Día de los Inocentes
/dia de los inoθentes/from spelling rules
The English phrase "April fools" is translated into Spanish as Día de los Inocentes.
This phrase refers to the day when people play practical jokes or trick others. When revealing a practical joke, people often say ¡Inocentes! (Innocents!) instead of a direct translation of 'April Fools!'
When do people say it?
While English speakers celebrate April Fools' Day on April 1st, many Spanish-speaking cultures celebrate Día de los Inocentes on December 28th.
Did you know?
- While the English 'April Fools' is linked to the calendar, Día de los Inocentes commemorates the Holy Innocents, the children King Herod ordered to be killed in the biblical narrative.
- In some Spanish-speaking regions, the term inocente is used as a mild insult to describe someone who is overly gullible or naive in their daily life.
- The Spanish word día descends from a Proto-Indo-European root meaning 'heaven' or 'sky'.
Examples in context
- ¡Feliz Día de los Santos Inocentes! Espero que no te tomen el pelo hoy en el trabajo.Happy Day of the Holy Innocents! I hope nobody plays a prank on you at work today.
- ¡Cuidado! Recuerda que hoy es El Día de los Santos Inocentes.Be careful! Remember that today is The Day of the Holy Innocents.
- ¡Feliz Día de los Inocentes! ¿Ya tienes alguna broma en mente?Happy Day of the Innocents! Do you already have a prank in mind?
- Me hicieron una broma por el Día de los Inocentes.They played a joke on me for April Fools'.
Example conversation
Javier tells Lucía a fake story about winning the lottery.
- Javier¡Lucía, gané la lotería ayer!Lucía, I won the lottery yesterday!
- Lucía¿En serio? ¡No puedo creerlo!Really? I can't believe it!
- Javier¡Es el Día de los Inocentes!April Fools!
- Lucía¡Qué malo eres, Javier!You are so mean, Javier!
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries de, día, los, CC BY-SA 4.0.
