Andar de chicle

English translation: sticks to you like chewing gum

17:41 Nov 18, 2015

Spanish to English translations [PRO]
General / Conversation / Greetings / Letters / Mexican-American Expressions

Spanish term or phrase: Andar de chicle

I'm unsure whether this is a widely-accepted idiom in the culture, but a female speaker uses it to describe someone who is constantly nagging, sticking around someone "like gum" in self-interest and I can't find American expressions on par with this one.

"Como quien dice, casi casi anda de chicle."

JM González KudoZ activity Questions: 76 (5 open) (2 without valid answers) (1 closed without grading) Answers: 85 United States
Local time: 07:44

English translation:sticks to you like chewing gum

Explanation:
The metaphor works perfectly well in English, so I think you should preserve it in the translation.

This may need fine-tuning as you haven't given the full context.

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 hr (2015-11-18 18:43:44 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

"Porque mi marido nose puede quitar a un amigo de encima? osea siempre quiere andar de chicle con el."
http://espanol.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20070403...

"Pero a pesar de eso la quería como a una hermana menor, a la que se tiene que cuidar y proteger constantemente, claro que sin exagerar y no andar de chicle siempre que ella sale a bailar."
http://www.wattpad.com/118047107-nubia-capítulo-1-el-inicio-...

Selected response from:

philgoddard
United States

Grading comment

Selected automatically based on peer agreement.
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer

Summary of answers provided

4 +2

To hang around like a bad smell

AnnaHN

4 +2

sticks to you like chewing gum

philgoddard

4 +1

cling to sb. like a leech/cootie

Darius Saczuk

4 +1

Be a pest

Thomas Walker

a total pain in the ass who drains everybody's energy

Barbara Cochran, MFA

to be a pebble in your shoe you can't get out

Maria Riva

Summary of reference entries provided

Plain speaking

neilmac

Discussion entries: 1

Answers

14 mins confidence:

peer agreement (net): +2

To hang around like a bad smell

Explanation:
En inglés británico (y creo que también en E.E.U.U.) se dice que alguien es "like a bad smell" es decir que es nefasto y te sigue por todos lados.

Example sentence(s):

Anda de chicle; no nos deja en paz
She\'s like a bad smell, she won\'t leave us alone.

AnnaHN
United Kingdom
Local time: 15:44
Works in field
Native speaker of: English

22 mins confidence:

peer agreement (net): +1

cling to sb. like a leech/cootie

Explanation:
I have heard these two.

Darius Saczuk
United States
Local time: 10:44
Specializes in field
Native speaker of:

Polish,

English
PRO pts in category: 134

29 mins confidence:

a total pain in the ass who drains everybody's energy

Explanation:
Quizás.

Barbara Cochran, MFA
United States
Local time: 10:44
Specializes in field
Native speaker of:

English
PRO pts in category: 52

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)

neutral

Robert Carter: A bit strong for my liking, I just got the idea of someone always hovering or hanging over one's shoulder.//Yes, but the ST phrase is rather mild. My wife says that to describe some of her students who follow her around, it simply isn't that extreme.

28 mins

-> Not at all—this is a person who is "CONSTANTLY nagging" according to the asker. Hence, a "TOTAL pain in the ass".

neutral

philgoddard: Agree with Robert.

34 mins

neutral

Carol Gullidge: "Who drains everybody's energy" is over-interpretation; there is no mention of anything resembling this in the ST//haha, you jest of course. Very droll! It is not the translator's job to add opinions to the ST no matter how widely held they might be

4 hrs

-> Certainly not "over interpretation", since the asker says that the individual "sticks like gum" on others, and "nags". A tiresome person indeed, I would say, like some who seem to want to persist in their efforts to discredit me...

neutral

AllegroTrans: overkill and over-translation combined

7 hrs

-> Ditto the above comment to Ms. Gullidge, in your case.

29 mins confidence:

peer agreement (net): +2

sticks to you like chewing gum

philgoddard
United States
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 123

Grading comment

Selected automatically based on peer agreement.

6 hrs confidence:

peer agreement (net): +1

Be a pest

Explanation:
"El diccionario del español chicano" lists a page and a half of idioms of the form "andar + X." In them, "andar" usually translates as "be," "have," or "go." The expression "andar de chicle" is not in the list, but the Diccionario does list a colloquial meaning for "chicle" as "pest, uninvited person, tag-along." On that basis, I would think it would mean something like "to be a pest." I agree with Phil that the "nagging" doesn't seem to come from the actual phrase we're working on, but from the asker's interpretation. And without additional context, I'm a little hesitant to make it strongly emotionally negative, as some have suggested.

Thomas Walker
United States
Local time: 07:44
Native speaker of:

English

6 days confidence:

to be a pebble in your shoe you can't get out

Explanation:
"Andar de chicle" to me just means to be clingy to someone. For example my mother used to say it about me when I would follow my older cousin around everywhere. What I'm trying to get at is that being a chicle doesn't necessarily have a negative connotation (like being a nag) for the person, to me it just means being clingy.
It seems to me there are two qualities you need to express:
1) that the person is being clingy AND
2) that the person is an obnoxious pest
Maybe you need to combine two expressions, like the one I've suggested or like a bad smell that won't go away does as well. The only reason I suggested the pebble over the smell is because it implies the proximity of the annoyer to the person being annoyed; whereas a scent can be smelled by many.

Example sentence(s):

she's like a pebble in your shoe you can't get rid of

Maria Riva
Canada
Specializes in field
Native speaker of:

English,

Spanish

Reference comments

27 mins peer agreement (net): +1

Reference: Plain speaking

Reference information:
Usually I'd expect a construction with "to be" :"He/she is a pain in the neck, etc." An unwanted hanger on is sometimes known as a "spare"in English or a "lapa / plasta" in Spain, but none of these embodies the nagging part. In Spanish I'd usually expect "coñazo" or similar rather than the chicle expression, which is new to me.

Reference: http://www.wordreference.com/es/en/translation.asp?spen=co%C...

neilmac
Spain
Native speaker of:

English
PRO pts in category: 207

Login or register (free and only takes a few minutes) to participate in this question.

You will also have access to many other tools and opportunities designed for those who have language-related jobs (or are passionate about them). Participation is free and the site has a strict confidentiality policy.

Return to KudoZ list

KudoZ™ translation help

The KudoZ network provides a framework for translators and others to assist each other with translations or explanations of terms and short phrases.

See also:

ProZ.com term search

Search millions of term translations

Andar de chicle

English translation: sticks to you like chewing gum

Answers

Reference comments

KudoZ™ translation help

Your current localization setting

Select a language

Andar de chicle

English translation: sticks to you like chewing gum

Answers

Reference comments

KudoZ™ translation help

You have native languages that can be verified

Your current localization setting

Select a language