Dicho español · Spanish proverb
«Lo prometido es deuda.»
Word for word
What is promised is debt.
What it really means
The closest English equivalent: A promise is a promise.
Said to remind someone that a promise must be kept, often when calling in a favor or holding someone to their word. Common in both serious and playful contexts.
Hear it in a sentence
Me dijiste que me invitarías a cenar; lo prometido es deuda.
You told me you'd take me out to dinner; a promise is a promise.
More Spanish sayings
- El que avisa no es traidor. — Fair warning is no betrayal.
- A grandes males, grandes remedios. — Desperate times call for desperate measures.
- Más vale un toma que dos te daré. — A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.
- Agua que no has de beber, déjala correr. — If it’s not your business, let it flow by.
- Todo lo que sube, baja. — What goes up must come down.
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.