out."
Keep your eyes open in the cosmetics section to find una arruga used as a noun meaning "a wrinkle," and often in the plural as arrugas.
When learning Spanish gets tough, ¡No arrugues!
¿No te parece un poquitito tarde para abrir?
Don't you think it's a bit late to open?
Caption 1, Verano Eterno - Fiesta Grande
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If un poco means "a little," and un poquito is the diminutive form (meaning "just a little bit"), what is un poquitito? Yup, it's the diminutive of the diminutive. It's kind of like saying: "Just a wee little bitty bit" for an exaggerated effect. In the opening line of this installment of Verano Eterno, Benjamin is giving Mauro a hard time. Using a diminutive of a diminutve helps him exaggerate his sarcastic comment for effect.
At a travel and tourism exposition in London, we meet Ángela who is from Tarija, Bolivia. She tells us a little bit about a favourite dish of hers from her hometown called "saice."
Es parecido al chili con carne, pero como les digo, es muchísimo más sabroso.
It's similar to "chili con carne," but as I tell you guys, it's way more tasty.
Se acompaña con arroz y un poquitito de ensaladita.
It comes with rice and a little bit of salad.
Captions 22-23, World Travel Market en Londres - Ángela de Bolivia
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There's one other diminutive of a diminutive that's commonly heard: Chico, as in "small" can be made "very very small" by saying chiquitito. (Note that in both cases, the "c" turns to a "qu" to retain that hard c/k sound before "i.")
O quizás una barba pequeñita en la barbilla que se llama perilla.
Or perhaps a tiny beard on the chin that's called a goatee.
Es la perilla, solamente aquí, chiquitito.
It's a goatee, only here, very small.
Captions 81-83, Marta de Madrid - El cuerpo - La cabeza
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While there are many words that are identical in Spanish and English (e.g. original, horror, etc.), other words play different tricks on us. This short lesson is about one of those "false friends," or words that are written the same as or similar to words in another language but have very different meanings.
An age-old mistake among English speakers is to use the verb realizar as a means of conveying "to come to know" or "realize." Of course, most of you know by now that this is a false cognate as realizar usually means "to achieve," "bring to fruition," etc.
In fact, the correct way to say "to realize" is darse cuenta. Let's take a look at a couple of clips in order to see that verb in action:
Eh, darse cuenta que... que hay mucha gente, muchos chavales, que han podido perder una familia en'... a sus padres, se pueden quedar huérfanos.
Um, realizing that... that there many people, many young people, who have managed to lose an [entire] family... their parents; they can end up orphans.
Captions 12-13, Iker Casillas - apoya el trabajo de Plan
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Y de pronto te das cuenta de que... de que no quieres estar con nadie más.
And suddenly you realize that... that you don't want to be with anyone else.
Captions 29-30, Cortometraje - Flechazos
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And now, let's see how the Spanish verb realizar is used throughout this El Aula Azul video:
Entonces voy a coger los datos para realizar la inscripción.
Then I'm going to take down the information to carry out the registration.
Caption 1, El Aula Azul - Conversación: Los cursos de español
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Y ahí tendrá toda la información para realizar el pago.
And there he'll have all of the information to make the payment.
Caption 31, El Aula Azul - Conversación: Los cursos de español
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Y toda la información que pueda necesitar para... para realizar su curso.
And all the information that he might need to... to take his course.
Caption 32, El Aula Azul - Conversación: Los cursos de español
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As you can see, the verb realizar can be used in many different ways, just not in the way in which a native English speaker might initially expect!
That's all for today. We hope this lesson helps you to avoid making this common mistake. And don't forget to send us your comments and suggestions.
Dice que tenían... mucha capacidad o mucha voluntad, mucha fuerza.
Say that they had... a lot of capacity or a lot of will, lots of strength.
Captions 39-40, Rafael T. - Guatemala Hermosa
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Rafael T. obviously enjoys telling tales of his beautiful (hermosa) country, Guatemala. In this video, he tells us the tale of a mountain called Cerro de Oro that, back in the day -a hundred or so years ago- his ancestors managed to move inland from the coast. How did they manage to accomplish that? "They say they had a lot of capacity or a lot of will, lots of strength..." Rafael explains in captions 39-40. But despite their remarkable fuerza de voluntad ("willpower"), it turns out they were unable to move the mountain as far as they were aiming for. So, as you can see, in legends and reality, voluntad is a word to describe an intention, wish or will, but not necessarily an accomplishment.
