What does "Sacudirse alguien las moscas" mean?

Question

I have a simple question. I thought the above phrase meant "to clear your head", eg. "tengo que irme para despejarme (para sacudirme las moscas)". However, I think I am mistaken. Perhaps I am thinking of the English expression "to shake off the cobwebs".

It seems it may mean "to get rid of someone who annoys you". I cannot find a satisfactory definition. I cannot find it in a dictionary and I do not understand the DLE definition, e.g. "Apartar de sí los embarazos o estorbos."

Could someone please clarify its meaning and give examples how to use it?

Answer 1

The definition from the DLE is:

sacudirse alguien las moscas

1. loc. verb. coloq. Apartar de sí los embarazos o estorbos.

Here "alguien" is the subject of the "sacudirse", not the object, i.e. it means that someone gets rid of obstacles or hindrances from herself ("de sí"), not to get rid of someone. Example:

se fue de compras con unas amigas para sacudirse las moscas

To see this is the way to read the dictionary, let us look at another more familiar entry:

tener alguien la sartén por el mango

1. loc. verb. coloq. Ser dueño de la situación, poder decidir o mandar.

It is "someone has the upper hand" not "to have someone" or it is grammatically incorrect. Example:

Yo no puedo hacer nada , porque es él quien tiene la sartén por el mango.

"alguien" does not appear to be the subject because the dictionary uses the original form of the verb without the conjugation, so "alguien sacudirse" and "alguien tener" does not look familiar.