SpanishDar calabazas
Meaning: To reject someone romantically.
Literally: To give someone pumpkins
Example: “Le pidió salir tres veces y ella le dio calabazas las tres.” — He asked her out three times, and all three times she gave him the brush-off.
English equivalent: To give someone the brush-off
Origin: Why pumpkins (calabazas) mean rejection is not settled. The explanation the Spanish Wiktionary gives is an old belief that pumpkin dampened sexual desire, so that a rejected suitor was, in effect, handed something to cool his ardor; it is not confirmed. The phrase also means failing a student in an exam, and Basque has borrowed it word for word. The claim that it goes back to ancient Greece has no source behind it.
Equivalents in other languages
Greek: Τρώω πόρτα Literally: To eat door
English: give someone the brush-off
More Spanish idioms
- Estar como una cabra To be completely crazy.
- Tirar la casa por la ventana To spare no expense; to go all out.
- Meter la pata To make a blunder or put your foot in it.
- Tomar el pelo To pull someone's leg; to tease.
- Ponerse las botas To stuff yourself with food or to profit greatly.
- estar en la luna de Valencia Completely distracted or absent-minded, oblivious to what's happening around you.
Explore another collection: Proverbs
Short sayings of timeless wisdom from more than 50 cultures, each with its meaning and origin.
- Antes que te cases, mira lo que haces Think carefully before marrying.
- De los escarmentados nacen los avisados People learn caution from bad experiences.
- El mejor escribano echa un borrón Even the most skilled person makes mistakes.
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