Dicho español · Spanish proverb
«A palabras necias, oídos sordos.»
Word for word
To foolish words, deaf ears.
What it really means
The closest English equivalent: Turn a deaf ear to foolish words.
Advice to ignore insults and nonsense instead of engaging with them.
Also said as
- Palabras necias, oídos sordos.
Hear it in a sentence
Cuando critican su forma de vestir, ella sonríe y sigue caminando: a palabras necias, oídos sordos.
When people criticize how she dresses, she smiles and keeps walking — turn a deaf ear to foolish words.
More Spanish sayings
- No hay peor sordo que el que no quiere oír. — None so deaf as those who will not hear.
- Más vale pájaro en mano que ciento volando. — A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.
- Aunque la mona se vista de seda, mona se queda. — You can’t make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear.
- Dame pan y dime tonto. — Feed me and call me whatever you like.
- Dos cabezas piensan mejor que una. — Two heads are better than one.
Why learn dichos?
Proverbs like this one are everywhere in spoken Spanish — dropped mid-conversation, usually just the first half, with the rest left for you to complete. Recognizing them is one of the fastest ways to sound less like a textbook and follow real speech. Every Lingocito edition signs off with the dicho del día, so you meet one a day next to news written at your level.