What are some (non-English) idioms, and what do they mean (both literally and in context)? Odd ones, your favorite ones - any and all are welcome. :)

For example, in English I might call someone a "good egg," meaning they're a nice person. Or, if it's raining heavily, I might say "it's raining cats and dogs."

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] 13 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (8 children)

My favorite in Macedonian: My dick hurts. Translation: I don't give a fuck. Also, the opposite is true, like if someone says "My dick doesn't hurt at all about so and so", it also means the same thing: I don't give a fuck. Go figure 🤷 😂.

  • source
  • hideshow 8 child comments
  • [–] [S] 11 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    This is hilarious 😂 Is it something those of us without dicks would also say? (In English, I might still tell someone to "suck my dick," despite not having one.)

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 1 child comment
  • [–] 1 point 2 years ago (1 child)

    In English, over time, “I could care less” has come to have the exact same meaning as “I couldn’t care less.”

    Some people get wrapped around an axle (i.e. irrationally angry) about it, but i just mentally fill in some context myself: “I could care less… i suppose… if i really tried… but that’s not going to happen.”

    There’s no governing body for English. If you communicate the meaning and social cues that you intended, then it’s “right.” Of course, communicating social cues is sometimes where you can get in trouble using newer linguistic constructions.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 1 child comment
  • [–] 1 point 2 years ago

    Yeah, I think the negation part in Macedonian was added later on, in newer generations because it sounded more "cool" I guess. But the phrase has been around for a very long time, probably like 70, 80 years, maybe even longer.

  • source
  • parent