As I have indicated before, there are verbs in any given language that end up being “catchalls” – that is, they cover a wide variety of meanings and are replete with idioms. Here are three big ones in Spanish.
Dejar means “to let,” “to allow,” “to leave” and even “to quit,” while its reflexive form, dejarse, means “to let oneself go” or “to allow oneself to.” Here are some expressions with dejar.
dejar aparte: to leave aside
dejar atrás: to leave behind
dejar caer: (to let fall) to drop, let go of
dejar con la boca abierta: (to leave with the mouth open) to stun, astonish
dejar de: (to leave of) to stop, quit
dejar el paso libre: (to leave the pass free) to let pass
dejar en blanco: (to leave in white) to leave blank
dejar en paz: (to leave in peace) to leave alone
dejar plantado: (to leave planted) to stand up
dejarse de rodeos: (to leave of roundabouts) to stop beating around the bush
dejarse llevar de: (to allow oneself to carry of) to get carried away with
dejarse ver: (to allow oneself to see) to show up, put in an appearance
Quedar means “to remain” or “to stay.” It also means “to be” (location), “to be left over,” “to end up” and even “to choose.” Let’s take a look at some of the idioms using quedar.
quedar bien/mal: (to remain well/badly) to come out well/badly, to look good/bad (appearance), to make a hit or not make a hit
quedar con el clavo: (to remain with the nail) to be left with the doubt
quedar en los huesos: (to remain in the bones) to be skin and bones
quedar en paz: (to remain in peace) to be even, to be square
quedar en: (to remain in) to agree
quedarse con: (to remain with) to take (a purchase), to buy, to choose, to keep
quedarse para vestir santos: (to remain for dressing saints) to become an old maid (The Catholic church puts women of the church in charge of clothing its statues. The implication is that old maids have no one else to care for.)
quedarse sin santo y sin limosna: (to remain without saint and without alms) to lose everything
quedarse sin: (to remain without) to run out of
Hacer means “to make” or “to do.” In many ways, it is used just like in English. For example, you can make someone or something do something with hacer: Mi padre les hizo salir (My father made them leave). In its reflexive form, hacerse, it is one of several ways of saying “to become. ”There are various expressions using hacer, and some of these are also similar or equal to English.
hace frío, calor, etc.: (it makes coldness, heat, etc.) it is cold, hot, etc. (weather)
hace mucho (tiempo): (it makes much [time]) a long time ago
hace poco (tiempo): (it makes little [time]) a little while ago
hacer (alguien/algo) a un lado: (to make someone/something at a side) to put aside (someone/something), to dismiss
hacer burla de: to make fun of
hacer cara/frente a: (to make face/forehead to) to face, confront
hacer caso de: (to make case of) to pay attention to
hacer conocer: (to make know) to make acquainted with
hacer daño: to do damage
hacer de: (to make of) to act as, serve as
hacer el amor: to make (the) love
hacer el papel de: (to do the role of) to play the role of
hacer escala: (to make scale) to stop over, make a scheduled stop
hacer falta: (to make lack) to lack, to need, to miss
hacer fila: (to make line) to form a line, to get in line
hacer gracia: (to make charm) to strike as funny, to amuse
hacer juego: (to make a set) to match, to go well with
hacer la boca agua: (to make the mouth water) to make envious
hacer la fuerza/fuercita: (to make the force/little force) to make an effort
hacer la guerra: to make (the) war
hacer la paz/las paces: to make (the) peace, reconcile, make up
hacer la vista gorda: (to make the fat sight) to look the other way, pretend not to see
hacer leña: (to make firewood) to destroy
hacer mandados: to do chores
hacer ojitos: (to make little eyes) to wink, to flirt
hacer pedazos: (to make pieces) to destroy, break into pieces
hacer que: (to do that) to pretend
hacer recados: to do errands
hacer saber: (to make know) to let know
hacer sombra: (to make shadow) to cast a shadow
hacer sus necesidades: (to do one’s necessities) to go to the bathroom
hacer una apuesta: to make a bet
hacer una maleta: (to make a suitcase) to pack a suitcase
hacer una pregunta: (to make a question) to ask a question
hacer una visita: to make a visit
hacerse a un lado: (to make oneself at a side) to step aside
hacerse atrás: to move back
hacerse la vida: (to make oneself the life) to earn one’s living
hacerse tarde: (to make oneself late) to be late
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