# get off touching



## macris

Hola de nuevo!!

Podrían decirme qué significa: "where does he get off touching you in public?" ? Puede significa ¿dónde te toca en público? no sé, el get off touching no lo entiendo bien. He mirado touching en el diccionario y me sale conmovedor y me he liado más, ¿me ayudan?

Saludos y gracias


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## Filis Cañí

¿Por qué se pone cachondo cuando te toca en público?


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## Lagartija

macris said:


> Hola de nuevo!!
> 
> Podrían decirme qué significa: "where does he get off touching you in public?" ? Puede significa ¿dónde te toca en público? no sé, el get off touching no lo entiendo bien. He mirado touching en el diccionario y me sale conmovedor y me he liado más, ¿me ayudan?
> 
> Saludos y gracias



Hay dos signifcas posible:

¡cómo se atreve!  How dare he touch you in public???!!

Y como dijo Filis.

Depende del contexto


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## OhPaco

Yo lo entiendo de otra manera. Sí que "get off" puede tener algo que ver con "cachondo", pero en este contexto "where does he get off" significa "como se presume el derecho". "Como se atreve" tambien sirve bien.   Paco


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## Manuel G. Rey

No sé si alguno cabe en esta frase, pero 'get off' tiene otros sentidos: to ejaculate y to enjoy tremendously, pero en este segundo caso se usa con 'on'.
Y 'touching' no es solo 'conmovedor', sino también 'tocar' o 'rozar'.
Así que puede ser que se pase de cachondo.


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## benbluejunior

macris said:


> Hola de nuevo!!
> 
> Podrían decirme qué significa: "where does he get off touching you in public?" ? Puede significa ¿dónde te toca en público? no sé, el get off touching no lo entiendo bien. He mirado touching en el diccionario y me sale conmovedor y me he liado más, ¿me ayudan?
> 
> Saludos y gracias


 
El parte "get off" significa que se emocionó sexualmente.


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## k-in-sc

En este caso no significa nada sexual la frase "where does he get off," solo "como se atreve." Te lo garantizo.


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## benbluejunior

k-in-sc said:


> En este caso no significa nada sexual la frase "where does he get off," solo "como se atreve." Te lo garantizo.


 

My mistake...you are correct...I read "why" instead of "where"

Como se atreve is exactly correct...thanks for catching that!


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## fobits

Voto con Lagartija y OhPaco.

"To get off" es una cosa, pero la expresión entera, "where does he get off?" tiene una otra significación.

Será como "¿De dónde se saca el descaro?", si eso tiene sentido en español.


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## gotitadeleche

k-in-sc said:


> En este caso no significa nada sexual la frase "where does he get off," solo "como se atreve." Te lo garantizo.



I agree with k-in-sc. Get off can have sexual connotations in other contexts, but not in this one, "where does he get off," it doesn't have that meaning. You can say "where does she get off talking to me in that tone of voice." It means "how dare she talk to me that way"---nothing sexual.


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## SmallJosie

Seems rather strange to me ... How or where does he GET AWAY WITH .... but get off in this sentence?!?! I'm a bit lost.


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## gotitadeleche

SmallJosie said:


> Seems rather strange to me ... How or where does he GET AWAY WITH .... but get off in this sentence?!?! I'm a bit lost.



And I can't explain why it means that, it just one of those expressions that don't make sense literally, you just have to learn them.


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## SmallJosie

gotitadeleche said:


> And I can't explain why it means that, it just one of those expressions that don't make sense literally, you just have to learn them.


 
Thanks, gotita, but I don't think it means the same in the UK.


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## gotitadeleche

SmallJosie said:


> Thanks, gotita, but I don't think it means the same in the UK.



Oooops! Sorry, I didn't notice you were an English speaker!  Well, in this case, it's just one of those crazy BE/AE differences.


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## Hazel Robins

yup, definitely an american expression.


