- Forum >
- Topic: Spanish >
- "Cada loco con su tema."
311 Comments
I guessed "Each fool to his own folly" which sounds more proverb-ish.
I tried "everyone is crazy in their own way" which wasn't accepted but sounds reasonable
I would think that is really close to a translation of the literal meaning, but maybe not the idiomatic usage. Of course, that could vary between regions, I should think.
Really, though, "Each fool to his own folly," is quite nearly identical in meaning to, "To each his own." Both expressions are a reference to everyone having their own preferences. One is just a bit less kind about it.
In thinking more about it, I think you've hit on a perfect translation, BarbaraMorris!
I do not think that 'to each their own' is the correct meaning for this spanish idiom. I think that a much better explanation would be something like 'everyone loves the sound of their own voice', or ' the ramblings of a madman from up on his soapbox' I found the following very helpful :
Cada loco con su tema Each madman on his high horse. Each person has his own inclinations and passions which may at times be regarded by other, not-like-minded people, as “insanity”. This very famous Spanish saying is commonly used in situations in which two or more people are, although formally conversing, not in fact interchanging thoughts. Rather, each of them is soliloquizing and listening only to himself.
In the Lithuanian language, we have a proverb that is lexically very different from this one, but I think the meaning is similar to what you suggest. The proverb goes like this ¨Vienas apie batus, kitas apie ratus¨(literal translation: one (talks) about the shoes, the other one (talks) about the wheels). It´s used when two people seem to have a conversation, but they are really talking about totally different things, only listening to themselves rather than to the other person.
I'm thinking that "whatever floats your boat" is the most accurate translation here.
Yes that could have been a much proper "translation" than to each their own.
I'm not sure it's better. "Whatever floats your boat" is just a less formal version of "To each his own".
In Chinese we say各执一词，meaning each one holds on his/her own opinion thus no agreement exists.
I like this saying. I wonder, though, if in the United States we say "To each his own" more as "agreeing to disagree". Although given our current political and cultural climate, I think we could strive for more agreement.
the translation for this proverb in bulgarian is : Всеки луд с номера си... which in english could be explained as every man is crazy on his own
This exact same saying exists in Brasil, "cada louco com suas manias" translated as "each mad/insane with his manias/habits". Makes no sense what so ever how it is presented here.....
As a native English speaker, I can say with authority that "To each his own" has nothing to do with making judgments that others are "mad" and mania driven. Rather, this English idiom merely recognizes that different people have different outlooks and different way of doing things that may OR MAY NOT be better or worse than the way that you do things.
We have similar one in Slovak language: "jeden o koze, druhý o voze" meaning one (talks) about goat, another one about carriage.
The way I have always understood this phrase, used it and heard it used by others is in the context of one person doing or liking something that the speaker considers weird, possibly unnatural (but not necessarily wrong), or just doesn't like. I mean, I wouldn't want to go to Disneyland, I'd prefer to walk or canoe through the Amazon, but 'each to his own'. Some people 'get off' on dressing up as babies - 'each to his own'! In other words 'I'm not into it, but if you like it - where's the harm?'!
that's definitely the usage in english, but is it the same context in spanish?
In Hungarian we have "Ízlések és pofonok [különbözőek]" which means "tastes and slaps (differ)" as in everyone has different tastes, and it implies that you don't really understand the other person but you accept it.
We also have "Kinek a pap, kinek a papné" which means for someone [it is] the pastor, for others [it's] his wife
this one is kind of like a proverb we have in Norway, at least the part where i grew up; "Smaken er som baken, den er delt." Which literally translates into; "The taste is like the butt, it is divided." meaning that it is normal that opinions differ.
And also very similar with the one from Romania : "Fiecare cu ale lui" , which translates "Each one with his owns."
In Sweden we say (as they also do in Norway apparently): "Smaken är som baken., delad." (The taste is like the butt, divided.")
In Japanese（日本語）the phrase is 十人十色・じゅうにんといろ/ 'juunin to iro' which means 'ten people, ten colors.' It's one of many idioms called Yojijukugo which are made up of four characters.
