Foreign expressions

Caporegime
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Yer nan's knickers
I'm sure we have a few folks here who may speak foreign languages, one thing I oddly enjoy (yeah, I'm weird) is hearing about expressions in foreign languages, because they often convey a point which just doesn't translate very well to English. Curious to hear if anyone here's got any :)

I'll start with a Dutch one (I am Dutch so I know a fair few :p) which I think is very valid at the moment given all this Brexit stuff going on:

"Je moet roeien met de riemen die je hebt"

This translates roughly to "row with the oars you've got" which fits perfectly with this EU stuff, because regardless of what anyone says or does, the facts are the facts so we just need to roll up our sleeves and get on with it.

Keep it clean please. Ta :)
 
Spanish: "Manana" has a literal meaning of "tomorrow". The real meaning is "not today" - especially when the answer to any question beginning with the word "when".
 
I'm sure we have a few folks here who may speak foreign languages, one thing I oddly enjoy (yeah, I'm weird) is hearing about expressions in foreign languages, because they often convey a point which just doesn't translate very well to English. Curious to hear if anyone here's got any :)

I'll start with a Dutch one (I am Dutch so I know a fair few :p) which I think is very valid at the moment given all this Brexit stuff going on:

"Je moet roeien met de riemen die je hebt"

This translates roughly to "row with the oars you've got" which fits perfectly with this EU stuff, because regardless of what anyone says or does, the facts are the facts so we just need to roll up our sleeves and get on with it.

Keep it clean please. Ta :)

I'd translate the Dutch one to "play the hand you're dealt".
 
Italy has a saying that translates as: When in Rhyl do as the Romanians do.

Lolololololol
Made me laugh more than anything else today.

-edit

May the road rise up to meet you. May the wind always be at your back. May the sun shine warm upon your face, and rains fall soft upon your fields.
 
a couple of local ones ...

'better felt than telt'

'very nearly never killed a dead man'

:)

just remembered one I heard many, many years ago on the tv show MASH, quoted by Clinger ... 'may the fleas of 1000 camels nest in your armpit'
 
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I worked with a lovely Dutch girl for a while recently.

Her leaving do we all got smashed and she was telling us all sorts of naughty Dutch phrases. My favourite, and probably only one I can write on here is 'neuken in de keuken', which translates to 'sex in the kitchen'. Apparently a popular Dutch pass-time.
 
Finns det hjärterum så finns det stjärterum
If there is room in the heart, there is room for the ass.
Smaken är som baken - delad
Taste is like an ass. - Split.


Swedish,..,..
 
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