What does de frente in Spanish mean?

What is the meaning of the word de frente in Spanish? The article explains the full meaning, pronunciation along with bilingual examples and instructions on how to use de frente in Spanish.

The word de frente in Spanish means head-on, frankly, openly, up front, face on, walk forward, walk forwards, in front of, let's say it straight out, look at squarely, look in the eyes, be slow on the uptake, be on the ball, be quite smart. To learn more, please see the details below.

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Meaning of the word de frente

head-on

locución adverbial (por delante)

(adverb: Describes a verb, adjective, adverb, or clause--for example, "come quickly," "very rare," "happening now," "fall down.")
Los dos autobuses chocaron de frente y no hay sobrevivientes. El joven se miraba de frente en el espejo.
The two buses collided head-on and there are no survivors.

frankly, openly, up front

locución adverbial (francamente)

(adverb: Describes a verb, adjective, adverb, or clause--for example, "come quickly," "very rare," "happening now," "fall down.")
Me molesta la actitud de Sandra; nunca dice las cosas de frente.
ⓘEsta oración no es una traducción de la original. Selena is facing the boss about the missing merchandise right now.

face on

locución adverbial (con determinación) (figurative)

(adverb: Describes a verb, adjective, adverb, or clause--for example, "come quickly," "very rare," "happening now," "fall down.")
Esta candidata promete abordar de frente el problema de la corrupción.
This candidate promises to address the problem of corruption face on.

walk forward, walk forwards

locución verbal (andar hacia delante)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
Caminen de frente niños, basta de juegos.
Walk forward, children. Enough games.

in front of

locución preposicional (enfrente, delante de)

(preposition: Relates noun or pronoun to another element of sentence--for example, "a picture of John," "She walked from my house to yours.")
La tienda está de frente al supermercado.
The shop is in front of the supermarket.

let's say it straight out

expresión (sin rodeos)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
Digámoslo de frente, no nos cae bien el nuevo jefe.
Let's say it straight out: we don't like the new boss.

look at squarely, look in the eyes

locución verbal (sin miedo) (without fear)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
Pablo miró de frente a su jefe y le dijo que renunciaba.
Pablo looked at his boss squarely and told him he was quitting.

be slow on the uptake

locución verbal (coloquial (ser tonto) (colloquial)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
Matías no tiene dos dedos de frente, pobre, nunca entiende los chistes.
The poor guy is really slow on the uptake; he never gets any jokes.

be on the ball

locución verbal (coloquial (ser listo)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")
Tengo dos dedos de frente y sé que estás mintiendo.
I'm on the ball and know that you're lying.

be quite smart

locución verbal (ser listo)

(verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end.")

Let's learn Spanish

So now that you know more about the meaning of de frente in Spanish, you can learn how to use them through selected examples and how to read them. And remember to learn the related words that we suggest. Our website is constantly updating with new words and new examples so you can look up the meanings of other words you don't know in Spanish.

Do you know about Spanish

Spanish (español), also known as Castilla, is a language of the Iberian-Romance group of the Romance languages, and the 4th most common language in the world according to Some sources, while others list it as a 2nd or 3rd most common language. It is the mother tongue of about 352 million people, and is spoken by 417 million people when adding its speakers as a language. sub (estimated in 1999). Spanish and Portuguese have very similar grammar and vocabulary; The number of similar vocabulary of these two languages is up to 89%. Spanish is the primary language of 20 countries around the world. It is estimated that the total number of speakers of Spanish is between 470 and 500 million, making it the second most widely spoken language in the world by number of native speakers.