In Russian we have the same proverb saying "у каждого додика своя методика", which can be literally translated as "every nerd has his own ways":))
in javanese the proverb says "ngalor ngidhul" it's mean "talking about north and answering about south". amaze how people talk about their proverb. Salut from Indonesia.
in Filipino we say, "kanya kanyang diskarte" for "to each their own style"
This is probably closest to the Spanish (which given your history I guess is not so suprising): Each crazy person has their own theme.
Almost the same as Norwegian: "Hver sin smak" (Everyone has their own taste/preference).
And we also have also "Smaken er som baken (delt)" (Preferences are like the butt (divided).)
Also in Poland we say: "ja o niebie, ty o chlebie" which literally means: I (talk) about heaven and you (talk) about bread. I like your koza and voz saying :)
114
I crunched some latter comments and this idiom will better translate to "proti gustu žiaden dišputát" what means "no dispute against the taste"
In Norway we have: "Hver mann til sitt", It roughly translates to: "Every man to his", but i think our: "Å bli hengt opp i seg selv", translates to: "To get hung up in yourself" is better in this context
- 327
In Serbian, it's: "Ja o klin, ti o ploču" and has the same meaning as what Ginterekim has stated above (used when each of the two people having a conversation sticks to their own arguments, not even listening to what the other person has to say.
Actually that reminded me of the following idioms:
Each marching to the beat of a different drummer. And : We are dancing to music no one else hears.
These might work really well because in each, someone is going to think it's crazy because they're not privy to the same beat/thought process.
“If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away.” - Henry David Thoreau
"And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music." - Friedrich Nietzsche
Woohoo! One of my dance troupes use the Nietzsche saying as our motto so it was really cool for me to see it mentioned here. I hadn't heard the Thoreau one. Thank you for bringing it to our attention.
That's almost exactly the russian version: каждый сходит с ума по-своему. Literally, everyone has its own way for going crazy
In Dutch the proverb is 'iedere gek zijn gebrek', which I think comes close to the Spanish version. Translated it would say 'each crazy [person] has its own shortcoming'. I think that sounds quite like your version, which I think is closest to the Spanish.
- 769
That is close to the Dutch proverb "iedereen heeft zijn stokpaardje" everyone has his hobby horse
it actually means to each their own. it has nothing to do with insanity or being on a high horse or whatever. it's actually similar to saying "if it makes you happy" or "you do you". and sorry, but "cada loco con su tema" is not used in that situation you mentioned. that is called "dialogo de sordos" (deaf people dialogue) and has nothing to do with this.
Yes, you are right, there are digressions but these idioms from other cultures collectively are fascinating to me. Maybe Duolingo will have a international page solely for this. Thanks for bringing us back to "cada loco con su tema"
I don't get the "high horse" part, but it looks like the most literal translation would be "each fool with his topic." So, exactly the same meaning as you said, and nowhere near "to each their own.
Hi :) 'high horse' indicates ego, feeling superior to the other and so figuratively looking down on them, usually being judgemental.
Also, I've noticed "duo-bot" tends to follow google translate very closely, and google translate called this, "To each his own topic." Still quite different.
I agree with you! In Russian there is such idioma - "everyone is going crazy in their own way"
Like I understand it (from your explanation) there's a idiom in Hebrew that translates to."on aroma and flavor you can't argue" this idiom refers to food and its meant to say that everyone has he's own favorite scent/flavor
This reminds me of something my toddler said: Everyone has their own saliva. What does yours taste like?
'To each their own' probably has a few different uses in everyday speech. One is that it's our polite way of saying 'ok, well I think you're crazy / talking out of your a*se but okay then' and the diplomatic thing to say is 'well, to each their own' i.e. everyone has their own viewpoint on things. I don't know where you're getting 'high horse' from out of the Spanish idiom - 'high horse' and 'soapbox' are not the same things.
I never did guess at how the expression is most commonly used. The 'high horse' thing was a quote from the website whose link I included underneath :) I was just looking to understand not the literal translation but how its actually used most among spanish speakers. I totally agree with what you said about the expression 'to each his own' but does not seem to be equivalent to how my source says it is used. Of course, I am not sure how accurate the source is ;)
From googling around through various forums, I get the impression that "cada loco con su tema" is used in the same circumstances that we use "to each his own", or "different strokes" etc.
