3

Years ago when I was in college, I had a teacher who used the phrase "Anda la juez." Sometimes she said "Ande la juez", so I'm assuming the verb is being used as a command, since it's in the familiar (tú) form in the first sentence and in the formal (usted) form in the second.

I didn't want to seem like an idiot at the time and ask what it meant, so many years later I will use the anonymity of the Internet to look like an idiot here. What does "anda la juez" mean?

Improve this question
9
  • 1
    I have never heard this expression in Spain. Where was this teacher from? It may be something specific from a country.
    – fedorqui
    Nov 11, 2015 at 10:45
  • 1
    The teacher was from Mexico.
    – Frank
    Nov 11, 2015 at 16:47
  • 1
    With no additional context, I would guess this is just an exclamation expressing surprise. We have many Anda la <whatever> idioms, where <whatever> can be any of a different number of words, all of them expressing surprise. Even just ¡Anda! expresses surprise.
    – Gorpik
    Nov 11, 2015 at 17:30
  • 2
    Another option: it may be just a variation on ¡Ándale!, a very common exclamation in Mexico.
    – Gorpik
    Nov 11, 2015 at 17:32
  • 2
    Me inclino a pensar que, si lo decía al despedirse, podría haber estado diciendo "Ándale pues". En este hilo de Wordreference.com explican que es una expresión que se usa en situaciones como esa.
    – JMVanPelt
    Nov 15, 2015 at 0:36

2 Answers 2

Reset to default
0

The verb Andar has several meanings. Among them

Ir de un lugar a otro (dando pasos).

Which basically is "to walk" or to "go from one place to another". It can also mean

estar (hallarse en un determinado estado)

With the connotation of "being in a particular state, condition or mood".

It can mean so many things that, given the short sentence, the lack of context and that we don't know where your teacher learn her Spanish is impossible to know for sure. The sentence Anda la juez is not a colloquialism or expression.

One guess is that it could be using the meaning of the entry #8 of the link

Obrar, proceder.

with the meaning "the Judge made a decision". Ande la juez would then be "May the judge make a decision" and Anda la juez would mean "The judge is making a decision/ the judge makes a decision". But this is just a wild guess of mine.

Again, there could be other meanings shall the sentence not be that short.

Anda la juez preocupada The judge is worried

Anda la juez encorvada/lentamente The judge walks hunched/slowly

Improve this answer
2
  • 1
    I disagree with this answer. Based on the OP's comments, the more likely explanation is a form of "andale pues"
    – Paul
    Nov 25, 2015 at 4:12
  • @Paul, completamente de acuerdo. Mi respuesta responde a la pregunta original. Tu respuesta, que ya tiene mi +1, es una respuesta "out of the box". Responde a la pregunta (resuelve la duda) sin responder a la pregunta original (basándose en la idea de que el OP no entendió bien la expresión).
    – Diego
    Dec 1, 2015 at 2:50
6

You state three important facts in your comments:

  1. The teacher was from Mexico.
  2. She said it when saying goodbye.
  3. It was years ago

Based upon this evidence, I would speculate one of two possibilities:

  1. She actually said "andale pues", but your memory may not recall the words correctly (I mean no afront to your mental capacities: we're all human and we all forget sometimes).

  2. Your teacher was using a play on words on the phrase "Andale pues". It is common in Mexico to say "Andale pues" just before saying goodbye. Also, if you are familiar with Mexican culture, we like to play with words. For reference, lookup Albur and Calo.

Either way, the intent of your teacher was most likely "andale pues".

Improve this answer

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge that you have read and understand our privacy policy and code of conduct.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.