101 Spanish Idioms

by Jean-Marie Cassagne, Luc Nisset

This whimsical collection of colloquialisms entertains intermediate students while providing insight into Spanish-language idioms, customs, and humor. Grouped according to theme--from Nuestros amigos los animales to Hablando del cuerpo to Algo en que pensar--the idioms are illustrated with humorous cartoons that provide a key to understanding the literal and real meanings.

160 pages, Paperback

First published January 11, 1995

Reviews

[Bob Stocker · Rating 4 out of 5]

101 Spanish Idioms by J. M. Cassagne is the kind of book that's easy to pick up and read a page or two before setting it aside. I set my copy aside a decade ago before I finished reading it. It gathered dust on my bookshelf until I recently had a need to brush up my limited Spanish. This time I made a point of setting the book aside in a place where it was easy to pick up again.

Reading the short examples turned out to be a great way for me to review my Spanish. English translations of the “non-idiom” parts of examples followed the Spanish versions closely enough for me to pick up the meanings of words that I didn't recognize. The Spanish idioms themselves are printed in bold face and translated into idiomatic English. For example, a description of people who “estaban de veinticinco alfileres” (were of twenty-five pins) is translated as people who “were dressed to kill.” The examples are often humorous and always entertaining. More than once I was tempted to read more than I could absorb in one sitting.

[Lenny Husen · Rating 4 out of 5]

see my review for the companion volume, 101 Spanish Proverbs. Read this when studying Spanish, about 10 years ago. this is great, but the other one is the best.