Advanced Spanish Vocabulary - Set 002

obrero

(worker,) laborer

[The farm worker removed his earbuds while listening to opera to wipe his brow beneath his sombrero.]

sonso

(silly,) foolish

[“You foolish so ‘n so,” said the Lone Ranger to Tonto when no one was listening.]

albañilería

brick layer (from بَنَّاء bannāʔ “mason”)

[“Where’s Al? We need to finish this brick wall.” “He’s in the baño.”]

burlar

to mock; outwit

[The burglar outwitted the security guards.

burlarse

(to make fun of, to poke fun at), to ridicule, (to mock)

[He got punched in the face when he made fun of the burly arse guy.]

acaso

perhaps, (maybe)

[Perhaps Picasso can paint a queso.]

chisme

gossip; gizmo, whatchamacallit, doodad

[Quiz me on the gossip, and I won’t lie to you—just tell you some lies.]

fanfarrón

braggart, (boastful person)

[A braggart expects some fanfare when he walks into a room.]

fanfarronear

to brag

[To brag is to blow your own horn with a fanfare that blasts on ear.]

corriente

current, (present); (normal,) ordinary; running

[The current running through your wires don’t actually run.]

un tipo corriente

a normal guy, a common type (“a typical-guy common”)

calabozo

dungeon (jail cell)

[I watched the Chicago Bozo when I was a kid. A Cali. Bozo would probably end up in jail.]

conformar

to conform, to adjust; to agree to be of the same opinion

poder conformarse

settle for, accommodate, make do (to be able to conform yourself)

bramido (v. bramar)

roar, bellow, howl (v. to roar)

entregar

to deliver, (to hand over, to give)

[The mail carrier delivers my mail, and I integrate it by introducing it into my pile of unopened mail like a spilling of one’s entrails.]

detener

to stop (someone or something), to detain

compromiso

commitment; (responsibility)

[A commitment is a promise of obligation but not a compromise.]

maldecir

to curse, slander; invoke a malediction (to speak evil-of)

renegar

to deny, to renounce

[A renegade denies the laws and customs of society.]

tesoro

treasure

tesorería

treasury

parejo

even; evenly, equally spaced

fijarse

to take notice, to pay attention, to settle (to fix your focus)

[“Fix your eyes on that nice rear.” “I don’t give a fig about making myself staring at her arse.”]

amansar

to tame, to calm down (to stay gentle to)

[A man’s heart is often difficult to tame.]

regalar (n. regalo)

to give a gift (n. gift)

[You should give a gift that’s special and not just a regular one.]

varonil

manly

[What a very virile earl but the baron’s ill.]

asomar

to poke out, to stick out

[A bad tattoo sticking out on the buttocks is an ass-o-mar. A good ASMR sticks out in one’s mind.]

siquiera

at least (adv), though (conj), even if

[And Jesus said, “At least seek ye era of God.”]

tal y como

just as (“such and as”)

tal

such

[You’re such a tattle tale.]

hizo caso (hacer caso)

paid attention, heeded (“to make case”)

derretir

to melt, to thaw

[You can deter the state of something by rubbing it away. It deteriorates or, in the case of ice, it melts or thaws. If you wear away your rear tire it’s your derrier tire.]

desbaratar

to ruin, destroy; thwart, breakup

[The disbarred lawyer was ruined because he bartered with his ethics.]

atajar

to head off, intercept, tackle

[When the recruit tackled his opponent, the sergeant called out, “At a jar head.”]

acoger

to welcome, take in, receive; to shelter (“to take to”)

[At the retirment home I was welcomed by a codger.]

toparse

to encounter (run into)

[The assasin happened to run into his mark and topped him himself.]

estruendoso

thunderous

[Following the lightning strike was an oh so thunderous sound you might construe to be an omen of the end days.]

bajarse

to get down/off (to descend yourself)

estropeado (v. estropear)

ruined (mechanically broken, spoiled) (v. to spoil)

[My watch is ruined. It hes stropped without an ado.] (Italian: "Il vestito si è stroppiato")

agarrar (n. garra)

to grasp, to obtain; to seize, to catch, to clutch, to come upon (n. claw)

[It’s rather garrish to watch an eagle grasp a baby rabbit in its claws.]

condenar

to condemn; to convict

[In Roman times it would cost a con a denarius to overturn his conviction. I wouldn’t condemn him for trying.]

encoger

to shrink, contract

[An old man’s body shrinks when he becomes a codger; when he en-codgerates.]

encogimiento de hombros (v. encoger)

shrug the shoulders (v. to shrink)

[I didn’t mean to shrug my shoulders to my “shrink,” the old codger. It was humorous to contract my humerus to my hombre.]

quitar

to take away, to remove

[He removed his guitar from the living room when he quit playing. What a quitter.]

puntillas (de puntillas)

tiptoes (on/from tiptoes)

[A football kicker punts with the points of his toes.]

una patada (v. patear)

a kick, boot (v. to kick)

[The Irish Wolfhound patted over and gave a kick to a Da.]

colocar

to place, put

[The librarian placed the books on the shelves after collocating them in order.]

esconder

to hide, conceal, cover

[When E.S. absconded with the money, where did E. hide it?]

al cabo

at the end; afterwards; ultimately

cabo

end, Cape

[You can take a cab out to the beaches of the cape.]

parar

to stop, to block

[You need to prepare to stop when you see the sign Alto.]

alcance (v. alcanzar)

scope, range (v. “to reach”)

aguardar

to expect, to wait for

[A guarder is someone waits patiently in expectation that something might happen. Danger comes when you least expect it.]

luchar

to fight; to struggle

[The W and C in a British WC are each one a loo char. I struggle to remember because I think of Waste Chute instead of Water Closet.]

alforjas

saddlebags; panniers

[He threw saddlebags over the horse, all for Hoss.]

gruñir

to grumble; grunt

[He grumbled with a groan that hit my ear.]

lo que sea

whatever (“it that may-be”)

[The Marvel dentist said to Lokie, “Say ah.” Before opening his mouth, he said, “Whatever.”]