On a related note, por mi propia voluntad -meaning "of my own free will"--is a common Spanish phrase that makes voluntad's tie to the English word "voluntary" easy to see.
Reventar
transitive verb
1. (a un caballo) "to ride to death"
2. (una propuesta, huelga) "to break"
3. (molestar mucho, enfadar) "to annoy, bother": Le revienta que le lleven la contraria, "he hates it when people cross him"
4. (un globo, las costuras) "to burst"
Courtesy of WordReference.com
As you see in the definitions above, reventar is quite a loaded verb. Depending on the context, it can mean "to ride a horse [or some other beast of burden] to death." It can also mean "to break a strike" or "to burst a seam." But the definition we're interested in here is #3, when Muñeca Brava's housebound matriarch gives her poor son the third degree. Her son responds:
Me revienta que me digas "te lo dije."
I hate it when you say "I told you so."
Caption 35, Muñeca Brava - 1 Piloto
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You see, he hates it when his mother says, "I told you so." Really, who doesn't? And guess what mother says right after that? Te lo dije. Them's fighting words.
(As an aside: Did you notice that the same actress plays another cranky and bossy matriarch in Provócame? Yes, in our new clip this week she has choice words for just about everyone who enters her sight.)
Tratá siempre a desbordar y mandar centro, desbordar y mandar centro ¿eh?
Try to always overtake and kick it to the center, overtake and send it to the center, eh?
Captions 2-3, Muñeca Brava - 1 Piloto
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If you clicked on the word desbordar in caption 2 while watching the 10th installment of Muñeca Brava, you saw the most common definition -"to flood"- pop up first from our Spanish-English dictionary. But desbordar doesn't only mean to flood. Not on the soccer field, for example. It also means "to surpass; to overwhelm" -or, even more sports-specifically, "to outplay." Looking at Latin American papers' sports pages (always filled with fútbol), you'll see desbordar is a favorite verb among sportswriters. For example: Desbordar a sus rivales means "to outplay their rivals."
Back to our first scene in Muñeca Brava, the good Father/coach is directing a young player to "always try to overtake your opponent and send the ball to the center, overtake him and send it center, eh?" Sounds easier said than done.
Note: Even our native speakers aren't 100% in agreement if the priest is talking about overtaking the ball, overtaking the player, or simply "outplaying" the opposing player. One native thought he was talking about "faking" a move, but we can't come to an agreement on that -- the distinction probably wasn't important to the tv writers, who perhaps just were aiming for some "coach talk."
At the estancia in Provócame, there's an obvious and deep class divide between the wealthy landowners and the support staff that takes care of all their horses and messes. Toti, the goofy stablehand sporting a gaucho cap, is definitely of the lower class. He speaks in a way they don't teach you in school. When Toti gossips with a fellow staffer and her daughter, some knowledge of local slang is needed.
¿Lo dejó plantado a Mariano? -Sí, se tomó el olivo.
She stood Mariano up? -Yes, she took off.
Caption 22, Provócame - Piloto
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No sabés el despiole que hay en esa casa... ¡Impresionante!
You have no idea what a mess there's in that house... impressive!
Caption 23, Provócame - Piloto
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So, what did he say? Se tomó el olivo literally means "She took the olive," but the slangy significance, which is made clear to all in the context, is that the would-be bride "took off--skedaddled".
Toti calls the resulting scene a despiole, which is a slangy way of saying "mess" (lío or desorden). [Note Toti also uses this distinctly Argentine word in Part 6, so it might be a favorite of his.]
Buah, era esa pavadita que venía a contar... Chau.
Well, it was that little silliness I came to tell... Bye.
Caption 24, Provócame - Piloto
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Pavo, you may have discovered one Thursday in late November (if you're a Yank), is "turkey," a pavero is a "turkey farmer" and a pavada is a "flock of turkeys," but figuratively una pavada is "a silly thing." So when Toti says "era esa pavadita venia a contar..." he is telling Marisol and Julieta "that was the silly little thing I came to tell." [Che, there's contar again!]
