poco inteligente
/poko intelixente/from spelling rules
The English phrase 'not smart' can be translated into Spanish as poco inteligente.
The phrase is used to describe someone who lacks intelligence or is not clever.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of poco (little/not much) and inteligente (intelligent).
Which one should you use?
While no es inteligente literally means 'is not intelligent', using the euphemistic poco inteligente (little intelligent) is a more polite way to express that someone is not smart.
How does it change in a sentence?
As an adjective phrase, poco inteligente must agree in gender with the person being described: poco inteligente for both masculine and feminine, but if using a noun like 'persona', it remains poco inteligente.
Did you know?
- While poco inteligente is a formal way to express a lack of intelligence, the word corto is often used in slang to mean someone is 'short' on wits or intelligence.
- In some Spanish-speaking contexts, you can describe someone as lento, which literally means 'slow', to imply they are not smart without using any words related to intelligence at all.
- The word poco is a distant relative of the English word 'few'. Both trace their origins back to the Proto-Indo-European root *peh₂ukos.
Examples in context
- Ana no es muy inteligente en matemáticas.Ana is not very smart in mathematics.
- Martín es poco astuto para los negocios.Martín is not very smart when it comes to business.
- La falta de inteligencia de Juan lo llevó a tomar decisiones equivocadas.Juan's lack of intelligence led him to make wrong decisions.
- María se comportó como una tonta al olvidar su propia contraseña.María acted like a fool by forgetting her own password.
- No seas bobo, saber que los extraterrestres no existen es obvio.Don't be silly, knowing that aliens don't exist is obvious.
- Pedro no es muy listo, siempre confunde las fechas de entrega.Pedro is not very smart, he always confuses the delivery dates.
- Ese actor es poco inteligente.That actor is not smart.
Example conversation
María and Alejandro are discussing a character in a movie.
- María¿Crees que el protagonista es inteligente?Do you think the protagonist is smart?
- AlejandroNo, creo que es poco inteligente.No, I think he is not smart.
- MaríaTienes razón, sus decisiones son malas.You are right, his decisions are bad.
- AlejandroEs un personaje poco inteligente, definitivamente.He is a not smart character, definitely.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries inteligente, poco, CC BY-SA 4.0.