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## Lagartija

So as to the meaning.... it will depend on the speaker's country of origin! 
If the speaker is from the US, then "How dare he touch you in public!" would be another way of saying it.
If the speaker is from BE speaking countries, then it could be something sexual in nature.  As I said in post #3, it depends on the context.


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## deliner

Lagartija said:


> So as to the meaning.... it will depend on the speaker's country of origin!
> If the speaker is from the US, then "How dare he touch you in public!" would be another way of saying it.
> If the speaker is from BE speaking countries, then it could be something sexual in nature.  As I said in post #3, it depends on the context.


I wouldn't say that "Where does he get off" necessarily had a sexual connotation, just that we don't use that expression here with the meaning of "How dare he do..."


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## k-in-sc

Now if it were "*How* does he get off ...'' well, that would be different!


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## Lagartija

deliner said:


> I wouldn't say that "Where does he get off" necessarily had a sexual connotation, just that we don't use that expression here with the meaning of "How dare he do..."



Would you say then that the sentence (as written) really has no specific meaning in BE? Do you think you would have discerned the meaning from context or would what the person was trying to say have been a total mystery to you?   

A: I was just trying to pack things in the box for shipping when John walked in, started to complain about the help, and then said things I couldn't repeat in polite company.
B: Where does he get off talking to you like that!  This isn't even his department!
A: Yeah... I know.  I don't feel inclined to help him out the next time he asks.


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## deliner

Lagartija said:


> Would you say then that the sentence (as written) really has no specific meaning in BE? Do you think you would have discerned the meaning from context or would what the person was trying to say have been a total mystery to you?


Hi. I would have discerned the meaning from the context, it's just that "Where does he get off..." is not used that way here (at least where I live).


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## Soy Yo

Definitely "Where does he get off...?" means "How/Whydoes he presume....!? How dare he ...." It's similar to "Who does he think he is touching you like that!!"

Of course, as stated "to get off" has a sexual connation as well. The first one "Where does he get off..." seems to be the older of the two. At least, I heard (and said) that long before I ever heard "He really gets off on that!" or "She got him off."


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## k-in-sc

I don't know why, but I always thought it had something to do with the subway ...


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## Lagartija

k-in-sc said:


> I don't know why, but I always thought it had something to do with the subway ...



Well, SoyYo is right, the first is old (#7), and K_in_SC is right, sometimes if does have something to do with getting off the train!(#1)
Perhaps since #4 predates #7, that may be the origin... to get off without punishment morphed into "get off" as having dared to do something thinking that there would be no penalty.  Total speculation on my part!

This is from Answer.com
get off 
1.   Dismount, leave a vehicle, as in *She got off the horse right away*, or *Let's get off the train at the next stop*.  [Late 1600s] 					 
2.   Start, as on a trip; leave.  For example, *We got off at the crack of dawn*.  [Mid-1700s] 					 
3.   Fire a round of ammunition; also, send away.  For example, *He got off two shots, but the deer fled*, or *I got off that letter just in time*. 
4.   Escape from punishment; also, obtain a lesser penalty or release for someone.  For example, *He apologized so profusely that he was sure to get off*, or *The attorney got her client off with a slap on the wrist*.  This sense is sometimes amplified to  get off easy or  get off lightly.  Where there is no punishment at all, the expression is sometimes put as  get off scot-free, originally meaning "be free from paying a fine or tax (*scot*)," dating from the 1500s.   						[Mid-1600s] 					 
5.   Remove, take off, as in *I can't seem to get this paint off the car*.  [Second half of 1600s] 					 
6.   Succeed in uttering, especially a joke.  For example, *Carl always manages to get off a good one before he gets serious*.  [Mid-1800s] 					 
7.   Have the effrontery to do or say something.  For example, *Where does he get off telling me what to do?*  [Colloquial; early 1900s] 					 
8.   Experience orgasm, as in *She never did get off*.  [Slang; first half of 1900s] 					 
9.   Also,  get off of one.  Stop bothering or criticizing one, as in *Get off me right now!*  or *If you don't get off of me I'm walking out*.  [Slang; c. 1940] Also see  						get off on; off one's back.