Also, here's a Spanish definition of the idiom: http://tinyurl.com/cvc-cervantes-cada-loco. Here's my translation: "Everyone feels an attachment for a thing even though not always in a rational manner, which can become an obsession or a mania. It says that each person has their own preferences, their own manias, their way of "being crazy" to those who don't share their interests or aspirations."
So it doesn't seem to be someone looking on and commenting on how everyone is talking but nobody is paying attention to the other speakers, as is suggested by the "high horse" article. Strange, because that does seem to be written by a Spanish speaker (they say "we").
Edit: Fixed URL to use a tinyurl. I wish the duolingo forum would figure out how to handle URLs with question marks.
Thanks :) All in all I am guessing there is a bit of flexibility as to how one can apply / interpret the meaning. I love it. A good expression. I can relate to the meaning you offered.
Idioms can be better explained when we go beyond words and hunt for the meaning of deploying the phrase. In each language, there is a similar meaning with different literal construction. For example, in Arabic we say, "Everyone sings for his Layla!" It refers to a one Layla that is perceived differently by each person. Hence, cada loco con su tema!
Think about when you'd normally say, "To each his own." Usually, it's a polite way of calling someone crazy. "Él come el pulpo? Cada loco con su tema."
No your dwelling on literal meaning and NOT translation Cada means Each and Tema means topic/subject or theme... nowhere does it mention Caballo a Horse... I understand this is loco but your introducing a different quote... a similar or same meaning is not a direct translation.
You cannot often directly translate a quote that is a proverb using metaphor and analogies, as we use words to insinuate that are not literally there usual meaning!
So comparing another quote with the same or similar meaning is not helping learn vocabulary or conjugation, but understanding one particular quirk and exemption... it's much more important to realise you cannot translate quirky proverbs exactly to another language and assume they will make sense!
I mean adjectives are often placed in front of nouns in Spanish so we already must rearrange words when translating... comparing a different sentence is futile you can note the same or similar meaning, but you are not learning any of the usual rules of the language.
Shame I can't read your link. I was curious to read what you wanted to share. Link gives an error page message. I will try other way..thanks for suggesties
- 2650
This idiom is exactly the same in Dutch, "Elke gek heeft zijn gebrek." Interesting how it doesn't seem to translate literally to English or German.
'To each their own' is a completely different proverb if you ask me.
I think they mean the same thing (everybody has their own individual quirks). I don't think that the word "fool" being part of the idiom means that it only applies to fools.
- 2650
On second thought, I think you may be right. I think I always interpreted 'to each their own' as slightly different from what it actually means.
Russians have a very good saying - на вкус и цвет товарищей нет. Literally translated 'for taste and colour there is no comrade'. Meaning that every one has their own likes and there is no right and wrong or no two people are the same.
We have a saying in french that sounds the same: "Les goûts et les couleurs ne se discutent pas" = tastes and colors are not to be discussed.
- 77
The French phrase I've been expecting to pop up in this discussion is "chacun à son goût".
Wow, you're right!. The wiktionary page says the English version "Chacun a son gout" is a mangling/misunderstanding of the French "À chacun son gôut".
- 77
Ah, I've only known the term as something English speaking people say, like "cherchez la femme" or "à la carte" or that delightful phrase "l'esprit de l'escalier". There are so many of them - routinely mangled, I have no doubt. Well, c'est la vie.
- 216
... non est disputandum would be perfectly correct, there's no such word as disputarum in Latin
- 216
this Russian proverb means totally different (that's what was written in Russian) and I'd say I agree, at least in Russian it has a negative meaning, meaning each person has his/her own twists or mental issues (strangeness, weirdness) It's about the Spanish version of the proverb, while the one given as English translation obviously corresponds to sadly known "Jemandem seine" on the gates of Buchenwald concentration camp, which, in turn, goes to Greek principle of justice best known in Latin as "suum cuique tribuere" ( to give to each his/her/their/its own, i.e. by their merits, what they deserve, what belongs to them). So I would like to stress, that Spanish and English proverbs have totally different meaning, at least in Russian? and in any case they have nothing to do with tastes
The Spanish and the English mean roughly the same thing. The Spanish is literally "Each crazy with his topic" and suggests that everyone has their own unique interests. English "To each his own" also refers to everyone having their own personal tastes and preferences, that part of it being unspoken.
