World Languages Lexicon
10 Language-to-English Dictionariespillar con las manos en la masa
Pronunciation / Transliteration: piˈʎaɾ kon las ˈmanos en la ˈmasa
"Los pillaron con las manos en la masa robando el pastel."
Comprehensive Definitions & Senses
2 senses- 1
To discover someone precisely at the moment they are doing something wrong, illegal, or secret.
"The manager caught the employee in the act of stealing from the cash register." - 2
To apprehend or observe someone performing a specific action that they intended to keep hidden.
"She was caught in the act of reading her sister's diary."
Thesaurus & Semantic Spectrum
Linguistic Origin & Historical Etymology
Derived from Middle English verbs and nouns relating to seizing or capturing (from Old French 'cachier'), combined with legal terminology 'in the act' denoting flagrante delicto. The idiom solidified in early modern English legal and literary contexts to describe apprehending a wrongdoer while committing an offense.
Which of the following is the closest synonym for "Catch-in-the-act"?
10 Global Lexicons: How "Catch-in-the-act" is said worldwide
Click any language below to open its dedicated Language to English dictionary page with native script & transliteration
prendre sur le fait
Transliteration: pʁɑ̃dʁ syʁ lə fɛ
"Il a été pris sur le fait en train de voler des documents."
auf frischer Tat ertappen
Transliteration: aʊf ˈfʁɪʃɐ taːt ɛɐ̯ˈtapən
"Die Polizei ertappte den Dieb auf frischer Tat."
cogliere in flagrante
Transliteration: ˈkɔʎʎeɾe in flaˈɡrante
"È stato colto in flagrante mentre rubava la bicicletta."
pillar con las manos en la masa
Transliteration: piˈʎaɾ kon las ˈmanos en la ˈmasa
"Los pillaron con las manos en la masa robando el pastel."
pegar no flagra
Transliteration: peˈɡaɾ nu ˈflaɡɾɐ
"Ele foi pego no flagra tentado abrir o cofre."
रंगे हाथों पकड़ना
Transliteration: range hathon pakadna
"पुलिस ने चोर को रंगे हाथों पकड़ लिया।"
当场抓获
Transliteration: dāngchǎng zhuāhuò
"警察当场抓获了小偷。"
현장 체포하다
Transliteration: hyeonjang chepohada
"경찰은 범인을 현장에서 잡았습니다."
現行犯で捕らえる
Transliteration: genkōhan de toraeru
"泥棒が現行犯で逮捕された。"
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