PROVERBS, IDIOMS & SAYINGS

Kamila Kańska & Julia Patynek

PROVERBSProverb is a short and pithy saying that expresses some

traditionally held truth.

EXAMPLES:

BRITISH • Don't count your

chickens before they're hatched - don't anticipate the future too much

• Never judge a book by its cover - don't judge people/things by their appearance

• People who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones - don't criticize others' faults if you suffer from them yourself

• Many hands make light work - a lot of people helping makes a job easier

POLISH• „Co dwie głowy, to nie

jedna” - two heads are better than one - meaning like in many hands make light work

• „Co ma wisieć, nie utonie” -what's supposed to be hanging, won't sink - there are things in our lives that we have no control over

• „Strach ma wielkie oczy” - fear's got huge eyes - things we are afraid of are hardly ever as scary as we think

• „Przyganiał kocioł garnkowi, a sam smoli” - a cauldron rebuked the pot, and he smudged himself - meaning the same as in people who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones

ALL AROUND THE WORLD• CHINESE: Learn till old, live till old, and there is still three-tenths not learned - no matter how old you are, there is still more learning or studying left to do.

• JAPANESE: Fall SEVEn times, stand up eight –When life knocks you down, stand back up

• RUSSIAN:

Meaning: if it looks like something is wrong, something probably is WRONG

• HUNGARIAN:„A tiltott gyümölcs a legédesebb” - Forbidden fruit is sweet – Things that you must not have or do are always the most desirable

• ITALIAN:„A chi vuole, non mancano modi”

MEANING: If you are sufficiently determined to achieve something, then you will find a way of doing so

IDIOMSIdiom is a group of words with a meaning different from the individual words, typical for a

country/ culture

EXAMPLES:

BRITISH

• KILL TWO BIRDS WITH ONE STONE - solve two problems with one action at the same time

• KICK THE BUCKET – TO DIE

• CURIOSITY KILLED THE CAT - being too curious can get into trouble (it's better not to be nosy)

• SPILL THE BEANS - reveal a secret or a surprise by accident

POLISH• „Co ma piernik do

wiatraka?” - what has gingerbread to do with a windmill? - one thing has nothing to do with the other (what has that to do with anything?)

• „Kłamstwo ma krótkie nogi” - a lie has short legs - truth will always be revealed (truth will out)

• „Nie ucz ojca dzieci robić” - don't teach a father how to make children - don't offer advice to someone having more experience than you (don't teach your grandmother how to suck eggs)

• „Znaleźć się między młotem a kowadłem”/ „między Scyllą a Charybdą” - to be caught between a hammer and an anvil / between Scylla and Charybdis*- to be in a dead end (having to choose between two devils)

*actually it is a Greek (derives from the Greek mythology) idiom but we normally use it

polish dish

• „Nudne jak flaki z olejem” - dull as tripe in oil - mindnumbing (dull as dishwater)

ALL around the world• GERMAN: „Tomaten auf den Augen haben” – to have tomatoes on your eyes – to not seeing what everyone else can see ( it refers to real objects) • SWEDISH:

„Det är ingen ko på isen” – THEre’s no cow on the ice - There’s no need to worry

• THAI:„ ” ชาติหน้าตอนบา่ย ๆ- One afternoon in your next reincarnation - It’s never gonna happen

• FRENCH:„Les carottes sont cuites!” - The carrots are cooked! - The situation can’t be changed

• DUTCH:„Iets voor een appel en een ei kopen” - Buying something for an apple and an egg - you bought it very cheaply

SAYingsshort, clever expression that

usually contains advice or expresses some obvious truth.

ExaMples:

BRItish• Never do

evil that good may come of it – Don’t do something bad to achieve something good

If we get something (like money) easily and without effort, we can lose it easily too.

• Good wine needs no bush -Something of good quality does not need to be advertised.

• Facts are stubborn things - We cannot avoid the truth, even when it is not what we want to hear or express

• Once bitten, twice shy – We have to learn from our mistakes

POlish

• „Wysoki jak brzoza, a głupi jak koza” - High as a birch, stupid as a goat – someone who is well-bulid but silly

• „Patrzyć się jak sroka w gnat” – to stare at something like a magpie at the bone - glaring at someting without looking away

• „Gdyby kózka nie skakała, to by nóżki nie złamała” – if the goat hadn’t been jumping, it wouldn’t have broken its leg – if someone had minded, he wouldn’t have paid the penalty • „Stać jak słup

soli” - stand like a salt column – to freeze

• „Patrzyć się jak ciele w malowane wrota” – stare at something like a calf at the painted gate – to glare at something

All around the world• Finnish:„Päästää sammakko suusta”

• Portuguese:

„Alimentar um burro a pão-de-ló”

• Russian:„Exatj zajcem”

Sources:• http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/proverbs.html• http://www.lexiophiles.com/polski/polskie-idiomy• http://www.thefreedictionary.com/• "English Idioms Dictionary" Cambridge University Press • http://www.polskatradycja.pl• "English Vocabulary in Use upper-intermediate & advanced" Cambridge University Press• http://blog.ted.com/40-idioms-that-cant-be-translated-literally/• https://www.englishclub.com/ref/Sayings/• http://www.hotelclub.com/blog/idioms-of-the-world-infographic/?

clickID=LSUS&WT.mc_id=16540• http://thecultureur.com/around-the-world-in-52-proverbs/• https://www.wikipedia.org• https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Wiktionary:Main_Page• https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Main_Page