Tener mala baba

to be mean-spirited; **to be mean-spirited**; **to have a nasty streak**; **to be spiteful**; **to be malicious**; **to be nasty**

Tener mala baba means to be mean-spirited, to have a nasty streak, to be spiteful, to have bad intentions, or to be malicious.

It can also refer to someone who makes cutting, malicious or hurtful remarks.

• deliberately tries to hurt others
• makes cruel or spiteful comments
• enjoys embarrassing people
• acts with malicious intent
• has a generally unpleasant or nasty character

Like so much idiomatic language, it distils an everyday observation into a memorable phrase.

The expression probably developed from the old figurative association between bodily fluids and a person's temperament or disposition.

In older Spanish, baba could be associated metaphorically with unpleasantness or malicious behaviour.

The adjective mala then came to characterise a person whose words or actions were poisonous or spiteful.

The expression has survived with this figurative meaning.

Tener mala baba can refer both to someone's character and to a particular way of saying something.

Compare:

Ese tío tiene mala baba.

This describes the person as generally mean or malicious.

But:

Lo dijo con mala baba.

means that the particular remark was made with spite or malicious intent, even if the person is not normally unpleasant.

This distinction is important.

Spanish has several expressions using bodily substances to describe someone's character:

• Tener mala baba → to be spiteful.
• Tener mala leche → to have a bad temper / be nasty.
• Tener mala sangre → to be malicious.
• Tener buenas entrañas → to be kind-hearted.

These expressions illustrate how Spanish frequently uses the body as a metaphor for personality and moral character. ```

Do not translate:

Tiene mala baba.

as:

He has bad drool.

Instead, use:

He's mean-spirited.

He's got a nasty streak.

He's spiteful.

And:

Lo dijo con mala baba.

can naturally become:

He said it spitefully.