Dicho español · Spanish proverb
«Cuando el gato no está, los ratones bailan.»
¿Cómo se dice «Cuando el gato no está, los ratones bailan» en inglés? When the cat's away, the mice will play.
Word for word
When the cat is not there, the mice dance.
What it really means
The closest English equivalent: When the cat's away, the mice will play.
Used when people misbehave or relax rules because the person in charge is absent. Common in family, school, and workplace contexts.
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Hear it in a sentence
Cuando el gato no está, los ratones bailan: en cuanto salió el jefe, todos se pusieron a charlar.
When the cat's away, the mice will play: as soon as the boss left, everyone started chatting.
More Spanish sayings
- Donde manda capitán, no manda marinero. — The captain's word is final.
- La fruta prohibida es la más apetecida. — Forbidden fruit is the sweetest.
- El ojo del amo engorda al caballo. — The master's eye makes the horse fat.
- La curiosidad mató al gato. — Curiosity killed the cat.
- El que juega con fuego, se quema. — If you play with fire, you'll get burned.
More: Spanish sayings about animals
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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.