tener pinta de

What does “tener pinta de” mean in English?

1. to look like, to seem

   to look like, to seem (informal; inference from visual or circumstantial evidence; tiene pinta de ser difícil)

Example sentences

• Esto tiene pinta de ser más complicado de lo que pensábamos al principio.

  This looks like it's going to be more complicated than we thought at first.

• La propuesta tiene buena pinta, pero hay que leer la letra pequeña antes de decidir.

  The proposal looks good, but you need to read the small print before deciding.

• Tenía pinta de que iba a llover, así que decidimos cancelar el acto al aire libre.

  It looked like it was going to rain, so we decided to cancel the outdoor event.

How to use it

Tener pinta de means 'to look like', 'to have the look of', or 'to seem'. It is informal and is used to express an inference based on visual or circumstantial evidence. Construction: tener pinta de + noun or infinitive: 'tiene pinta de fraude', 'tiene pinta de alargarse'. La pinta is the 'look' or 'appearance'. It is warmer and more colloquial than parecer (to seem, more neutral) and has a slight flavour of suspicion or scepticism, especially with negative inferences.