“Fence” (cerca, valla) you may know. Often fences are made of wood, but mortals also make wire fences (alambradas). A “fence” (reducidor) can also be a person who receives and sells stolen goods (una persona que comercia con objetos robados). There is also a sport: fencing (esgrima).
Now for more interesting things.
Politicians often “sit on the fence”, which means that the mortal is not prepared to say which side of the argument he supports, or perhaps the politician is a ditherer (persona indecisa). Perhaps in Spanish you might say the person “esta nadando entre dos aguas”.
There is also an expression: “stop fencing”. This means that you are asking the person not to be evasive. A person that “fences” (contesta o habla con evasivas) is not answering your question: he is not saying which view he supports. So you might say “stop fencing” or “get to the point”. If a mortal does not say which side of the argument he supports or believes in, he is fencing.
Reflect on these examples:
- Mr. Sanchez, the Spanish Prime Minister, is a famous “fence sitter”: he hardly ever says which side of the argument he supports.
- Glorimar fences for her country (… representa …en esgrima).
- The EU is always sitting on the fence on important issues (…este mirando los toros desde la barrera…).
- Stop sitting on the fence! Decide!