Example:
"He said prefers broccoli to chocolate? Ah well, to each his own."
Spanish dictionary translated this as "Everyone has their own axe to grind." This is a very different meaning than "To each their own"!!! It's also much more in line with the other comments about people talking past each other, though the "axe to grind" suggests that each person has a particular opinion that they wish to express and convince others of, usually to the speaker's benefit.
Thanks for that. I've been trying to think of an English idiom that actually means what the Spanish one does. Does Duolingo accept it?
That goes along with what @darrhiggs said in this discussion, "It's generally used in the case of two people talking past each other".
What @behtii says about French is useful here. The French "chacun son point de vue" is close to "cada loco..." and "chacun a son gout" is close to "to each his own".
I just looked at the spanishdict.com translations for "to each his own" again, and the third one has "Cada perico a su estaca, cada changa a su mecate" which seems like a direct match. (Each parrot on its perch, each monkey on its rope.)
For me, this settles it. "Cada loco con su tema" and "To each his/their own" are not equivalent idioms.
-
"Cada loco con su tema" = "Everyone has his/their own axe to grind"
-
"To each his/their own" = "Cada perico a su estaca, cada changa a su mecate", and maybe there are other Spanish versions of this.
In french we have "chacun son point de vue " litteraly " every body has it's own sight point " it means that every body see things differently (because we interpret what we see according to our experiences and knowledge). We also have "chacun ses gouts" -->"every body has his preference in matters of taste" or "les gouts et les couleurs ne se discute pas" --> "you can't debate on what tastes and colours are the best" . Those 2 mean that you have your own preference (you can use in matters of who you are attracted to, what decoration, cothes, games, food, .... you like)
The greatest value from learning the idioms, I think, is learning the actual literal meaning of the sentences in the original language, because then knowing the suggested idiomatic translation gives insight into how the new language works. In this case, the literal translation of, "Cado loco con su tema," suggests other English idioms that might actually be closer in spirit to the Spanish than what is proposed by Duolingo--although it would probably take someone actually natively fluent in both languages to tell (a Nabokov kind of hyper-multilingualism). But to my ear, and after reading the Duolingo, Google Translate, and other translations and reading all of these interesting posts, it seems like the English idioms that are closest to this are, "Everyone is entitled to his (or their, depending on where you are on that issue) own opinion." Or even (if the "craziness" reference in the Spanish version carries this nuance), something like, "Every dog has its day, or, "Different strokes for different folks."
Yes yes! I said just that about a literal translation a couple comments up :) But I have to stick in that "every dog has its day" doesn't mean anything like this at all, it means like "everybody gets their turn" in life. :)
I could not resist adding to the longest-running thread on Duolingo. Another idiom that is interchangeable with "To each his own" that is commonly used in the U.S. is "Different strokes for different folks". Same meaning but it has the added advantage of rhyme :) Cheers.
In portuguese we have " Cada louco com sua mania" its exactly the same in Spanish... I thought that in English it should be something like "each madman with their own" but i'm not sure
- 286
Or in Portugal:
-
"cada maluco com a sua tara"
-
"cada marado com a sua taradice"
-
"cada pateta com a sua patetice" (goof with his goofiness)
-
"cada esperto com a sua palermice" (smart guy with his foolishness)
-
"cada caramelo com a sua marmelada" (caramel with his marmalade/story)...
Most of these nouns can be interchanged with each other. The point is, there's no end to how many combinations people may create with this line of thought.
"To each their own" may be a negative or positive thing to say, though it may be excessively generic. Likewise, the context where "loco" is used can be a friendly or positive one (jokingly).
- 306
How can Cada loco con su tema, mean to each their own, When you translate each word individually and it comes out as, Each crazy with his topic ???
