The Language of Love

In case you missed this in yesterday’s AM Costa Rica, here is something for all of you enamorados (people in love). Enjoy!

Valentine’s Day or Saint Valentine’s Day is a holiday celebrated on February 14 by many people throughout the world. In Spanish-speaking countries the holiday is called Día de los Enamorados . It is the traditional day on which lovers express their love for each other by sending Valentine’s cards, flowers, chocolates or offering related gifts.

Below you will find an assortment of words and phrases related to the language of love.

Acaramelados – lovey dovey
Amor – love
Amor a primera vista – love at first sight
Amor juvenil – puppy love
Amorío – a love affair
Adventura amorosa – a love affair
Casarse detrás de la iglesia – to elope
Comprometerse – to become engaged
Compromiso – engagement
Cupidito – Cupid
Dar el sí – to get maried
Deshojando la margarita – “Does she love me, she loves me not , etc. ?
Dejar plantado – to stand someone up
Descorazonado – heartbroken
Desenamorarse – to fall out of love
Enamorarse – to fall in love
Echar el caballo – to make a pass at or to hit on (Costa Rica)
Echar el cuento – to make a pass at or to hit on (Costa Rica)
Echar los perros – make a pass at or to hit on (Costa Rica)
Echar el ruco – make a pass at or to hit on (Costa Rica)
Echarse la soga al cuello – to get married
Enamoradamente – lovingly
Enamoradizo – inclined to fall in love
Enamorar – to make someone fall in love with you or to enamour
Enculado – head over heels in love (Costa Rica/vulgar)
Encularse – to fall in love (vulgar)
Engañar – to cheat on your mate
Estar loco or loca por alguien – to be crazy about someone
Felizmente divorciado/a – happily divorced
Flechar – to sweep off one’s feet (love)
Juntados – to live together
Matricidio – marriage (matricide) sarcastically
Me atrae – I’m attracted to you
Me cae bien – I like you
Media naranja – one’s other half
Morirse por alguien – to be dying for someone
No hay amor sin dolor – no love without pain
No hay rosa sin espina – same as the last one
No hay amor sin interés – same as the last one
Perdidamente enamorado/a – lost in love
Pepeado/a – head over heels in love (Costa Rica)
Piropo – a flirtatious statement like “Dichosos los ojos que te ven” “Your a sight for sore eyes.”
Picaflor – playboy
Ponerle los cuernos – to cheat on a man
Rejuntarse – to shack up with someone
Romper or terminar con alguien – to break up with someone
Romper el compromiso – to break an engagement
Romper el corazón – to break someone’s heart
Ser infiel – to be unfaithful
Sonarle las campanas de la iglesia a alguien – someone is going to get married
Templado or caliente – horney
Tener algo con alguien – to a have a relationship with someone
Tener celos – to be jealous
Tórtolos – love birds
Traicionar – to betray
Usted es bonita – You are pretty
Usted es guapo – You are handsome

Humorous expressions about love:

Al Gato viejo, ratón tierno – old geezers like sweet young things
Asaltacunas – craddle robber
Caliente pichas or microondas – a woman who is a P.T. (vulgar)
Casarse con zeta – instead of casarse (the correct word to get married) means to get hunted instead of married jokingly.
Como en el amor y en la guerra, todo se vale – all is fair in love and war
Cuando de los cincuenta pases, no te cases – don’t get married after 50
Dar vuelta – to cheat on one’s mat (Costa Rica)
Del amor al odio sólo hay un paso – one step from love to hate
El amor es ciego pero el matrimonio abre los ojos – love is blind but marriage opens the eyes
El que casa por todo pasa – he who marries goes through a lot
Ella está con el hombre por el amor..por el amor del dinero – She is with him for love..for the love of money
Gallina vieja hace buen caldo – an old hen makes a good broth
La luna hiel – a bad honeymoon
Ir a la guerra ni casar no se ha de aconsejar – don’t get married or go to war
Ponerle los cuernos/cachos a alguien – to cheat on someone
Viejo verde – a guy who likes younger women