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.”

  • bus_factor@lemmy.world
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    11 months ago

    In Norwegian we say “helt sylta” (“completely pickled”) when we have a very stuffy nose. I tried using that idiom when calling out of work in the US once, and was informed that I had just told them I was too drunk to go to work!

    • Holyhandgrenade@lemmy.world
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      11 months ago

      I love the Norwegian “helt Texas” or “completely Texas”, which means something’s totally crazy. Probably a reference to Westerns.

      • bus_factor@lemmy.world
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        11 months ago

        A classic! I don’t know how I forgot to mention that one, I even coincidentally explained it to someone earlier today!

        • Aremel@lemmy.world
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          11 months ago

          Cubans have the antonym to that:

          Aserlo como los blancos “Do it like white people”

          Do it properly 😜

        • bus_factor@lemmy.world
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          11 months ago

          Almost forgot “jalla” or “jallamekk”, originally adopted by Norwegian military from a middle eastern word for “fast”, meaning a quick and dirty, but not particularly high quality, solution.