Idioms have meanings that go beyond the individual words, and each language usually has their own way of expressing the idiom's real meaning.
Consider an English idiom "To let the cat out of the bag". It doesn't have anything to do with cats or bags. It means "to reveal secrets". The literal Spanish translation, something like "Dejar el gato del bolsa" doesn't have the extra meaning that the English phrase has, so the actual Spanish translation of the idiom is "Revelar secretos".
- 306
Thank you Barbara, It would of helped if I'd taken more notice when I went to school as a kid I might have known what an idiom was, Not only am I learning Spanish. I'm also relearning what I should of when I was at school.
Me too. I think it's pretty much impossible to learn a foreign language without also learning a ton about our native language.
- 38
Loco can refer to a crazy person. Loco would be a crazy male person and loca would be a female crazy person. So it's not just the adjective crazy by itself here.
Word-for-word, the Spanish says "Each crazy with his theme." But the equivalent expression in English is "To each his own."
In French, they say "À chacun ses goûts," which is literally "To each his tastes." Different languages say things differently.
Reading all the comments here, it seems there are two different ideas being represented here. 'To each their own', I believe, refers to individual preferences, while 'Cada loco con su tema' means something like 'every person has their own priorities'. In Marathi, there are two such phrases; 'व्यक्ती तितक्या प्रकृती' (Vyakti titakya prakriti) which means 'there are as many natures as there are people' and 'कोणाला कशाचे, बोडकीला केसाचे' (Konala kashache, bodakila kesache) which broadly translates to 'some may worry about some things, but the bald woman is always worried about hair'
Every crazy thought belongs to its own story. Each craziness with its theme. Everyone has their own preference. To each his own.
GREAT explanation! Settles this matter as far as l am concerned. Again Latin to English literally:
Suum cuique => To each what's his
De gustibus non est disputandem => Of taste there's no argument
What does this mean 'to each their own' if Someone can help that would help a lot. Thanks
Aja150787: It means everyone has a right to his or her own opinions, lifestyle, choices, etc., as Rae. F says.
That would be a literal translation, but it would not be a very appropriate one. Translation is about usage, not word-for-word. One equivalent expression in English would be "to each their own". I'm not aware of anyone saying "each crazy with his theme" in English.
You beat me on that by about a minute.
Yes, it would literally translate as "Each madman with his theme." But it the idea being expressed is more like, "To each his own," than a flat word for word translation.
In Greece we have a similar idiom, but it is more like "cada loco con su locura"
"Each crazy with their own." Am I missing something? Some explanation would be helpful!
Word-for-word:
"Cada loco con su tema."
cada = each [one]
loco = crazy
con = with
su = his
tema = topic
Now we put that together and consider what "Each crazy with his topic" means. Everyone gets excited about different things. Or the common way to say it in English: "To each his own", which can be read as "To each [person] his own [tastes]". And that's the heart of it: It means that everyone has their own tastes and preferences.
- 192
"Iustitia suum cuique distribuit" was a Latin legal maxim popularised by Cicero in 45 BC. "Justice renders to everyone his due", usually shortened to "suum cuique". The legal principle was: Mind your own business, and let others mind theirs, as long as they do not harm you. Hence the traditional English proverb: "To each his own", rendered in these more inclusive times as "To each their own".
Agreed. That would tell us more about the attitude behind these idioms, which is more important. In fact, I don't know why I need to know the equivalent English idioms; it's not like I am gonna talk Spanish when English will suffice or vice versa. It's okay to know the English equivalents, but literal translations are more important.
Also I sometimes have to look up some of the words to figure out why the idiom means something similar to the English “translation”.
I agree that the literal translations are interesting, but I think it's important to know the matching idiom. We need to know which English idiom matches which Spanish idiom so when we're speaking Spanish, we know to say "cada loco con su tema" when we -would- say "to each their own" if we were speaking English.
Makes sense for new speakers who have to think of what to say in English before translating it to Spanish and then, speak it. But am not sure that's how it will work. Because new speakers tend to get out what they want to say without trying to get into idioms much. And by the time they start using idioms, they are more well-versed to use Spanish idioms on their own. I mean, by that time one gets to 'thinking' in Spanish, instead of first in English.
