I Never Knew There Was a Word For It

by Adam Jacot De Boinod

  Nose in the clouds

  And it’s another short step from egotism to conceit:

  péter plus haut que son cul (French) to think highly of yourself (literally, to fart higher than your arse)

  creerse la ultima Coca-Cola en el desierto (Central American Spanish) to have a very high opinion of oneself (literally, to think one is the last Coca-Cola in the desert)

  nosom para oblake (Serbian) he’s conceited, puffed up (literally, he’s ripping clouds with his nose)

  khenh khang (Vietnamese) to walk slowly like an important person, to put on airs

  cuello duro (Spanish) a snob, stuck-up (literally, hard or stiff neck – from keeping one’s nose in the air)

  Impressing

  Almost as irritating as the conceited and the pompous are those who fail to see that, as they say in the Kannada language of Southern India, ‘Tumbida koDa tuLukuvudilla’, the pot which is full does not splash:

  farolero (Spanish) a show-off (literally, a lantern maker)

  m’as-tu-vu (French) a show-off (literally, one who constantly asks other people ‘Did you see me?’)

  Spesenritter (German) someone who shows off by paying the bill on the firm’s money (literally, expense knight)

  poshlost (Russian) ostentatious bad taste

  jor-joran (Indonesian) to compete in showing off one’s wealth

  elintasokilpailu (Finnish) keeping up with the Joneses

  Sucking up

  And yet, despite their obvious failings, both snobs and show-offs are often surrounded by the human equivalent of a benign parasite. As the Spanish say, ‘La lisonja hace amigos, y la verdad enemigos’, flattery makes friends and truth makes enemies:

  chupamedias (Chilean Spanish) a sycophant (literally, sock sucker)

  banhista (Portuguese) someone who soft-soaps another

  digdig (Manobo, Philippines) to praise a person for the quality which he lacks in order to encourage him to develop that quality

  jijirika (Chichewa, Malawi) to curry favour by doing more than expected, but not necessarily well

  Eejit

  Can it get worse? Unfortunately it can:

  lū-lū (Hindi) an idiot, nincompoop

  gugbe janjou (Tibetan) a stupid person trying to be clever

  kaptsn (Yiddish) one who does not amount to anything and never will

  eldhus-fifi (Old Icelandic) an idiot who sits all day by the fire

  el semaforo de medianoche (Venezuelan Spanish) a person no one respects and of whom everyone takes advantage, a pushover (literally, traffic light at midnight)

  Salt in the pumpkin

  ‘It is foolish to deal with a fool,’ say the practical Japanese, though the Chinese wisely observe that ‘He who asks is a fool for five minutes, but he who does not ask remains a fool forever.’ Such observations reveal what the Catalans call seny, a canny common sense. Others value such qualities too:

  ha sale in zucca (Italian) he has common sense (literally, he’s got salt in the pumpkin)

  baser (Arabic) one with great insight or one who is blind

  Idiot savant

  In Italy you are stupido come l’acqua dei maccheroni, as stupid as macaroni water; in Lithuania, kvailas kaip žąsis, as silly as a goose; while in France you can be as stupid as une cruche (a pitcher), un pot (a pot) or un chou (a cabbage). But even idiots are not necessarily all they seem:

  adalahendry (Malagasy, Madagascar) a person ignorant yet wise in some things

  Spruchkasper (German) a fool full of wise sayings

  apo trelo kai apo pedi mathenis tin aletheia (Greek proverb) from a crazy person and from children you learn the truth

  Pregnant birds

  Although the very young can delight us with their wonderful and surprising remarks, naivety is not, sadly, a state of mind that will work for a lifetime:

  creer en pajaritos preñados (Venezuelan Spanish) to be credulous (literally, to believe in pregnant birds)

  yelang zida (Chinese) ludicrous conceit stemming from pure ignorance

  lolo (Hawaiian Pidgin) someone who would be glad to give you the time of day, if he knew how to read a clock

  A piece of bread

  How wonderful it is when we meet that rare person who just gets it right all the time:

  katundu (Chichewa, Malawi) a person with outstanding positive qualities

  Lieblingsstück (German) the favourite item of a collection (said of someone special)

  para quitar el hipo (Latin American Spanish) very impressive; astonishing (literally, enough to cure the hiccups)

  es un pedazo de pan (Spanish) he/she’s a good person/it’s a good thing (literally, he/she/it is a piece of bread)

