Spanish verb "Sonar" meaning "to sound or look familiar"
Did you know that the verb "sonar" basically means "to sound"? Though it keeps the notion of "sound", it isn't always rendered into English that way. For example, "el despertador sonó a las 8:00" in English is "the alarm clock went off at 8:00" as opposed to the literal translation (barely understandable in English) "the alarm clock sounded at 8:00".
Here's another usage which is surprising for most English speakers learning Spanish: it also means to "sound or look familiar. Some examples:
Spanish
1. Su cara me suena, pero no sé por qué.
2. Esa canción me suena, pero no me acuerdo de quién la canta.
3. ¿Te suena este número de teléfono?
4. No me suena esa dirección.
English
1. His face seems / looks familiar, but I don't know why.
2. That song sounds familiar, but I don't remember who sings it.
3. Does this telephone number sound familiar to you?
4. That address doesn't sound familiar.
You could also translate these sentences with the English idiom "ring a bell". For example, number 4 could be "That address doesn't ring a bell".
Notice that when it's a visual reference, the verb "sonar" can be translated as "look": That's why number 1 can be translated as "His face looks familiar...". My Spanish wife had a hard time getting a grip on this going the other way: for a long time, she used to say "his face doesn't sound familiar" since it makes perfect sense if you're thinking in Spanish.
Brad