Having been born american (fact, not pride atm) I think "Whatever floats your boat" should be included in acceptable answers :)
Here's another try to summarize the idea: "Everyone sees the world through their own eyes."
I answered "it takes all kinds to make a world" and was not surprised that it didn't fly, however,the answer provided was to each THEIR own." With no apology at all to the Inclusive Language Police, 'their' is and should remain plural and not a gender-neutral cop-out.
What do you mean by gender-neutral cop out? Not only is it great that we are taking steps to correct wrongs that were committed a long time ago but it's better for the sake of avoiding confusion. If I read 'he', I have to check where I missed that the author was talking about a man.
I can't tell you how many times I received emails at work asking for help with an IT problem starting with 'Dear Sir'. Women are allowed to work now thank you! I don't want to be ignored as a gender in texts because 'that's how it's always been done'. That excuse does not wash anymore.
If it 'really' bothers you that 'they, their and them' are used as both plural and gender-neutral pronouns, why not change your outlook? For example, you could assume that those words are still plural because until the gender is clarified, we are talking about both a man and a woman. Just if it helps you.
To each their own is plural in a sense. It refers to everyone, and that's a lot of people. Makes it a plural. : )
What does "To each their own" mean in English? I feel like I've heard this expression before, but I don't know its meaning.
It means that people have different tastes and so everyone is entitled to making their own choices, regardless of what you might think of it.
Sometimes it can, but "cada" means it's about only one loco.
Edit: Also, "their" can be used as a gender-neutral singular instead of "his or her", so if you're doing a literal translation it could be "Each crazy person with their own theme", which DL accepts (see reinaelizondo's comment in this discussion).
There is also one similar polish idiom: "Każda pliszka swój ogonek chwali" ~"Each wagtail (kind of bird) praises their own tail". I think that meaning is the same.
That doesn't transport the meaning really into German, if I understand the comments of others here correctly. dict.leo.org suggests Jedem Tierchen sein Pläsierchen. or Jedem Narren gefällt seine Kappe. which are both more in agreement with the explanations of others in this thread.
BTW: "Jedem das Seine" can be heavily negatively connotated in German, as it has been used in the political concentration camp Buchenwald. Thoughtless use is to be avoided in combination with the Holocaust.
In plattdütsch (lower german) you can say: 'Wat den Eenen sien Uul is den Annern sien Nachtigall.' - one person's owl is another person's nightingale. And yes, it makes sense, coala.trac. 'Jedem das Seine.' is a good translation for the spanish idiom according to the discussion.
"Different strokes for different folks" is another English idiom that I like, with virtually the same meaning as "To each his own". It seems apply quite well to the many differences of opinion expressed here.
From the Latin: You can't argue about taste.
Suum cuique
Also from the Latin, which preceded the Spanish: To each its own
using "its" as third person possessive (non-gender specific) because that is what is in the Latin. If you are talking about a male then you mentally ascribe " his" or a female " her." I don't know how LGBTQ's were handled by the Roman's but I can't imagine that it would have been very good.
and alsow Russians say: 1. Ty mne pro Fomu, a ya tebe pro Eremu" ( "You are talking to me about Foma (Thomas), and I am talking to you about Erema (Jeremy)". When peoples speaks about two differernt things, but think that it,s one thing known for both of them.
Nunca escuché ésta frase ( cada loco con su tema) lo que normalmente decimos los Hispanohablantes es (cada loco con su locura) . Kinda (To each his own madness)
In Portuguese, the proverb is very similar: "Cada louco com a sua mania", which means: "Each madman with his own mania". Very interesting comments above, thank you all!
Does this idiom carry positive, negative, or neutral connotation? You'd think comparing someone to an insane person as not a nice thing. Such as "each their own" seems kinda neutral. But "each madman to their theme" feels a bit like an attack.
From what I have read elsewhere in this thread, the English idiom "To each his own" carries neither positive nor negative connotations, and the Spanish idiom "Cada loca a su tema" carries the negative connotation that the other person (cada loca) is loco in some sense because he/she doesn't share your opinions.
