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SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY

Spanish Words of the Day: Se acabó

Expect to hear these two Spanish words plenty as they are very much on trend currently. 

se acabó spanish spain
A protestor holds a sign reading 'It's over' ('Se acabó') during a demonstration called by feminist associations in support to Spain's midfielder Jenni Hermoso, on Callao square in Madrid on August 28, 2023.(Photo by OSCAR DEL POZO / AFP)

Se acabó means ‘it’s finished’ in Spanish, ‘it’s over’. 

Acabarse is the infinitive form of this reflexive verb, ‘to end’ in English. 

As acabó has an accent on the ‘o’, that’s where the emphasis goes, so you have to pronounce it se acaBÓ.

You can use se acabó to say that something has ended, from a relationship to a film, but also when you’re angry about or fed up with something and want to say ‘Enough!’, ‘That’s it!’ or ‘That’s enough!’. 

Another way to express that lack of patience for something or someone in Spanish is to say ¡Basta! or ¡Basta ya!.

Se acabó has become the slogan of the social uproar in Spain over the non consensual kiss on the lips Spain’s football federation head Luis Rubiales gave player Jenni Hermoso after her team won the Women’s World Cup. 

#Seacabó is now a popular hashtag and many see it as the continuation of the #MeToo movement, so you can expect to hear these two words a lot in the weeks to come in Spain. 

There’s also the Spanish expression se acabó lo que se daba, which is a bit like saying ‘end of’ or ‘end of story’.

Examples:

¡Ya está! ¡Se acabó! Castigado sin tele hasta que hagas los deberes.

That’s it! Enough! No TV until you do your homework.

Se acabó! Me tienes harta y ya no quiero estar contigo.

That’s enough! I’ve had enough of you and I don’t want to be with you anymore.

¿Ya no queda pan? – No, se acabó.

Isn’t there any bread left? No, it’s finished. 

El sexismo y abuso de poder en el fútbol femenino se acabó, hay que echar a Rubiales.

Sexism and abuse of power in women’s football is over, Rubiales has to be sacked.

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SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY

Spanish Expression of the Day: En el quinto pino

What on earth do Spaniards mean when they say they're 'in the fifth pine tree'?

Spanish Expression of the Day: En el quinto pino

Spanish is a language full of rich and historical idioms. Often they can seem (to non-native speakers at least) completely random or unrelated to the point or conversation at hand, but learning a few is a good way to deepen your understanding and even show off to some Spaniards.

Showing that you’ve taken the time to learn a few colloquial phrases, of which The Local has explained loads and you can find them all here, will really endear you to locals and also help your comprehension skills. As is often the case in language learning, once you’ve learned a new word or phrase you’ll suddenly start hearing it everywhere you go.

On this occasion we’re looking at the expression en el quinto pino.

First, some translations. Literally speaking ‘en el quinto pino‘ means in/at the fifth pine or pine tree, but it’s actually colloquial phrase Spaniards use to mean that something is ‘far away’ or ‘miles away’. 

It could also be translated as ‘in the middle of nowhere’ or ‘out in the sticks’ and is generally used to mean somewhere physically far away from where you are and difficult to get to.

The Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) defines quinto pino as ‘a very distant place’ or a place ‘very far away’.

There are other colloquial ways of saying this, including en el quinto coño (in the fifth c*nt, it sounds terrible but the Spanish C-word isn’t as bad as in English) and a tomar por culo (to be taken up the bum), but these as you can imagine are pretty rude, even though they are used a lot. We obviously recommend that you either say muy lejos (very far) or en el quinto pino.

So, what’s the history and etymology behind the expression en el quinto pino? Is it something to do with being lost in the woods, or having to travel through a forest to get somewhere far away?

Not quite. The origin comes from Madrid during the reign of Felipe V in the 18th century. He decided to plant five large pine trees in the city, the last of which was located on the outskirts of the capital.

This point soon became known as a meeting place for lovers, and this is how the expression ‘irse al quinto pino’ first became popular, referring to the specific location in Madrid.

With time it slowly changed in usage and eventually ended up meaning ‘far away’ in a more general way that could be in Spain or beyond.

 
Examples:
 
Pedro, no podemos volver andando esta noche. La casa está en el quinto pino.
 
Pedro, we can’t walk back tonight. The house is in the middle of nowhere.
 

Tengo que ir a una reunión esta tarde y está en el quinto pino.

I’ve got to go to a meeting this afternoon and it’s miles away.

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