An idiom is a phrase you cannot translate word for word. Here are the 26 most common Catalan idioms, ranked by how often you will actually meet them, each with its literal translation, real meaning, the closest English idiom where one exists, and an example sentence with an English translation, so you know what natives actually mean.
Common Catalan idioms are everyday expressions whose meaning cannot be guessed from the individual words. For example, déu-n'hi-do literally means "may God give him some of it" but is used to mean wow, that is quite a lot or quite something. This free page ranks the 26 most common Catalan idioms by how often you meet them, each with its literal translation, meaning, the closest English idiom where one exists, and an example sentence with an English translation.
All 26 idioms, most common first.
Guess the meaning, then tap a card to check.
Idiom list verified as of October 2026.
déu-n'hi-do
Literally may God give him some of it
Means wow, that is quite a lot or quite something
Example Déu-n'hi-do la cua que hi havia per entrar!
Wow, that was quite a queue to get in!
Note A very Catalan all purpose exclamation of surprise or admiration. The current spelling uses hyphens, but you will often see the older form Déu n'hi do.
costar un ull de la cara
Literally to cost an eye from the face
Means to be extremely expensive
English idiom cost an arm and a leg
Example Aquell viatge ens va costar un ull de la cara.
That trip cost us an arm and a leg.
tenir mala llet
Literally to have bad milk
Means to be in a foul mood or to have a nasty temper
Example No li diguis res ara, que té mala llet.
Don't say anything to him right now, he's in a foul mood.
Note Informal and a bit crude; it can describe a passing mood or a permanently nasty character.
estar a la lluna
Literally to be on the moon
Means to be daydreaming and not paying attention
English idiom have one's head in the clouds
Example Perdona, no t'he sentit, estava a la lluna.
Sorry, I didn't hear you, I was miles away.
ploure a bots i barrals
Literally to rain wineskins and barrels
Means to rain extremely hard
English idiom rain cats and dogs
Example No surtim ara, que plou a bots i barrals.
Let's not go out now, it's raining cats and dogs.
anar de bòlit
Literally to go like a bòlit
Means to be so busy that you rush from one thing to the next
English idiom be run off one's feet
Example Aquesta setmana vaig de bòlit amb la mudança.
This week I'm run off my feet with the move.
Note A bòlit is the short stick sent flying in an old street game, hence the image of being knocked about in all directions.
quedar-se de pedra
Literally to remain of stone
Means to be stunned and left speechless
Example Em vaig quedar de pedra quan vaig veure la factura.
I was stunned when I saw the bill.
no tenir pèls a la llengua
Literally to have no hairs on the tongue
Means to say exactly what you think, however blunt it sounds
English idiom not mince one's words
Example La meva àvia no té pèls a la llengua i sempre diu el que pensa.
My grandmother doesn't mince her words and always says what she thinks.
fer campana
Literally to make bell
Means to skip school without permission
English idiom play hooky
Example Els meus companys van fer campana per anar al cinema.
My classmates skipped school to go to the cinema.
Note It refers to skipping school, not to missing work.
tocar ferro
Literally to touch iron
Means to ward off bad luck after mentioning something you hope will not happen
English idiom knock on wood
Example Fins ara no hem tingut cap problema amb el cotxe, toquem ferro.
So far we haven't had any trouble with the car, touch wood.
Note Catalans touch iron rather than wood, so people reach for a key or a metal chair leg.
fer l'orni
Literally to play the orni
Means to pretend not to notice or understand something
English idiom play dumb
Example No facis l'orni, saps perfectament què ha passat.
Don't play dumb, you know perfectly well what happened.
Note The word orni exists only in this expression, and you will also hear the variant fer-se l'orni.
passar-s'ho pipa
Literally to pass it pipe
Means to have a great time
English idiom have a blast
Example A la festa d'ahir ens ho vam passar pipa.
We had a blast at yesterday's party.
Note Very informal and mostly spoken; passar-s'ho bomba is used the same way.
estar tocat del bolet
Literally to be touched by the mushroom
Means to be a bit crazy or to behave oddly
English idiom have a screw loose
Example Vol creuar els Pirineus a peu al gener, està tocat del bolet.
He wants to cross the Pyrenees on foot in January, he's got a screw loose.
Note Informal, and usually said as a joke between friends.
posar fil a l'agulla
Literally to put thread to the needle
Means to start working on something in earnest
English idiom get down to business
Example Prou de reunions, ja toca posar fil a l'agulla.
Enough meetings, it's time to get down to business.
fer safareig
Literally to do the wash house
Means to gossip about other people
Example Les veïnes es passen el matí fent safareig al replà.
The neighbours spend the morning gossiping on the landing.
Note The image is the old public wash house, where neighbours did the laundry and swapped news.
tenir la paella pel mànec
Literally to hold the frying pan by the handle
Means to be the one in control of a situation
English idiom hold all the cards
Example En aquesta negociació, som nosaltres qui tenim la paella pel mànec.
In this negotiation, we're the ones holding all the cards.
tocar el dos
Literally to touch the two
Means to leave in a hurry, to get out of a place
English idiom make oneself scarce
Example Va, toca el dos abans que arribi el professor.
Come on, make yourself scarce before the teacher gets here.
fer-ne un gra massa
Literally to make one grain too many of it
Means to overdo something or take it too far
English idiom go overboard
Example Amb la broma sobre el seu pare n'has fet un gra massa.
You went overboard with that joke about his father.
s'ha acabat el bròquil
Literally the broccoli has run out
Means that is the end of it, there is nothing more to discuss
English idiom end of story
Example A les deu tothom al llit i s'ha acabat el bròquil.