In turkish we have " Herkes aklını pazara yollamış, yine kendininkini almış ( yada beğenmiş) which means Everybody send their brain to bazaar then again buy their own :)
"Cada loco con su tema" reminds me the Greek phrase "O καθένας με την τρέλα την τρέλα του" which means "Every person with his own madness" and it is used for saying that everyone has his own manias,,passions,craziness,preferences, etc. I think that this spanish phrase is close to that.
I think 소 귀에 경 읽기 relates to this one in Korean. It says, "Reading a book towards the ear of a cow". It could get a little complex if I specifically explain about it since it's a traditional quote or something.. but it simply implies when you talk to someone who doesn't listen to you.
In English, "to each their own" means everybody has their own tastes and preferences. "To each [person] their own [preferences]."
In Spanish, it's a lot more idiomatic, but it means pretty much the same thing. "Cada loco con su tema" is literally "Each crazy with his topic".
I got it wrong because I typed 'Cara'.
I'm having a hard time hearing the difference between spanish D and R in words. Cada sounds like it could be spelled Cara since I keep hearing the R get rolled a little bit in almost all other words. Not like a double R (perro) but just a little bit rolled makes it sound like a D to me.
Anyone else? Am I missing something?
The "little bit rolled" sound you're describing is called an alveolar tap/flap. Its IPA symbol is ɾ. A fully-rolled R is called an alveolar trill. Its IPA symbol is r. The English R is an alveolar approximant, and its IPA symbol is ɹ. You can use this chart to listen to all the different sounds and hear the differences between them. http://www.ipachart.com/
No, that doesn't mean the same thing at all.
"To each their own" means everyone has their own tastes and preferences. If I like brussels sprouts, but you hate them, you would shrug at my weird eating habits and say "To each their own, I guess."
"Talking past each other" means there's a breakdown in communication. You're talking about one thing, but I think you mean something else, and vice-versa. After a while when the conversation starts to get confusing, we'd explain what we meant and realize that we'd been talking past each other.
I tried "and yet there be a method to their madness" ; NOT accepted, damn!
Because that does not mean the same thing at all.
"Cada loco con su tema" is literally "Each mad with his theme". It is functionally equivalent to our "To each their own" or perhaps "There's no accounting for taste". It is a comment that everyone has their own tastes and preferences.
"Though this be madness, yet there is method in't" is a quote from Shakespeare that is meant pretty literally. Polonius was observing that even though Hamlet seemed mad, his actions were controlled and goal-oriented.
Premise: I'm an Italian native speaker, using English as a way to learn other languages -spanish, in this case- with Duolingo.
The main reason I spent 30 lingots was to see how the idiom was built in the original language. Then how (and 'if' it was possible to get a satisfying sentence) in English.
I've read a lot of interesting comments, which were commented and appreciated by Spanish speaking natives, by English ones, by other people from all over the world.
Once I (hope that I) have grabbed the meaning which has more votes/consensus, and having highly appreciated the contributions of so many people from Norway, Sweden, China, Turkey, ... I feel that I have spent my 30 lingots in a very useful way, and that it was worth doing it.
In Italian, for what I know, I'd say that an exact idiom does not exist.
However, the idiom "Tante teste, tante idee" (meaning "Many heads, many ideas" when you consider the last word as 'points of view', or 'sentences') is rather close ...
It also seems to me that it comes from the Latin "Tot capita, quot sententiae" with few or no changes at all.
Rae.F below has commented with a better Latin translation that is more exact as an interpretation.
Can somebody explain me how I can use this in real life situation. An example would be good.
Well, if your friend was going to eat something nasty like peanut butter ice cream you could say, "Well, I personally don't like peanut butter ice cream, but to each their own." Or if your friend was going to do someting really hard like Battle Frog and you said, "I don't know why anyone would want to do that, but to each their own."
I tried to translate it on my own but got lost when I saw "loco". I translated it to somethink like "Each person has their own crazy theme"? With "tema" translating to theme, subject.
How does it go from there to "To each their own"? Where does the "loco" disappear to? It doesnt sound like a complete translation.
