How to Say ‘To play up’ in Spain Spanish
Dar guerra
dar GEH-rrah
[dar GEH-rrah]
💬 Usage Tip: Literally "to give war", this means to cause trouble or act up. It's used for machines, kids or anything misbehaving: El coche me está dando guerra "The car's playing up".
Phrase Breakdown
Dar
[dar]
to give
Basic verb meaning to give or hand over.
¿Me puedes dar agua?
Can you give me water?
guerra
[GEH-rrah]
war / trouble (in 'dar guerra')
'Dar guerra' is an idiom meaning to cause trouble or act up.
La máquina nos da guerra hoy.
The machine is acting up today.
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