Eva Mendes feels your pain if you've ever tried to translate a phrase from one language to another and ended up in a spiral of awkward explanations and hand gestures. The actress recently shared a hilariously relatable parenting moment involving her partner Ryan Gosling, their daughters, and a particularly tricky Spanish expression: "un aire."
Let's say, it's not the kind of "air" that makes you feel refreshed.
What Exactly Is "Un Aire"?
In Spanish-speaking households, "un aire" is one of those wonderfully vague but culturally specific phrases. On the surface, it translates to "a wind" or "an air," but context is everything.
Colloquially, "tener un aire" means someone has gas trapped somewhere in their torso. It could be in the stomach, chest, or even their back. The discomfort that comes with it can mimic other ailments, including bloating, chest pressure, and even a stitch in your side. In babies and young kids, especially, this is a frequent complaint. The solution is a good belly massage, some light leg movements, or waiting it out until a burp or toot saves the day.
In some Latin American countries, the expression can also be "un viento" (literally, "a wind"). It's basically the same idea: a bubble of internal air that just won't quit.
Eva's "Lost in Translation" Moment
Eva revealed the moment during a recent reel with one of her Cuban relatives, laughing about how Ryan was totally thrown off when their daughters casually mentioned she had "un aire." As Eva tells it, Gosling was confused and asked about the meaning.
© Backgrid/The Grosby GroupAnd that's when Eva realized just how hard it is to explain un aire in English without completely killing the vibe. You can't exactly wrap that up in a neat, one-word English translation.
Eva turned to her bilingual fans for help, joking that maybe they could do a better job explaining it than she could. And the fans were more than happy to deliver.
Spanish Expressions That Don't Quite Land in English
"Un aire" is just one of many Spanish phrases that don't neatly convert to English. Much like "empacho" (another gas-related digestive term), "sobarse" (to massage or heal through touch), or "mal de ojo" (evil eye), these words are deeply embedded in cultural norms and folk medicine.
They're part of a shared understanding that doesn't require a biology textbook. So when Ryan Gosling asks what "un aire" means, you know Eva had to dig deep for a translation that didn't involve the words "fart" or "baby burp."
© Todd Owyoung/NBC via Getty ImageAs funny as it is, Eva's story highlights that language is culture, tradition, and lived experience. For bilingual families, especially those raising children across two languages, these moments of miscommunication are part of the everyday dance.
Kids pick up phrases from one language and drop them in another without blinking. Parents translate as best they can. And partners, get a crash course in what it means when your child announces, mid-breakfast, that they have "a wind."
