cara de caballo
/kaɾa de kabaʝo/from spelling rules
The English phrase "horse face" is translated into Spanish as cara de caballo.
cara de caballo is an informal and insulting expression used to mock someone's appearance, specifically someone with a long face.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of cara (face), de (of) and caballo (horse).
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
cara de caballo is an informal and derogatory term. For a formal alternative, you can use rostro equino.
How does it change in a sentence?
To make the phrase plural, change cara to caras, but keep caballo in its singular form as it functions as a modifier, resulting in caras de caballo.
How do you pronounce it?
/kaɾa de kabaʝo/
Did you know?
- The word cara can be used in a completely different idiomatic way to describe someone as 'expensive' or 'greedy' by saying they tienen mucha cara.
- The word caballo originates from the Late Latin caballum, which specifically referred to a 'pack horse' rather than just any horse.
- The adjective equino in the formal rostro equino is shared across many Romance languages and is derived from the Latin equinus, which is also the root of the English word 'equine'.
Examples in context
- Su rostro se asemeja al de un caballo.His/her face resembles that of a horse.
- No puedo dejar de notar su cara de caballo.I can't help but notice his/her horse face.
- No le digas cara de caballo.Don't call him horse face.
- Ese actor tiene una cara de caballo.That actor has a horse face.
- Me insultó llamándome cara de caballo.He insulted me by calling me horse face.
Example conversation
Two friends are discussing a mean comment from a classmate.
- Mateo¿Viste lo que le dijo a Juan?Did you see what she said to Juan?
- LucíaSí, le gritó cara de caballo.Yes, she yelled horse face at him.
- MateoFue muy grosera con él.She was very rude to him.
- LucíaNo debería haberlo hecho.She shouldn't have done that.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries caballo, cara, de, CC BY-SA 4.0.