Are you familiar with the verb contar and its meanings in Spanish? Beyond its most common translations, which we'll be sure to reveal, this extremely useful verb is used in many additional ways. Let's take a look at some of them.
One of the most common meanings of contar is "to tell." Let's see this in action:
Abuelo, te voy a contar un secreto.
Grandpa, I'm going to tell you a secret.
Caption 9, Guillermina y Candelario Mi Primer Tesoro
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Soy Rosa Chaparro y os voy a contar la historia de Mika.
I'm Rosa Chaparro, and I'm going to tell you the story of Mika.
Caption 2, Rosa La perrita Mika
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We also use the verb contar when we want to quantify, or "count," things:
Y vamos contando cuántas hierbas tenemos, ¿sí?
And we're counting how many herbs we have, right?
Caption 47, Otavalo Proyecto familiar Kawsaymi - Part 7
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That said, we hope it is now clear that it's one thing contar los números (to count numbers) and another, very different thing contar historias (to tell stories). Context, however, should make it perfectly clear which meaning is meant, which we can see in these two clips from our friend Luis Guitarra:
Para contar los números, podemos usar los dedos de nuestras manos.
To count the numbers, we can use the fingers on our hands.
Captions 5-6, Luis Guitarra Aprendiendo a contar
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Con él, yo aprendí a contar historias.
With him, I learned to tell stories.
Caption 71, Luis Guitarra Influencias musicales - Part 1
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Rafael, the speaker in the following clips, consistently uses the verb contar coupled with the preposition con where we might have expected to hear tener (to have). Let's take a look:
Cuando uno ya cuenta con familia...
When you already have a family...
Caption 11, Rafael T. - Viaje al norte
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Yo cuento con una... con una farmacia, con una mini-farmacia.
I own a... a pharmacy, one mini-pharmacy.
Caption 18, Rafael T. - Viaje al norte
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Although its literal meaning is "to count with," when Rafael uses contar con to talk about a family, he means when one "has" a family, while this same verb has been translated as "own" in the example regarding the pharmacy. Let's check out another clip from our friend Fermín:
Por supuesto, tenemos la suerte de contar con una señora británica que se encarga de controlar que los gatos callejeros que viven aquí
Of course, we are lucky enough to have a British lady who's in charge of making sure that the alley cats who live here
Captions 20-21, Fermín y los gatos Mis gatas vecinas
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So, we see that "to have" or "to own" are both acceptable translations for contar con.
On the other hand, if someone asks "¿Puedo contar contigo?" they don't want to know if they can "have" you, but rather whether they can "count on" you. Let's look at a couple of examples of contar con with this meaning.
cuente con mi apoyo y con la embajada para lo que se le ofrezca.
count on my support and on the embassy for whatever you need.
Caption 42, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa Capítulo 4 - Part 4
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sabes que puedes contar conmigo, ¿sí? -Bueno.
you know that you can count on me, OK? -OK.
Caption 71, Muñeca Brava 36 La pesquisa - Part 6
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And finally, sin contar or sin contar con, which literally mean "without counting (with)," can be utilized to express the idea of "not to mention" or "without taking into account." Let's look at a couple of clips from our series Confidencial: El rey de la estafa:
Eso sin contar los lujos que te debes dar
That's not to mention the luxuries you must give yourself
Caption 21, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa Capítulo 3 - Part 8
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Eso, sin contar con la publicidad que vais a recibir
That, without taking into account the publicity that you're going to get
Captions 52-53, Confidencial: El rey de la estafa Capítulo 5 - Part 5
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That's all for today. We hope you've enjoyed this lesson on some of the many uses of the Spanish verb contar, and don't forget to send us your suggestions and comments.
Nena, nena, nena, nena, nena, yo me voy
Baby, baby, baby, baby, baby, I'm leaving
No te puedo mentir, no me puedo callar
I can't lie to you, I can't shut up
Captions 10-11, Bloque - Nena
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Anyone who sees the video Nena by the Colombian band Bloque, even once, will be quite certain that the word nena means "baby." It can also be translated "babe," as in, "hey babe, get me a beer." Nena is the feminine form of nene, which has the same meaning but is used when referring to a male. Try these out next time you encounter an actual bebé (or when you need un trago.)
