A pies juntillas
With one's feet together.
to believe something unquestioningly; **to believe something unquestioningly**; **to take something on faith**; **to believe something blindly**; **to follow something to the letter**; **without question**; **without hesitation**
A pies juntillas means absolutely, without question, without reservation, or blindly.
Se creyó a pies juntillas todo lo que le dijeron.
He believed everything they told him without question.
Mi abuelo creía a pies juntillas en las tradiciones.
My grandfather believed firmly in those traditions.
Siguió a pies juntillas las instrucciones del médico.
She followed the doctor's instructions to the letter.
No hay que aceptar a pies juntillas todo lo que aparece en Internet.
You shouldn't take everything you read on the Internet on faith.
Los alumnos siguieron a pies juntillas las instrucciones.
The students followed the instructions to the letter.
It is most commonly used with verbs such as creer, seguir, aceptar or cumplir.
For example:
Creer algo a pies juntillas
means:
To believe something unquestioningly / to take something on faith.
The expression can also suggest that someone follows a rule, instruction or belief to the letter.
- believes something without questioning it
- accepts someone's explanation completely
- follows instructions exactly
- obeys a rule without making exceptions
- trusts an authority or source completely
The metaphor is self-explanatory, which is exactly why it caught on.
The expression literally refers to having one's feet together (pies juntos), an image associated with standing firmly and rigidly.
It has traditionally been interpreted figuratively as describing an attitude of absolute firmness or unquestioning adherence.
Over time, the expression became especially associated with believing or following something without questioning it.
The expression can have either a neutral, positive or critical tone depending on context.
For example:
Siguió a pies juntillas las instrucciones.
is usually neutral or positive: the person followed the instructions exactly.
But:
Se creyó a pies juntillas una mentira.
is clearly critical: the person believed a lie without questioning it.
Thus, the expression does not itself necessarily mean that the behaviour is foolish; the context determines whether absolute adherence is being praised or criticised.
A pies juntillas is particularly interesting because it often overlaps with a rajatabla and al pie de la letra, but they are not completely interchangeable:
- Creer a pies juntillas → believe unquestioningly.
- Seguir a pies juntillas → follow without questioning.
- Seguir a rajatabla → follow strictly.
- Seguir al pie de la letra → follow exactly, literally.
The expression therefore combines the idea of firmness with that of absolute adherence.
Do not translate:
Se lo creyó a pies juntillas.
as:
He believed it with his feet together.
Natural translations include:
He believed it without question.
He took it completely on faith.
He believed it blindly.
For seguir a pies juntillas:
He followed it to the letter.
There are five hundred more.
The complete collection — no ads, on paper or Kindle.
Get the book on Amazon