How do you say “On tenterhooks” in Spanish?
The closest natural Spanish equivalent is estar en ascuas, which literally means “to be on embers”. English speakers use on tenterhooks to mean to be anxiously waiting to find out what will happen. A close Spanish match for anxious suspense. It also works for a story that keeps you waiting for an answer. Register: informal. Usage frequency: common.
Closest natural Spanish
estar en ascuas
/esˈtaɾ en ˈaskwas/
- Literal meaning
- “to be on embers”
- Register
- informal
- How often it's used
- common
- Equivalence
Near-exact equivalent
96 out of 100
What a native Spanish speaker would actually say
“Ascuas” are glowing embers. The image suggests a wait that is too uncomfortable to ignore.
Use “estar” for the person waiting and “tener” for what keeps them waiting: “La noticia me tiene en ascuas”.
How close is the meaning?
- Meaning5 out of 5
- Tone5 out of 5
- Context5 out of 5
- Literal similarity2 out of 5
These ratings are editorial approximations, not measurements.
In context
English
We were on tenterhooks until the audition results arrived.
Spanish
Estuvimos en ascuas hasta que llegaron los resultados de la audición.
English
The final chapter kept me on tenterhooks until the last page.
Spanish
El último capítulo me tuvo en ascuas hasta la última página.
Related expressions
Last updated 2026-11-13