When "ahora" didn't mean what I thought

“I’ll pick you up ahora.” It was March 2017 and I had recently moved to Spain. I was making plans to go to dinner with a friend that evening and she texted me: “Te recojo ahora” which means “I’ll pick you up ahora.”

I translated “ahora” in my head how most English-speakers would translate it: now. And when we say “now,” it means SOON! Pronto. ASAP. So, I gathered my things quickly and waited for my friend. And waited. And waited some more. It turned out that “ahora” didn’t quite mean what I thought.

If you pop the word “ahora” into an online translator, it will most likely tell you that it means “now.” But there is more cultural nuance to this word! At least in Spain, “ahora” means something like “soon.” There’s another word (“ya”) that is often used for the type of situation when something is happening ASAP. So yes, my friend picked me up “ahora,” right on time, but not quite when I had expected 😉

This is one reason that I tell my students that learning a language is not just about translating word-for-word. We do well to also learn about the culture, how words are used, and the various meanings that one word might have in different situations. Plus, we can’t always translate word-for-word but instead should think about the meaning of the sentence and what the person wants to convey.

Human communication is a beautiful gift and also a delightful challenge and even more so when it’s in a different language! Don’t forget to have grace for yourself and others, ask for clarification, and laugh 🙂