Song guide
De Cero a Heroe
Susan Martín
De Cero a Heroe by Susan Martín, line by line: what the lyrics mean, 21 expressions explained and 213 words translated with their grammar. Learn Spanish from the song, free.
Lyrics with English translation, line by line
Each line as sung, what it means, and — where it needs one — why it's said that way.
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Oh, yeah, bendición, Hércules triunfó
Oh yeah, bless up, Hercules triumphed
«Bendición» is used here as an exclamation of praise, similar to how 'bless up' is used in Caribbean and urban English slang. In Latin American culture, «bendición» is also the greeting children give to elders, who respond «Dios te bendiga» (God bless you).
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Siempre popular en las encuestas de opinión
Always popular in the opinion polls
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Qué bombón, él detiene el show
What a treat, he stops the show
«Bombón» literally means 'chocolate bonbon', but colloquially in Spanish it refers to an attractive person or something delightful — similar to calling someone a 'treat' or 'eye candy' in English.
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Ponlo frente al monstruo y se llena la función
Put him in front of the monster and the house is packed
«Se llena la función» uses «función» in the theatrical sense of a 'performance' or 'show'. In Spanish-speaking countries, «función» is the standard word for a theater or cinema showing, equivalent to 'performance' or 'screening'.
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Era un don nadie, cero, cero
He was a nobody, zero, zero
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Ahora es un héroe verdadero
Now he is a true hero
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Él nunca ha dado un paso atrás
He has never taken a step back
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De cero a héroe sin demorar
From zero to hero without delay
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Ahora es un héroe en un tris tras
Now he is a hero in a flash
«En un tris tras» is a playful, rhythmic reduplication. «Tris» alone already means 'in a flash / barely', and the added «tras» gives it a sing-song quality typical of children's language and song lyrics.
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Su sonrisa las hacía suspirar
His smile made them sigh
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Y donde estés su rostro ves
And wherever you are, you see his face
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Su linda tez
His lovely complexion
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Honorarios y ganancias mil
Fees and a thousand earnings
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Reunió y podrá quemar
He gathered and will be able to burn through
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Famoso es y su perfil
He is famous and his profile
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En cada urna griega está
Is on every Greek urn
The reference to «urna griega» (Greek urn) is a nod to ancient Greek pottery, which famously depicted mythological heroes and athletes. This is a culturally specific image from the Disney film's visual style, which parodies ancient Greek art.
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Di amén, véanlo otra vez
Say amen, watch him once more
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Dulce y victorioso y en todo saca un diez
Sweet and victorious, and he scores a ten in everything
«Sacar un diez» refers to the grading scale used in most Spanish-speaking countries, where 10 is the highest possible score (equivalent to an A+ or 100%). This differs from the US system where 100 or A is the top grade.
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Multitud solo para ver
Crowds just to see
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Su perfecto cuerpo, esos músculos mover
His perfect body, those muscles move
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Hércules viene, ve y vence
Hercules comes, sees, and conquers
«Viene, ve y vence» is a direct adaptation of Julius Caesar's famous Latin boast «veni, vidi, vici» (I came, I saw, I conquered). The song cleverly maps the Latin verbs onto Spanish equivalents, fitting the Greco-Roman setting of the Disney film «Hércules» (1997).
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Toda la gente se enloquece
All the people go wild
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Tiene talento y gran valor
He has talent and great courage
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De cero a héroe, un ganador
From zero to hero, a winner
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Ahora es un héroe, un gran señor
Now he is a hero, a great lord
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¿Quién inventó a los gladiadores?
Who invented the gladiators?
Gladiators were Roman, not Greek — this lyric is a humorous anachronism typical of the Disney film's playful mixing of Greek mythology with Roman cultural elements for comic effect.
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Hércules
Hercules
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¿Quién es un líder con honores?
Who is a leader with honors?
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Hércules
Hercules
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De gran valor, poderoso
Of great courage, powerful
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¿Y su sabor? El más sabroso
And his flavor? The most delicious
The question «¿Y su sabor? El más sabroso» uses food/taste language metaphorically to describe Hercules's appeal and charisma — a common rhetorical device in Spanish pop and Latin music to describe attractiveness.