Word for word, it's "Each crazy with his theme". But translation is not about swapping out words. Different languages say things differently. In English, we convey this with "To each his own".
It's interesting how that is transformed into it's English counterpart. I've always had difficulty going from raw Spanish to making the sentence mean something that makes sense. Got any tips when translating?
There is no transformation. The Spanish expression is not based on the English expression and vice-versa. Both languages are expressing similar ideas in their own ways.
The best thing to do is stop thinking of Spanish (or any other language) in terms of English and take it on its own terms. Understand what is being said conceptually and learn how each language puts it in its own way.
Any native speakers know if this carries a more negative it derogatory connotation than the English translation?
Exact translation? Even if it doesn't exactly make sense it would be easier to learn knowing the exact words (the hints on this dont help) thanks!
I'm pretty sure this has been discussed on this page already, but word-for-word:
cada ~ each
loco ~ crazy
con ~ with
su ~ his/her/their
tema ~ topic/theme
This is idiomatic, but it's along the same conceptual lines as "To each their own". Everyone has their own individual tastes and preferences.
Is the usage of this mildly diminutive or rude? In English, "To each his own" is passive, but this seems like it could be a little more insulting a usage.
"To each his own" cannot be in the passive voice because it is a verbless phrase. It can be used somewhat dismissively ("diminutive" doesn't apply here either; we're not commenting on how small something is) although I'm not sure that's entirely the right word either.
"My favorite sandwich is tuna and ketchup on rye."
"Well, to each is own, I guess."
I don't think my question was clear. I meant to communicate that "To each his own," is passive in attitude, not in grammatical structure. (Diminutive I think was a typing error on my phone, as I'm not sure what word I meant to use there... maybe "disparaging", but I honestly don't know how autocorrect got to "diminutive".)
I'm not so much interested in the grammar of these phrases as their application in conversation.
When somebody says, "Cada loco con su tema," is this a little bit aggressive or rude or disparaging? In English, when somebody says, "To each his own," it tends to be a passive expression that communicates the matter is of no concern to the speaker, comparable to the now-common expression, "You do you." I'm wondering if this Spanish idiom is a little bit insulting, suggesting to the person you say it to that you somehow find them "crazy" for their perspective. Would love some clarification.
In French we say "chacun ses goûts", which means every people has her/his own taste.
No, because that's not the expression in English. Part of this lesson is to teach you that things don't always translate literally. Different languages say things differently, and in English we say "To each his own." Please read the other comments on this page.
In Chinese 各有所好 Gè yǒu suǒ hào = Each person has his/her preferences/tastes.
what does it mean, proverbial-wise? I translated it as "Each one is crazy with their topic"
Sorry, English is not my mother tongue so I'm not familiar with some English idioms. I did some reading, does the saying "you do you" have a similar meaning?
Yes. "You do you" is a newer expression and means the same thing. It comes from "to do one's own thing" -- it's the opposite of "go with the flow", which means to go along with what everyone else is doing.
Person One: "I'm going to go to the festival, eat all of the snacks, then ride on the Tilt-A-Whirl until I throw up!"
Person Two: "To each their own..."
or
Person Two: "You do you, boo." ("Boo" is a term of endearment/an affectionate nickname and is included here because it rhymes.)
In other words, that does not sound like my idea of fun, but if that makes you happy, go for it. More generally, everyone likes different things. Everyone has their own tastes and preferences.
I don't know if the translation is sub par -- maybe some Spanish native speakers can say -- but I like what the individual words mean together. Cada- Each/every loco=crazy (or craziness?)/insane/worried sick con= with su=their/his/her tema= theme/topic/issue. Which makes me want to believe this is close to "Each crazy person (or craziness) comes with his/her (its) own theme (or the way of craziness). Sort of like saying, " He is crazy, she is crazy and they both have unique flavor of craziness." But the translation seems to water this down to something no so interesting. Can someone comment? Thanks!
Every crazy person has their reason... to each their own... I hope this gives the translation further clarity.
Thanks! :) I was more talking about if there was a different flavor in the idioms between the two. More to do with the attitude, I guess. :)
Is this not literal meanings . Can someone help me . As a beginner of spanish i am feeling so confused
