vérselas y deseárselas: meaning & examples

Meanings:

• 1.

  All Spanish-speaking areas (archaic)archaicliteral
  • Literally, to 'see them and wish them'; an old literal formulation without common contemporary use.

  Examples

  Beta

  • En el teatro antiguo, el verso suelto era una forma común de poesía sin métrica fija.

    In the old theater, free verse was a common form of poetry without fixed meter.

  • El poeta explicó que un verso suelto puede aportar ritmo diferente a un poema tradicional.

    The poet explained that a free verse can bring a different rhythm to a traditional poem.

  • Al leer el manuscrito, notamos varios versos sueltos que no seguían la estructura habitual.

    When reading the manuscript, we noticed several free verses that did not follow the usual structure.

  • La profesora pidió que escribiéramos un verso suelto para practicar la creatividad en la poesía.

    The teacher asked us to write a free verse to practice creativity in poetry.

• 2.

  SpainLatin Americacolloquialinformalfigurative
  • To experience great difficulty or hardship in coping with a situation; to have a very hard time managing or overcoming obstacles.

  Examples

  Beta

  • Durante la crisis, nos las tuvimos y deseamos para mantener la empresa a flote.

    During the crisis, we had a really hard time keeping the company afloat.

  • Ella se las vio y deseó para sacar adelante el proyecto sin apoyo externo.

    She struggled greatly to move the project forward without external support.

  • Cuando la tormenta llegó, los habitantes se las vieron y desearon para proteger sus hogares.

    When the storm arrived, the residents faced great hardship to protect their homes.