Everyone in bed at ten, end of story.
Note Typical of a parent or a boss closing an argument. It goes back to a cheap Barcelona eating house that closed at the end of the nineteenth century.
buscar tres peus al gat
Literally to look for three feet on the cat
Means to overcomplicate things or look for problems that are not there
Example No busquis tres peus al gat, la resposta és molt senzilla.
Don't overcomplicate it, the answer is very simple.
tenir la mosca darrere l'orella
Literally to have the fly behind the ear
Means to be on guard because you suspect something is wrong
English idiom smell a rat
Example Des que va canviar d'horari, tinc la mosca darrere l'orella.
Ever since she changed her hours, I've had my suspicions.
clar i català
Literally clear and Catalan
Means plainly and directly, without dressing it up
English idiom in plain English
Example Digues-m'ho clar i català: vols venir o no?
Tell me in plain English: do you want to come or not?
Note Catalan speakers name their own language here the way English speakers say in plain English.
n'hi ha per llogar-hi cadires
Literally there is enough there to rent out chairs
Means the situation is so outrageous or unbelievable that it deserves an audience
English idiom you couldn't make it up
Example Ha arribat tard i encara es queixa: n'hi ha per llogar-hi cadires.
He turned up late and still complains, you couldn't make it up.
fer el préssec
Literally to make the peach
Means to end up looking ridiculous in front of others
English idiom make a fool of oneself
Example Es va equivocar de dia i va fer el préssec davant de tothom.
He got the day wrong and made a fool of himself in front of everyone.
anar-se'n en orris
Literally to go off into ruin
Means to fall through and come to nothing
English idiom go up in smoke
Example Amb la pluja, l'excursió se'n va anar en orris.
With the rain, the hike went up in smoke.
estirar més el braç que la màniga
Literally to stretch the arm further than the sleeve
Means to spend more money than you can afford
English idiom live beyond one's means
Example Han comprat un pis caríssim; han estirat més el braç que la màniga.
They bought a very expensive flat, they're living beyond their means.
An idiom is a phrase whose meaning is fixed by convention, not built from its words. That is why a word-for-word translation fails: Déu-n'hi-do comes out as "may God give him some of it", which makes no sense until you know it means wow, that is quite a lot or quite something.
Learn a few at a time, not a whole list. Pick the ones you keep running into, say them out loud in a real sentence, and you will remember them far longer than by drilling flashcards.
The most reliable way to absorb idioms is to meet them in context, again and again, in things you actually read. Parallel text and audio let you catch an idiom in a real Catalan sentence and check what it means without breaking your reading. That is what reading in Lingo7 is built for.
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The most common Catalan idioms, ranked by everyday frequency, start with déu-n'hi-do, costar un ull de la cara, tenir mala llet, estar a la lluna, ploure a bots i barrals. Each one means something you could not guess from the words alone, which is exactly why learners have to meet them in context. This page lists 26 of them with meanings and example sentences.
Literally "may God give him some of it". It means wow, that is quite a lot or quite something. Example: Déu-n'hi-do la cua que hi havia per entrar! ("Wow, that was quite a queue to get in!")
Literally "to cost an eye from the face". It means to be extremely expensive. The closest English idiom is "cost an arm and a leg". Example: Aquell viatge ens va costar un ull de la cara. ("That trip cost us an arm and a leg.")
Literally "to have bad milk". It means to be in a foul mood or to have a nasty temper. Example: No li diguis res ara, que té mala llet. ("Don't say anything to him right now, he's in a foul mood.")
Literally "to be on the moon". It means to be daydreaming and not paying attention. The closest English idiom is "have one's head in the clouds". Example: Perdona, no t'he sentit, estava a la lluna. ("Sorry, I didn't hear you, I was miles away.")
Literally "to rain wineskins and barrels". It means to rain extremely hard. The closest English idiom is "rain cats and dogs". Example: No surtim ara, que plou a bots i barrals. ("Let's not go out now, it's raining cats and dogs.")
Literally "to go like a bòlit". It means to be so busy that you rush from one thing to the next. The closest English idiom is "be run off one's feet". Example: Aquesta setmana vaig de bòlit amb la mudança. ("This week I'm run off my feet with the move.")
Literally "to remain of stone". It means to be stunned and left speechless. Example: Em vaig quedar de pedra quan vaig veure la factura. ("I was stunned when I saw the bill.")
Literally "to have no hairs on the tongue". It means to say exactly what you think, however blunt it sounds. The closest English idiom is "not mince one's words". Example: La meva àvia no té pèls a la llengua i sempre diu el que pensa. ("My grandmother doesn't mince her words and always says what she thinks.")
The Catalan equivalent is "costar un ull de la cara", literally "to cost an eye from the face". Example: Aquell viatge ens va costar un ull de la cara. ("That trip cost us an arm and a leg.")
In Catalan, an idiom is called frase feta, and a proverb is refrany. A frase feta is a fixed expression that works as a piece of a sentence, while a refrany is a complete saying that passes on folk wisdom or advice. You will also hear refranys called dites.
Idioms are non-compositional: their meaning is fixed by convention, not built from the individual words. Déu-n'hi-do translates literally as "may God give him some of it", yet it means wow, that is quite a lot or quite something. Translate word for word and you get nonsense, so idioms have to be learned as whole units.
The fastest way is to meet them in context and reuse them, not to memorize a list. Learn a handful at a time, notice them while reading and listening, and try them in your own sentences. Reading real Catalan with tap-to-translate, the way Lingo7 works, turns every page into idiom practice.