The work “board” (tabla, tablero) you may know. There are other uses. There are “chess boards” (tableros de ajedrez), ironing boards (tablas de planchar), and notice boards (tablones de anuncios).

Sometimes mortals stay in a hotel on “half board” (media pensión) or full board. Mortals “get on board (a bordo) a ship”. So Mr. Trump is on board his yacht (…está a bordo de su yate).

A company will have a “board of directors” (junta directiva) and company boards hold “board meetings (reuniones de la junta), and colleges or schools often (a menudo) have a “board of governors” (consejo
de un colegio).

“To be on board” is different. It means to be in agreement (to be in agreement = estar de acuerdo) with a policy (póliza) or idea. Two examples:

• With Donald Trump “on board” (con Donald Trump a bordo), the project (proyecto) could be a success (…podría ser un éxito).

• It would be better (sería mejor…) if Mr. Sánchez were on board (…estuviera de acuerdo con la política…) with the policy of lower taxes.

If you would like to ask someone if the mortal be in agreement with something, you can say:

• Are you on board (¿estás de acuerdo con…) with the idea/plan?

• Are you on board with the conditions of the loan (…las condiciones del préstamo)?

So, are you on board with the idea of lower taxes?

“Cusp” (umbral de, cúspide) has two important meanings.

First, the easy part. A cusp is the pointed end of something, perhaps a leaf or a mountain. Use your cerebral hemisphere to contemplate these examples.

• The cusp of Mount Teide (cúspide) is visible above the clouds (nubes). You could also say that the “tip” (punta) of Teide…

• Hold the sword (espada) with the cusp up (or pointed end).

Now, another meaning. To be “on the cusp of” means an important change, that something is about to change. Some examples:

• Great Britain is on the cusp of economic chaos (…cúspide de caos económico), given the socialist government ́s spending and high taxes. You could also say that Great Britain is on the border of economic collapse (al borde de…)

• Mr. Sanchez ́s government is on the cusp of big cabinet (gabinete) changes.

• Andrew is on the cusp of enormous changes in his life with the new website Suffrago.org.

So, are you on the cusp of changes in your life?

“Brick” (ladrillo) you may know. Normally, builders (constructores) use bricks to build houses.

There are some expressions that use “brick”. Contemplate the following:

• Sometimes mortals “drop a brick” (meter la pata, tirarse una plancha) or “put their foot in it”.

An example: Mr. Starmer (the British Prime Minister) is always “dropping bricks”, that is, making big mistakes with his decisions and his leadership (liderazgo).

• People sometimes “come down on a person like a ton of bricks” (echar una bronca de miedo a alguien). This means that the people punish (castigar) or criticise someone in a harsh (duro) or severe (severo) way.

A mortal can also “be a brick” (un buen chico, o un pan de Dios), that is trustworthy (de confianza) and loyal (leal) in difficult situations.

So are you a brick? Have you ever dropped a brick?

To “shout” (gritar) you may know. The noun (substantivo) is a shout (grito).

Sometimes mortals shout to someone in the distance (in order to be heard), and when a person is angry there is a “shout of anger” (un grito de ira).

Mortals can also “shout for joy” (un grito de alegría). So, some people in Britain may shout for joy when the current government loses the next election!

So, what is “my shout”?

It is colloquial and a mortal will say the phrase when he wants to pay a restaurant or bar bill (cuenta). It is my shout = me toca pagar esta ronda.

So, perhaps you sometimes shout for joy, or in anger, and pay the cafe bill!

Onion (cebolla) you may know. And “know” (saber o conocer) too.

There are “onion rings” (aros de cebolla), “spring onions” (cebolletas), “red onions” (cebollas rojas) and “pickled onions” (cebolletas en vinagre).

So, do you know your onions? To “know your onions” is a phrase. If a mortal knows “his onions” he knows his subject or he has a lot of knowledge about something.

Perhaps in Spanish the phrase could mean “dominar el tema o saber mucho de algo”.

Here are 4 examples.

• You need to know your onions before starting a business (necesitas saber de qué van las cosas antes de iniciar un negocio)

• Mrs. Reeves, the Chancellor of the Exchequer (ministro de hacienda y economía) in Great Britain, should know her onions when it comes to finance (…debería saber mucho de finanzas).

• Mr. Sánchez does not know his onions when it comes to the economy.

• Vanesa knows her onions when it comes to banking.

So, when it comes to finance (cuando se trata de finanzas…), do you know your onions?

Butterfly (mariposa) you may know, and stomach (estómago) too.

Some mortals go swimming and the stroke (estilo) is “butterfly” (mariposa).
If a mortal has butterflies in his stomach, it means that he is nervous (nervioso).
An example:

• I have got butterflies in my stomach (tengo los nervios en el estómago o estoy nervioso).

So perhaps you have butterflies in your garden and in your stomach!

To “deem” is to express an opinion, to judge something , or to consider something (juzgar, considerar, estimar).

In the English exams, re Cambridge and Oxford, you could use the phrase “I deem that…”. You could also say that I think that, “I opine that” (opino que), and “I posit that” (postulo que…).

So there are many options to say the same, and in the English exams using “I deem that…” will get you extra marks (notas).

Some examples:

• Mr. Sánchez has deemed (ha considerado…) that the Senate´s (el senado) verdict (veredicto) as very unfair.

• I deem that your opinión about the Spanish economy is incorrect.

• What do you deem about the taxes in Spain (¿qué opinas de / que consideras sobre…) Too high?

So, what do you deem about the importance of organic vegetables?

“Whale” (ballena) you may know. There are many types of whales: 90 species (especies).

So, what does “have a whale of a time” mean? It means to have an enjoyable time or a lot of fun.

Perhaps in Spanish a mortal might say one of these: ¡Pasarlo bomba!, ¡Pasarlo genial!, ¡Pasarlo en grande!, ¡Pasarla de maravilla!, o ¡Disfrutar como un enano!

There is also another expression: a whale of difference (= una enorme diferencia). Two examples:

• There is a whale of difference between the policies (las políticas) of Mr. Feijoo and Mr. Sánchez.

• There is a whale of difference between junk food (comida de la basura) and organic food.

So, is there a whale of difference between yourself and Mr. Sánchez in your opinion about the Spanish economy?

When a mortal asks you “how art thou” (tu)? Or how are you (usted)?, a reply could be “middling” or “fair to middling”.

“Middling” is an adjective = mediano o regular o OK. So, how art thou?

“Middling” (¿qué tal estás? – regular).

You could also say “fair to middling” with the same meaning. The phrase can also refer to conditions or progress. Some examples:

• How is the project going? “Fair to middling”.

• How is life in Patagonia? “Fair to middling”.

• How was the film? The film was fair to middling (…estaba así, así).

So, how is life? Fair to middling?