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  • What's the meaning of the expression "nada que ver"?
  • In which countries is used?

Here are some examples:

  1. Lo que dices no tiene nada que ver con lo que estamos discutiendo.

  2. Conversation between Carlos and Juan. Both live in Mexico.

Juan: Fuiste de vacaciones a Europa?

Carlos: Nada que ver, fui de vaciones a Cancún (Mexico).

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  • The name is a bit unwieldy but we have time to work that out (-: Commented Dec 16, 2011 at 10:39

4 Answers 4

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I believe the phrase "nada que ver" is used in different countries. I'm from Perú and we normally use that phrase to represent "You're talking nonsense!". For example:

Your friend: "I saw you kissing my sister last night"

You: "No, you're talking nonsense!" (No, nada que ver!)

But it also has other meaning like in your example:

Lo que dices no tiene nada que ver con lo que estamos discutiendo.

What you are saying has nothing to do with this discussion.

Or with your second example:

Juan: Fuiste de vacaciones a Europa?

Carlos: Nada que ver, fui de vaciones a Cancún. (No, you're wrong, I went to Cancún)

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  • 1
    Agree. Same in Argentina.
    – ESL
    Commented Dec 31, 2014 at 19:31
  • Same in Chile. Though, I believe the english expression is more aggressive that the one we use in here. Commented Dec 9, 2015 at 16:52
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It usually means:

There is no relationship between what I've just stated and your answer.

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from modern Chilean usage:

"You are wrong."

4

In spanish from Spain, a meaning is "nothing to do":

Eso no tiene nada que ver con lo que estábamos hablando.

Another one is: "It's totally different":

El restaurante al que hemos ido no tenía nada que ver con aquel al que fuimos el martes. Era mucho mejor!

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  • 1
    I would include "con" in the Spanish phrase for this sense and "with" in the English phrase. In English there is no way to say "nothing to do" in this sense that doesn't include "with" -> "nothing to do with ..." As the other answers point out there's another sense in Spanish without the "con" which has to be translated into English another way. Commented Dec 15, 2011 at 8:39

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