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## kkamannn

> "where does he get off touching you in public?"



"get off" in this context is NOT sexual.

This is more confusing because the sentence also talks about "touching someone", which is certainly suggestive.  But it is not related to the sexual meaning "get off".


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## Soy Yo

k-in-sc said:


> I don't know why, but I always thought it had something to do with the subway ...


 
Mmmm.  Are there subways in South Carolina?


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## AmytaBrisaDeVida

I would just like to add that I think 'get off' in this situation comes from 'to get off scott free,' which is an expression used when someone doesn't face any consequences even though they are guilty of a crime. 'To get away with' is a perfectly synonymous phrase, but I'm not sure how to translate that into Spanish. I'm not 100% sure of the origin of but it seems like it might have been founded on discrimination against the Scottish. That said I don't reckon anyone would take offense to it these days.


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## Forero

I thought it meant "How far will he go with touching you in public?  Doesn't he know when to stop?" or "When will he have enough of that behavior?".


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## k-in-sc

Naw, we ain't got no subways round these parts, but I done heered tell of 'em ...


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## Manuel G. Rey

Lagartija said:


> Well, SoyYo is right, the first is old (#7), and K_in_SC is right, sometimes if does have something to do with getting off the train!(#1)
> Perhaps since #4 predates #7, that may be the origin... to get off without punishment morphed into "get off" as having dared to do something thinking that there would be no penalty. Total speculation on my part!
> 
> _Just in case someone would like to get the different senses in Spanish: _
> 
> 
> Dismount, leave a vehicle: _Descender, dejar un vehículo. _
> Start, as on a trip; leave: _Partir de viaje; marcharse._
> Fire a round of ammunition; also, send away: _Disparar un proyectil; también, enviar. _
> Escape from punishment; also, obtain a lesser penalty or release for someone: _Eludir, evitar un castigo. Esa acepción se amplía a veces a _‘get off easy’ _o_ ‘get off lightly’. _Cuando no hay castigo alguno, la expression se pone a veces como_ ‘get off-scot free’, _que originalmente significaba librarse de pagar una multa o impuesto_ (‘scot’).
> Remove, take off : _Quitar, eliminar_.
> Succeed in uttering, especially a joke: _Acertar a contar o decir, especialmente una broma o chiste_.
> Have the effrontery to do or say something: _Tener la presunción o desvergüenza de hacer o decir algo._
> Experience orgasm: _Experimentar un orgasmo_.
> También, desentenderse de alguien. _Dejar de molestar o criticar a alguien. _
> _No more specualtion on my part!_


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## Manuel G. Rey

AmytaBrisaDeVida said:


> I would just like to add that I think 'get off' in this situation comes from 'to get off scott free,' which is an expression used when someone doesn't face any consequences even though they are guilty of a crime. 'To get away with' is a perfectly synonymous phrase, but I'm not sure how to translate that into Spanish. I'm not 100% sure of the origin of but it seems like it might have been founded on discrimination against the Scottish. That said I don't reckon anyone would take offense to it these days.


 
_According to Lagartija quote:_
4. Escape from punishment ....  Where there is no punishment at all, the expression is sometimes put as get off scot-free, originally meaning "be free from paying a fine or tax (*scot*)," dating from the 1500s. [Mid-1600s] 
_Thus, it is not 'to get scott free' but 'to get scot free'. Scottish are very good tax payers, like ourselves, Spanish_  (_or everybody else_).


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## AmytaBrisaDeVida

Manuel G. Rey said:


> _According to Lagartija quote:_
> 4. Escape from punishment ....  Where there is no punishment at all, the expression is sometimes put as get off scot-free, originally meaning "be free from paying a fine or tax (*scot*)," dating from the 1500s. [Mid-1600s]
> _Thus, it is not 'to get scott free' but 'to get scot free'. Scottish are very good tax payers, like ourselves, Spanish_  (_or everybody else_).



Thanks for clearing that up Manuel!


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