Glossary entry

Spanish term or phrase:

"se les pasó la mano" (Does this mean that they killed her?)

English translation:

(Yes, they most likely killed her) they crossed the line, they went overboard, they went too far

Added to glossary by Oso (X)
Apr 3, 2005 03:25
19 yrs ago
Spanish term

"se les pasó la mano"

Spanish to English Art/Literary Poetry & Literature
The context is:

"No la busquen mas, seguro se les pasó la mano con ella."

From "De Amor y de sombra" by Isabel Allende. A mother is looking for her daughter who was taken away by the authorities and someone tells her to stop looking. Does this mean that they killed her? They "went overboard"?

Thank you for your answers.

Discussion

Non-ProZ.com (asker) Apr 8, 2005:
Thank you to all who responded!

Proposed translations

+10
4 mins
Selected

(yes, they most likely killed her) they crossed the line, they went overboard, they went too far

Hola N,
Sugerencias.
Buena suerte y saludos del Oso ¶:^)

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Note added at 2005-04-03 03:37:13 (GMT)
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Y lo reafirma más la frase que le antecede: \"No la busquen más\"

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Note added at 2005-04-03 04:46:38 (GMT)
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\"...Segunda novela de Isabel Allende. \"De Amor y De Sombra es un ***agudo testimonio de las dramáticas situaciones que se viven en ciertas regiones de América Latina***, al tiempo que un canto al amor y la esperanza.

Con ternura e impecable factura literaria, Isabel Allende perfila el destino de sus personajes como parte indisoluble del destino colectivo de in continente marcado por el mestizaje, las injusticias sociales y la búsqueda de la propia identidad. Este logrado universo narrativo es le resultado de una lúcida conciencia histórica y social, así como de una propuesta estética que constituye una singular expresión del realismo mágico. ...\"

http://www.yucatan.com.mx/especiales/sanvalentin/amor_sombra...

\"...Of Love and Shadows took me by surprise as a book that opened the eyes of an African American college student to ***many horrors and unspeakable crimes against humanity taking place in Chile under Dictator Pinochet***. I was very pleased with the way reading at times captured my heart, by immersing me into the subject matter intimately. ***Ms. Allende tells the tale of lives that were taken, changed and controlled through acts of evil, evil that controlled the innocent people of a nation.**** The revelation of events that took place in Chile as told by Allende, lets the world know of the wrong, the torture that took place for many years. Allende does a superb job of leading the reader in, and teaching history a part of history that is sure to be remembered, especially by the families of those who were subjected to undue cruelty. Allende\'s informative story telling approach definitely reaches the hearts and minds of all who read Of Love and Shadows, regardless of who they are....\"

www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0553273604/

\"Of Love and Shadows
Isabel Allende transports us to a Latin American country in the grip of a military dictatorship, where Irene Beltran, an upperclass journalist, and Francisco Leal, a photographer son of a Marxist professor together discover a hideous crime. They also discover how far they dare go in search of the truth in a nation of terror…and how very much they risk....\"

http://www.bookpassage.com/isabelallende/
Peer comment(s):

agree Flavio Posse
20 mins
Muchas gracias Kim, buena tu sugerencia!
agree Nora Escoms : Sí, seguramente están hablando de tortura...
58 mins
agree Adriana de Groote : Yo votaría por la última "they went too far"
1 hr
agree Gustavo Villar
2 hrs
Gracias Gustavo. Creo que abusamos de conector
agree Javier Herrera (X)
4 hrs
agree neilmac : Yes, they went too far...
6 hrs
Gracias.
agree Maika Vicente Navarro : Exacto
6 hrs
agree Marsha Wilkie : Me gusta la opción de: (surely) they went to far...
11 hrs
agree tazdog (X) : they went too far :-)
13 hrs
Geracias Flavio
agree Martin Harvey : They went too far and she's gone now. / They went too far and did her. A sad past of violence coins many expressions...
2 days 7 hrs
Something went wrong...
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "Muchas gracias, Oso :)"
3 mins

they went all the way

They went all the way with her, whatever that means. It means no more.

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Note added at 4 mins (2005-04-03 03:29:58 GMT)
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Isabel Allende uses pretty simple language.
Something went wrong...
6 mins

They overstepped the mark/ they overdid

Se pasaron de la raya, se extralimitaron.
Something went wrong...
23 mins
Spanish term (edited): "se les pas� la mano"

they probably went too far this time.

They probably killed her.
Something went wrong...
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