In English this word means to be acquainted with, but in Spanish it is to be related to. The word means a family member or having to do with a family. There is another Spanish word that also means the same thing, it is pariente.
Familiar as stated above is a noun, but there is also a usage as an adjective. When you talk about something being familiar, it means that it is family sized. For example, the hammocks that we enjoy here in the Yucatan Peninsula are sized: individual, matrimonial and familiar.
The words say “it appears to you” but when asked as a question, it means “do you like it?” I think it could be translated, “how does it appear to you?” It seems to always be used when asking someone if they like what they see.
When we were house hunting for some friends I first became aware of this phrase. It seemed that every house we saw got followed up with the question “Y, ¿te parece?“
Menudo is tiny, small or insignificant.
A menudo means often or frequent.
Por menudo means to be exact or specific, to pay attention to the details.
Of course we know that cámara (fotográfica) means camera. Both words come from a Latin root which means chamber. In Spanish the word can be used for room, loft, house or even a legislative body.
But most interesting to me is that it is also the word used for an inner tube on a bicycle tire.
Cada tercer dÃa is an expression that means every other day. Literally translated it means every third day which would be every other day.
Huelga is the noun for the word strike, as in a hunger strike or a strike from work. There is not much to say about the noun other than to know its definition. It is used the same way we would use the word strike in English.
What is interesting though is the verb holgar. It does not mean to strike. It means to rest, to be idle or needless. It can also mean to be glad. Whereas the word strike has a very negative tone to it, the word holgar is not necessarily negative and can actually be positive.
Por debajo del agua is an idiomatic expression. Literally translated it is under the water. But it is an expression that means under the table. As in something done illegally, underhanded or in secret.
Note: This originally was posted with the expression as bajo el agua. Thanks to a commenter, this has been corrected.