Remember, amigos, we present you with authentic Spanish here at Yabla, and Taimur is a second grader auténtico, which means our young friend is entitled to make a grammatical mistake or two himself, ¿verdad? (Not to mention that Spanish is also his second language.)
No y... soy muy estudiantil.
No and... I study a lot. ["estudioso" (studious) would be more correct.]
Caption 18, Taimur - Taimur canta
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In caption 18 of the video "Taimur canta" he says Soy muy estudiantil, and, similarly, you may have noted that in "Taimur habla" he states yo soy muy estudiante. It's clear that Taimur enjoys school and studies hard, and no doubt his teachers and parents notice that él es un estudiante muy estudioso ("He is very studious student").
The word estudiante is the noun for "student," so Taimur probably should have said Soy un buen estudiante, "I'm a good student." Or he might have chosen to tell us Yo soy muy estudioso, "I am very studious."
The word estudiantil is the adjective for "student," so a student run organization is an organización estudiantil, students who travel are engaging in turismo estudiantil, between classes young scholars might relax in a sálon estudiantil, and students who protest, if they have an effective leader, might create a full-fledged movimiento estudiantil.
Entonces siempre hacía de alguna manera castings, lo que hoy llamamos castings.
So somehow he always used to do castings, what we call today castings.
Captions 25-26, Biografía - Natalia Oreiro
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In this chapter of the life of actress Natalie Oreiro, the English word "casting" or plural "castings" is heard not once, but four times. (Note that casting's "i" follows its Spanish pronunciation rules and is pronounced like a long "e" in English, kind of like "casteeng.") In our Spanish-to-Spanish dictionary, casting (noun) is defined as "selección de personas para actuar en una película, un anuncio publicitario, etc." In other words, it's similar to its Hollywood meaning.
"Casting" is but one of the many English words creeping into Spanish dictionaries these days. In Natalie's native Uruguay, one may go to el shopping (the shopping center, or, mall) to buy un smoking (a smoking jacket) to wear for el casting (the casting call). In each of these cases, the "-ing" word is considered a masculine noun in Spanish, even if it's English equivalent started as an adjective modifying another noun.
Porque esos terrenos los vamos a conseguir, y vamos a hacer el shopping ahí.
Because those plots of land, we're going to get them and we're going to build the mall there.
Captions 8-9, Muñeca Brava - 2 Venganza
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Bueno dale sí... ¿pero te ponés otro forro?
OK sure... but will you put on another rubber?
Caption 47, Disputas - La Extraña Dama
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But can you put on another what?
Many of you would be more familiar with the word condón or preservativo, two synonyms for forro in this context. In a dictionary, you'll find that forro more innocently means "cover, case or interior lining" of a ski jacket or waterproof luggage, say. But in an Argentine bedroom, forro usually refers to a "condom," as it does in this line from the show Disputas.
What's more, graffiti all over Buenos Aires declares: Por amor usá forro -- "For love's sake, use a condom" -- as part of a grassroots campaign promoting safe sex. Another slogan in the fight against AIDS -- No seas forro, usá forro -- points to an alternate meaning of forro in local slang: "idiot."
An aside: X Amor is short for por amor because "x" is familiar to us all as the multiplication sign, and when you multiply in Spanish, you say dos por dos for "2 x 2." In a similar vein, Lo+Tv works for us because "2 + 2" is dos más dos. Keep your eyes open and you may notice lo+ used casually in place of lo más throughout the Spanish speaking world.
With Germaín de la Fuente's old-style crooning in the song "Como Quisiera Decirte," you just know he's gotta be singing about heartache. But what is he saying exactly?
