15 modismos en inglés que no significan lo que parece

Aquí hay 15 modismos en inglés y frases comunes que enriquecerán tu lenguaje y harán que te escuches como un hablante nativo en poco tiempo.

15 modismos y frases comunes en inglés:

1. ‘The best of both worlds’

Significa que puedes disfrutar de dos oportunidades diferentes al mismo tiempo.
“By working part-time and looking after her kids two days a week she managed to get the best of both worlds.”

2. ‘Speak of the devil’

Modismo en inglés que significa que la persona de la que estás hablando se aparece en ese momento.
“Hi Tom, speak of the devil, I was just telling Sara about your new car.”

3. ‘See eye to eye’

Esto significa estar de acuerdo con alguien.
“They finally saw eye to eye on the business deal.”

4. ‘Once in a blue moon’

Un evento que ocurre con poca frecuencia.
“I only go to the cinema once in a blue moon.”

5. ‘When pigs fly’

Modismo en inglés que significa algo que nunca va a suceder.
“When pigs fly she’ll tidy up her room.”

6. ‘To cost and arm and a leg’

Algo que es muy caro.
“Fuel these days costs and arm and a leg.”

7. ‘A piece of cake”

Frase común en inglés para decir que algo es muy fácil.
“The English test was a piece of cake.”

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8. ‘Let the cat out of the bag’

Modismo en inglés para revelar accidentalmente un secreto.
“I let the cat out of the bag about their wedding plans.”

9. ‘To feel under the weather’

No sentirse bien.
“I’m really feeling under the weather today; I have a terrible cold.”

10. ‘To kill two birds with one stone’

Resolver dos problemas a la vez.
“By taking my dad on holiday, I killed two birds with one stone. I got to go away but also spend time with him.”

11. ‘To cut corners’

Hacer algo mal o a bajo precio.
“They really cut corners when they built this bathroom; the shower is leaking.”

12. ‘To add insult to injury’

Empeorar una situación.
“To add insult to injury the car drove off without stopping after knocking me off my bike.”

13. ‘You can’t judge a book by its cover’

No juzgar a alguien o a algo basado únicamente en la apariencia.
“I thought this no-brand bread would be horrible; turns out you can’t judge a book by its cover.”

14. ‘Break a leg’

Frase común en inglés que significa ‘buena suerte’, a menudo se les dice a los actores antes de entrar al escenario.
“Break a leg Sam, I’m sure your performance will be great.”

15. ‘To hit the nail on the head’

Describir exactamente lo que está causando una situación o un problema.
“He hit the nail on the head when he said this company needs more HR support.”

Ponte a prueba con este ejercicio de modismos en inglés:

Para poner a prueba tus conocimientos recién adquiridos, aquí están algunas frases para practicar. Llena los espacios en blanco:

A) I can’t afford this purse! It _______. I won’t be able to pay my rent!
B) His birthday was supposed to be a surprise! I can’t believe you _____. Now he knows!
C) Ha! John has been promising to paint the house for five years…. Maybe when _______.
D) Yeah, it’ll _______. I need to sign some papers at Jenny’s school anyway so i’ll pick her up for you too.
E) I don’t really like going out to bars anymore. I only go _______.
F) I’m sorry I can’t come into work today. I’m ________. I have a sore throat and runny nose.
G) They tried ________ when installing the pipes for the house and now we have leaks only one month after purchasing it!
H) We missed our flight to Paris because the connecting flight was late and to ______ they made us pay for a new ticket as if it was our fault!
I) I can’t wait to see you perform on stage tonight! ______!
J) Jane is just never on time to work, it’s really annoying. O wow, ______ here she comes…
K) So we’re going to London, then Munich, then we will fly out of Athens, right? Great. I’m so glad to be traveling with someone I _______ with.
L) Wow, she found her dream man and has now landed an amazing job. She really does have ______.
M) OK, she might not be the most attractive but _________. I’m sure she is a sweetheart.
N) I have been trying to figure this out for ages. Thanks so much, you’re right. You _______.
O) I can’t believe that was our test. I think it was easier than some of our homework! It was a ______.

Así que, ¿cómo lo hiciste? No te olvides probar y usar estos modismos en inglés al practicar. Si quieres conocer más acerca de modismos en inglés, rellena el siguiente formulario y prueba el curso de inglés EF English Live.

Respuestas: 6, 8, 5, 10, 4, 9, 11, 12, 14, 2, 3, 1, 13, 15, 7.