How do you say “Have ants in your pants” in Spanish?
The closest natural Spanish equivalent is no parar quieto, which literally means “not to stay still”. English speakers use have ants in your pants to mean to be too restless or excited to sit still. A plain Spanish way to describe the same restless movement. It drops the insect image. Register: informal. Usage frequency: common.
Closest natural Spanish
no parar quieto
/no paˈɾaɾ ˈkjeto/
- Literal meaning
- “not to stay still”
- Register
- informal
- How often it's used
- common
- Equivalence
Near-exact equivalent
93 out of 100
What a native Spanish speaker would actually say
“No para quieto” describes someone who keeps moving around. Change the ending to “quieta” when speaking about a girl or woman.
It works well when the important detail is that someone cannot stay in their seat. You can add the reason separately if they are excited or nervous.
How close is the meaning?
- Meaning5 out of 5
- Tone4 out of 5
- Context5 out of 5
- Literal similarity1 out of 5
These ratings are editorial approximations, not measurements.
In context
English
Leo had ants in his pants while we waited for the party to start.
Spanish
Leo no paraba quieto mientras esperábamos a que empezara la fiesta.
English
Have you got ants in your pants? You’ve changed seats three times.
Spanish
¿No puedes parar quieto? Has cambiado de asiento tres veces.
Related expressions
Last updated 2026-11-13