Y así va pasando el tiempo
And thus, time goes by
Sin atinar a decirte
Without my being able to tell you
Lo que a diario voy sintiendo
What I'm feeling daily
Captions 18-20, Los Tetas - Como Quisiera Decirte
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You see, the verb atinar is translated as "being able to" / "to be able to." But there's an added dose of longing and frustration attached to atinar, compared to, say, poder or even ser capaz de. Atinar often appears as part of the phrase atinar a decir and suggests the need to speak up to resolve a pressured situation -una situación de presión. One synonym is lograr, in the sense of "to manage to." Dictionaries also suggest: acertar [a], dar [en el blanco], conseguir, hallar and encontrar.
It has been suggested that atinar shares roots with the verb adivinar, "to divine or guess correctly." However, most linguists would agree that there's no easy direct translation into English for this verb, which takes on many meanings and variations that non-natives will tend to absorb naturally as they encounter them in context.
Se fue tan rápido que no atiné a decirle que se olvidó sus maletas.
He left so fast that I didn't have the chance to tell him he forgot his suitcases.
Esta fue una inversión atinada, ganamos mucho dinero.
This was a good (smart) investment; we earned a lot of money.
El examen es "multiple choice." Espero poder atinar las respuestas.
The exam is multiple choice. I hope I can guess the right answers.
An aside: This is not Germaín de la Fuente's first brush with rap. The Chilean singer's romantic warbling has also appeared in songs by the Beastie Boys and Jay-Z.
Te lo agradezco.
Thank you.
Caption 16, Muñeca Brava - 1 Piloto
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Little doubt one of the things you say frequently when you have the occasion to speak Spanish is gracias (thanks) and muchas gracias (many thanks), but have you ever tried using the verb agradecer (to thank)? When Federico is explaining to his secretary-cum-sous-chef about how much she brings his groove back, she does not say simply gracias but rather (and somewhat cynically, we might add) "te lo agradezco" or "I thank you (for it)." It's slightly more formal, but not radically so.
Agradecemos a todos los presentes por asistir a esta reunion.
We thank all present for attending this meeting.
Les agradezco su ayuda.
I thank you all for your help.
Y así arrancaba, y ahí la vi
And this is how it was starting, and there I saw it
Caption 13, Los Pericos - Complicado
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If we speak English, it's easy to remember that comenzar means to "to start" because it sounds like "to commence." Empezar (to begin, to start) is so commonly used that most people learn it early on in their studies. But what about arrancar (which also means "to uproot", "to pull up")? Did you realize that this verb can mean "to start" as well? If so, you may have heard it used in reference to starting the engine of a car, but it also can be found in a variety of contexts related to "starting." In the lyrics of the song Complicado we find the line y así arrancaba, "and this is how it was starting..."
Ya volvimos de las vacaciones pero ahora nos cuesta arrancar.
We´ve just returned from vacation and now it´s hard for us to start working.
Vamos, Cata, la rueda ya va a arrancar.
Let's go, Cata, the wheel's going to start now.
Caption 52, Los Años Maravillosos - Capítulo 8
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Arrancá, el semáforo ya está en verde.
Go, the light has now turned green.
Primero me lo voy a atar...
First, I'm going to tie them up...
Caption 22, Disputas - La Extraña Dama
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...porque después lo vamos a desatar.
...because we'll untie them later.
Caption 23, Disputas - La Extraña Dama
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Sentí el sudor, y desaté mi alivio
I felt the sweat, and I unleashed my relief
Caption 15, Los Pericos - Complicado
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Atar and desatar are two nicely opposing verbs which mean "to fasten" and "to unfasten." They can be very useful, but are often unknown by Spanish learners. This week in part 10 of Disputas, La Extraña Dama, when Majo and Gloria's new friend says me lo voy a atar..., he is referring to his pants, "I am going to fasten them." (Note that he uses the singular el pantalón to refer to a single pair of "pants"?) Likewise in the next caption we find después lo vamos a desatar "later we will unfasten them" (still referring to his pants).
The verb desatar shows up again in the music video Complicados from the band Los Pericos. Here it takes on a more of a figurative meaning, "to unleash," as in "unleashing an emotion." Caption 15 of the song contains the line desaté mi alivio, which is "I unleashed my relief." It is a bit unusual to speak of "unleashing relief," but we can chalk this up to artistic license. As in English, it is usually anger that one "unleashes."
Desaté mi furia, y, después, tuve alivio.
I unleashed my anger, and, later, I was relieved.
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