Estar hasta las narices

to be fed up; **to be fed up**; **to be sick and tired of**; **to have had enough**; **to be tired of**

Estar hasta las narices means to be completely fed up with a person, situation or repeated behaviour.

The speaker has reached the limit of their patience.

The expression often conveys irritation, exhaustion or frustration after something has happened repeatedly.

Someone may be hasta las narices of endless meetings.

A parent may be hasta las narices of children's constant arguments.

An employee may be hasta las narices of bureaucracy.

The idiom is strong but not vulgar.

It is suitable in most informal conversations.

• tired of repeated problems
• annoyed by someone's behaviour
• frustrated by bureaucracy
• exhausted by work
• impatient with an ongoing situation

It grew naturally out of everyday colloquial speech.

Most explanations relate the image to something rising higher and higher until it reaches the nose, symbolising that patience has been completely exhausted.

Whether or not this was the original source, modern speakers immediately understand the metaphor as reaching one's personal limit.

Spanish has several expressions built around the same idea.

Depending on the level of formality, speakers may also say:

• estar hasta arriba
• estar hasta el moño
• estar hasta la coronilla
• estar hasta los huevos (vulgar)

Among them, estar hasta las narices is one of the safest choices because it is expressive without being offensive.

Many languages describe frustration as reaching a physical limit.

English says I've had enough.

Spanish imagines annoyance rising until it reaches the nose.

Different images, exactly the same human emotion.

Avoid translating the expression literally.

English speakers would not normally say:

I'm up to my nostrils.

Instead, expressions such as I'm fed up, I've had enough, or I'm sick and tired of... are the natural equivalents.

Notice that Spanish often follows the idiom with de plus a noun or infinitive.