cara de can

Galician

Etymology

Literally "face of dog", "dogface"

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈkaɾɐ ðeˈkaŋ]

Noun

cara de can f (plural caras de can)

1. (idiomatic) angry, fierce face

   Synonym: cara de ferreiro

   Marzo marzal, pola mañá cara de rosa e pola tarde cara de can (proverb)

   March March: at the morning a rose face, at the evening a dog face

   • 1934, Castelao, Os dous de sempre, page 127:

     […] os empregados non se deixan asoballar pola súa maldade, e o mesmo porteiro deprendeu a poñerlle cara de can. Somente Pedro é un manteiguiñas, incapaz de defenderse. A covardía do xefe cabalga na covardía de Pedro, para locí-las arroutadas que non é quen de descargar no lombo dos outros. Pedro sofre en silenzo; pero cóme-no as xenreiras, e non pode ollá-la cara daquel home sen desexarlle a morte.

     […] employees don't let him oppress them with his meanness, and even the doorman learnt to put an angry face for him. But Pedro is a poor thing, unable to defend himself. The boss' cowardice rides Pedro's, to show off the outbursts that he is incapable of discharging over other's shoulders. Pedro suffers in silence; but spite eats him, and he can't watch that man's face without wishing him death.

Derived terms

• a cara de can

References

• Antón Luís Santamarina Fernández, Ernesto Xosé González Seoane, María Álvarez de la Granja, editors (2003–2018), “cara de can”, in Tesouro informatizado da lingua galega (in Galician), Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega