a la cuarta pregunta

Spanish

Etymology

Literally, “at the fourth question”.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /a la ˌkwaɾta pɾeˈɡunta/ [a la ˌkwaɾ.t̪a pɾeˈɣ̞ũn̪.t̪a]
• Syllabification: a la cuar‧ta pre‧gun‧ta

Adverb

a la cuarta pregunta

1. (idiomatic) down and out; stone-broke

   Synonym: a dos velas

   • 1877, Benito Pérez Galdós, Gloria:

     -Mira, sobrinita, esto es todo lo que poseo. Los tiempos revolucionarios nos tienen a los pobres obispos a la cuarta pregunta.

     Look, dear niece, this is all I own. The days of the revolution have made us poor bishops out of pocket.

Further reading

• “a la cuarta pregunta”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 10 December 2024