Hacer la vista gorda
To make one's eyesight fat.
to turn a blind eye; to overlook something;; to ignore deliberately;; to look the other way;; to let something slide (informal).
Hacer la vista gorda means to deliberately ignore something that one has noticed, usually because intervening would be inconvenient, unnecessary or undesirable.
El profesor hizo la vista gorda porque era el último día de clase.
The teacher turned a blind eye because it was the last day of school.
No puedes seguir haciendo la vista gorda con ese problema.
You can't keep turning a blind eye to that problem.
La policía hizo la vista gorda en aquella ocasión.
The police decided to overlook it on that occasion.
The key idea is intention.
A person who hace la vista gorda is perfectly aware of what is happening but consciously decides not to react.
The expression appears in countless everyday situations. A teacher may overlook a minor rule violation on the last day of school. A parent may pretend not to notice that a child has secretly taken a biscuit before dinner. A police officer may ignore a trivial offence that causes no real harm. A manager may decide not to criticise a small mistake because the overall work has been excellent.
The idiom therefore occupies an interesting middle ground between tolerance and negligence. Sometimes hacer la vista gorda is viewed positively because it reflects flexibility and common sense. In other situations, it suggests irresponsibility or even corruption.
Whether the expression carries a positive or negative meaning depends entirely on the circumstances.
- ignores a minor rule
- pretends not to notice a small mistake
- overlooks inappropriate behaviour
- decides not to punish someone
- avoids confronting an uncomfortable situation
The metaphor is self-explanatory, which is exactly why it caught on.
Some linguists believe the expression originally referred to deliberately altering one's way of looking so as not to perceive something clearly. Others suggest that the metaphor evolved naturally from the idea of intentionally refusing to "see" what is obvious.
Whatever its historical source, the idiom has been part of Spanish for centuries and is now understood literally by no one. Its figurative meaning has completely replaced any original physical interpretation.
Spanish society, like every society, constantly balances strict adherence to rules with practical flexibility.
For that reason, hacer la vista gorda may be interpreted either as wisdom or as weakness.
If a teacher ignores a minor classroom distraction to avoid interrupting an otherwise productive lesson, most people would consider that sensible.
If a public official ignores corruption, however, the same expression becomes a serious criticism.
Context determines everything.
English and Spanish express exactly the same idea through different visual metaphors.
English speakers turn a blind eye.
Spaniards make their eyesight "fat."
Both expressions describe something surprisingly human: sometimes we see perfectly well... and choose not to see at all.
Do not confuse hacer la vista gorda with simply failing to notice something.
The idiom always implies awareness.
If someone genuinely does not see an error, Spaniards would simply say no se dio cuenta ("they didn't realise" or "they didn't notice").
Reserve hacer la vista gorda for situations in which a person consciously chooses not to act despite knowing exactly what is happening.
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