Plantar cara
To plant one's face.
to stand up to someone; **to stand up to someone**; **to face something head-on**; **to confront someone**; **to stand one's ground**; **to fight back**; **to face up to something**
Plantar cara means to stand up to someone or something, to confront a difficulty, to face a challenge bravely, or to resist an opponent instead of backing down.
No tengas miedo y plántale cara.
Don't be afraid; stand up to him.
Hay que plantar cara a los problemas.
We have to face our problems head-on.
El equipo plantó cara al campeón.
The team stood up to the champions.
Decidió plantar cara a sus adversarios.
He decided to stand up to his opponents.
Aunque la situación era difícil, supo plantar cara.
Even though the situation was difficult, he faced it bravely.
It implies courage, resistance and determination in the face of opposition or adversity.
A very common construction is:
Plantar cara a alguien.
→ To stand up to someone.
It can also be used with an abstract difficulty:
Plantar cara a un problema.
→ To confront a problem.
- confronts an opponent
- refuses to be intimidated
- resists pressure
- faces a difficult situation
- fights back against adversity
- decides not to give up
The expression is based on the physical image of putting one's face in front of an opponent rather than turning away or fleeing.
The face represents one's willingness to confront another person.
To plantar means literally "to plant" or "to place firmly", so plantar cara suggests placing oneself firmly in front of a threat or adversary.
The figurative meaning therefore developed naturally towards confronting, resisting or facing something bravely.
The expression does not necessarily imply aggression.
Plantar cara a alguien
can simply mean refusing to be intimidated or dominated.
Likewise:
Plantar cara a una enfermedad
does not necessarily mean physically fighting it; it means facing the situation with determination.
In sports, the expression is especially common:
El equipo plantó cara al líder.
This often means that the weaker team put up a good fight and did not allow the stronger team to dominate easily, even if it eventually lost.
Plantar cara is closely related to dar la cara, but the two expressions have different meanings:
- Dar la cara → take responsibility, show oneself or face a situation.
- Plantar cara → confront or resist someone or something.
For example:
El responsable dio la cara ante los periodistas.
→ The person responsible faced the press.
El responsable plantó cara a sus críticos.
→ The person responsible stood up to his critics.
Both expressions use the cara as a metaphor for courage and confrontation, but plantar cara contains the additional idea of resistance.
Do not translate:
Le plantó cara.
as:
He planted his face.
Natural translations include:
He stood up to him.
He confronted him.
He stood his ground.
In a sporting context:
They put up a good fight.
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