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Hércules, Hércules
Hercules, Hercules
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Hércules, Hércules, Hércules, Hércules
Hercules, Hercules, Hercules, Hercules
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Bendición, Hércules triunfó, siempre invicto
Bless up, Hercules triumphed, always undefeated
«Invicto» carries a strong classical and sporting connotation in Spanish. It is frequently used in sports commentary to describe an unbeaten champion, and its Latin root «invictus» gives it a heroic, elevated tone fitting for a mythological hero.
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Ejemplar, y qué lindo es, no engreído
Exemplary, and how handsome he is, not conceited
«Engreído» (conceited/arrogant) is used here to contrast with Hercules's genuine heroism — the lyric praises him for being handsome without being vain, a key character trait emphasized in the Disney film.
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Era un don nadie, cero, cero
He was a nobody, zero, zero
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Ahora es un héroe verdadero
Now he is a true hero
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Todas las marcas ya rompió
He has already broken all the records
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Ahora es un héroe, él es un héroe
Now he is a hero, he is a hero
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Nuestro héroe, así es él!
Our hero, that is who he is!
Expressions and idioms in “De Cero a Heroe”
The lines that don't mean what the dictionary says.
- se llena la función the house fills up
- «Se llena» is a reflexive/passive construction using «se» + verb, meaning the action happens on its own ('the show fills itself up'). This passive-reflexive pattern with «se» is extremely common in Spanish to express that something happens without naming an agent.
- Ponlo frente al monstruo Put him in front of the monster
- 'Ponlo' is the imperative of «poner» with the direct object clitic «lo» attached — a common pattern in Spanish where object pronouns attach directly to affirmative imperatives. «Frente a» is a fixed prepositional phrase meaning 'in front of / facing'.
- don nadie nobody / a nobody
- «Don nadie» is a fixed idiomatic expression meaning 'a nobody' or 'an insignificant person'. «Don» is normally an honorific title (like 'Sir'), so combining it with «nadie» (nobody) creates a sarcastic, ironic effect — 'Sir Nobody'.
- dar un paso atrás to take a step back
- «Dar un paso» literally means 'to give a step' — Spanish uses «dar» (to give) where English uses 'to take' for steps. «Atrás» (behind/back) completes the idiom. This is a common false-friend pattern: «dar un paso» = 'to take a step'.
- nunca ha dado has never given / has never taken
- This is the present perfect tense formed with «haber» + past participle (here «dado» from «dar»). The negative adverb «nunca» placed before the auxiliary creates a strong negation. The present perfect in Spanish describes past actions with relevance to the present.
- sin demorar without delay / without wasting time
- «Sin» + infinitive is a fixed construction meaning 'without doing something'. The infinitive follows «sin» directly, unlike English which uses a gerund ('without delaying'). This pattern works with any infinitive: «sin pensar», «sin parar», etc.
- en un tris tras in a flash / in no time
- «En un tris» is an idiomatic expression meaning 'in an instant / barely'. «Tris tras» is a reduplication used for rhythmic/poetic effect in song, reinforcing the idea of speed. The base idiom «en un tris» is not deducible from the individual words.
- las hacía suspirar made them sigh
- «Hacer» + infinitive is a causative construction meaning 'to make someone do something'. The clitic «las» refers to women (fem. plural direct object). This «hacer» + infinitive pattern is essential in Spanish: «me hizo reír» = 'it made me laugh'.
- donde estés wherever you are
- «Donde» + present subjunctive expresses an indefinite or hypothetical location — 'wherever you may be'. The subjunctive «estés» (from «estar») is required here because the location is unspecified. Compare with «donde estás» (indicative) = 'where you are' (a known place).
- podrá quemar will be able to burn through
- «Poder» + infinitive is a modal construction meaning 'to be able to / can'. Here «podrá» is in the future tense, making it 'will be able to'. This modal verb pattern (poder/querer/deber + infinitive) is one of the most important in Spanish.
- otra vez again / once more
- «Otra vez» is the standard Spanish expression for 'again'. It literally means 'another time'. Unlike English 'again', Spanish requires this two-word phrase — there is no single-word equivalent in common use. «De nuevo» is a synonym.
- saca un diez scores a ten / gets a perfect score
- «Sacar» in academic/scoring contexts means 'to get / to score'. «Un diez» (a ten) is the top grade in Spanish-speaking school systems, equivalent to an A+ or 100%. «Sacar una nota» = 'to get a grade' is a very common colloquial expression.
