Echar

This is a combo words/modismos and daily things post. DOUBLE WHAMMY!

"Echar" is a spanish verb that means "to throw in" and it applies mostly to food. In the first week in Talca, I noticed people were using this verb more often than in other Spanish speaking countries I'd been to. It's been something to which I've had to become accustomed. People "echar" everything; olive oil on salad, salt on salad, salt on everything else, milk in coffee, sugar in coffee, endulzante (this sweetener that comes in drops) in coffee, ketchup on sopaipillas (fried bread), antibiotics drops in eyes, soap on hands, etc. Echar is everywhere! 

There is also a reflexive form of echar-- echarse. It can either be synonymous with "acostarse," such as "oh I was so tired last night, me eché/I fell asleep quickly." It can also be to kick someone out of the house like when you're late for work "yo te eché de la casa." 

Of course there's always the phrase "echar de menos" which means "to really miss" something.