- solo para ver just to see
- «Para» + infinitive expresses purpose ('in order to'). «Solo para ver» = 'just to see / only to watch'. This «para» + infinitive construction is the standard way to express purpose in Spanish, equivalent to English 'to' or 'in order to'.
- viene, ve y vence comes, sees, and conquers
- This is a Spanish adaptation of Julius Caesar's famous Latin phrase «veni, vidi, vici» ('I came, I saw, I conquered'). The song adapts it to 3rd person singular present tense. It is a deliberate classical allusion fitting the Greek/Roman theme of the film.
- se enloquece goes crazy / goes wild
- «Enloquecerse» (reflexive) means 'to go crazy / to lose one's mind'. The reflexive «se» signals that the subject undergoes the change themselves. Compare with plain «enloquecer» which can mean 'to drive someone else crazy'. The reflexive shifts the meaning to an internal change of state.
- ¿Quién inventó a los gladiadores? Who invented the gladiators?
- Note the use of the 'personal a' before «los gladiadores». In Spanish, when a direct object refers to specific people or personified beings, it must be preceded by the preposition «a». This 'personal a' has no equivalent in English and is not translated.
- el más sabroso the most delicious / the tastiest
- «El más» + adjective forms the superlative in Spanish ('the most...'). This is the standard superlative construction: «el más alto» = 'the tallest', «la más bonita» = 'the most beautiful'. The article agrees in gender and number with the noun it refers to.
- siempre invicto always undefeated
- «Invicto» is a formal/literary adjective meaning 'undefeated / unvanquished'. It comes from Latin «invictus» (unconquered), the same root as the famous Latin motto. It is more elevated in register than «nunca derrotado» and is common in sports and heroic contexts.
- qué lindo es how handsome he is
- «Qué» + adjective + verb is an exclamatory construction expressing admiration or surprise: 'how + adjective + subject + verb'. This differs from the question «¿Qué es?» (What is it?). The exclamatory «qué» is a very productive pattern: «¡Qué bonito!», «¡Qué bien!».
- ya rompió has already broken
- «Ya» + preterite indicates a completed action, often translatable as 'already'. In Spanish, «ya» with the preterite emphasizes that something has definitively happened. It can also signal a change: «ya lo sé» = 'I know it now (I didn't before)'.
- así es él that is who he is / that is how he is
- «Así es» is a fixed expression meaning 'that is how it is / that is right'. Adding «él» specifies the subject. «Así» (like this/that way) combined with «ser» describes someone's essential nature or identity. It is also used to confirm something: «¿Es verdad? — Así es.»
Vocabulary to learn from “De Cero a Heroe”
The words the song uses most.
- ser was / used to be verb ·12
- el héroe hero noun ·9
- ver you see verb ·4
- grande great / big adjective ·3
- la bendición blessing / bless up noun ·2
- triunfar triumphed verb ·2
- el don nobody / mister (ironic) noun ·2
- verdadero true / real / genuine adjective ·2
- estar you are / you may be verb ·2
- lindo lovely / pretty adjective ·2
- el valor courage / value / worth noun ·2
- popular popular adjective
Verbs in the song, and the form being sung
Present tense for each; the highlighted row is the one you'll hear.
ser was / used to be
| yo | soy |
|---|---|
| tú | eres |
| él / ella / usted | es |
| nosotros | somos |
| vosotros | sois |
| ellos / ustedes | son |
ver you see
| yo | veo |
|---|---|
| tú | ves |
| él / ella / usted | ve |
| nosotros | vemos |
| vosotros | veis |
| ellos / ustedes | ven |
triunfar triumphed
| yo | triunfo |
|---|---|
| tú | triunfas |
| él / ella / usted | triunfa |
| nosotros | triunfamos |
| vosotros | triunfáis |
| ellos / ustedes | triunfan |
estar you are / you may be
| yo | estoy |
|---|---|
| tú | estás |
| él / ella / usted | está |
| nosotros | estamos |
| vosotros | estáis |
| ellos / ustedes | están |
detener stops / halts
| yo | detengo |
|---|---|
| tú | detienes |
| él / ella / usted | detiene |
| nosotros | detenemos |
| vosotros | detenéis |
| ellos / ustedes | detienen |
Grammar you'll meet in this song
- Present21
- Preterite5
- Imperative3
- Imperfect3
- Present subjunctive1
- Future1