  IDIOMS OF THE WORLD

  A leopard cannot change its spots

  chassez le naturel, il revient au gallop (French) chase away the natural and it returns at a gallop

  aus einem Ackergaul kann man kein Rennpferd machen (Swabian German) you cannot turn a farm horse into a racehorse

  dhanab al kalb a ’waj walaw hattaytu fi khamsin galib (Arabic) the dog’s tail remains crooked even if it’s put in fifty moulds

  vuk dlaku mijenja ali æud nikada (Croatian) a wolf changes his coat but not his attitude

  die Katze lässt das Mausen nicht (German) the cat will not abandon its habit of chasing mice

  chi nasce quadrato non muore tondo (Italian) if you are born square you don’t die round

  karishkirdi kancha baksang dele tokoigo kachat (Kyrgyz) no matter how well you feed a wolf it always looks at the forest

  gorbatogo mogila ispravit (Russian) only the grave will cure the hunchback

  3.

  Emotional Intelligence

  wie boter op zijn hoofd heeft,

  moet niet in de zon lopen (Dutch)

  those who have butter on their head should not run around under the sun

  Happy valley

  Whatever kind of character we’ve been blessed with, we all still experience similar highs and lows of emotion. Pure happiness is a wonderful thing; and we should never take it for granted, for who knows how long it may last?

  kusamba (Ngangela, Angola) to skip, gambol, express uninhibited joy

  sungumuka (Luvale, Zambia) to experience transitory pleasure in the novel

  faly ambonindoza (Malagasy, Madagascar) delight before the danger is passed, premature joy

  choi lu bù (Vietnamese) to have round after round of fun

  alegria secreta candela muerta (Spanish proverb) unshared joy is an unlighted candle

  In the coal cellar

  The opposite emotion is rarely sought, but it arrives all the same:

  at være i kulkælderen (Danish) to be very sad or depressed (literally, to be in the coal cellar)

  lalew (Manobo, Philippines) to grieve over something to the extent that one doesn’t eat

  dastehen wie ein begossener Pudel (German) to look depressed (literally, to stand there like a soaked poodle)

  mal ikke fanden på veggen (Norwegian) to be very pessimistic (literally, to paint the devil on the wall)

  dar lástima (Latin American Spanish) to be in such a bad way that people feel sorry for you

  False friends

  bang (Dutch) afraid

  blag (Haitian Creole) joke

  puke (Rotuman, South Pacific) to come strongly over one (of feelings)

  drift (Dutch) passion

  job (Mongolian) correct, good

  meal (Gaelic) to enjoy

  Boo-hoo

  Sometimes the best course is just to let it all hang out:

  kutar-atugutata (Yamana, Chile) to get hoarse from much crying

  gegemena (Rukwangali, Namibia) to mutter while sobbing

  sekgamatha (Setswana, Botswana) the dirtiness of the face and eyes from much crying

  dusi (Malay) to be perpetually crying (of young children)

  ā paddharm (Hindi) a conduct permissible only in times of extreme distress

  Crocodile

  Though even tears are never as st
raightforward as we might like them to be:

  ilonkyynelet (Finnish) tears of joy

  miangòtingòtim-bòninàhitra (Malagasy, Madagascar) to weep in order to get something

  chantepleurer (French) to sing and weep simultaneously

  Smiley

  ‘Cheer up!’ we tell each other. And hopefully this brings the right results:

  elmosolyodik (Hungarian) to break into a smile

  sogo o kuzusu (Japanese) to smile with delight (literally, to demolish one’s face)

  cuòi khì (Vietnamese) to laugh a silly laugh

  On reflection

  German Blues

  The idioms of the world are full of colour. But in Germany ‘blue’ has a rich range of uses:

  blaue vom Himmel herunter lügen to lie constantly (literally, to lie the blue out of the sky)

  grün und blau ärgern sich to see red (literally, to anger oneself green and blue)

  blau machen to take a day off (literally, to make blue)

  blau sein to be drunk (literally, to be blue)

  mit einem blauen Auge davon kommen to get off unscathed (literally, to get away with a blue eye)

  ein blaues Auge a black eye (literally, a blue eye)

  die blaue Stunde the time before dusk especially during winter (literally, the blue hour)

  Tee-hee

  Sometimes, indeed, more than the right results:

  bungisngís (Tagalog, Philippines) one who giggles at the slightest provocation

  ngisngis (Manobo, Philippines) someone who cannot control his laughter

  latterkrampe (Norwegian) convulsive laughter

  mengare (Gilbertese, Oceania) a forced laugh, to laugh on the wrong side of one’s mouth

  tirebouchonnant (French) extremely funny (literally, like a corkscrew – as one takes in air repeatedly to laugh)

  mémêstátamaò’o (Cheyenne, USA) to laugh so hard that you fart

  No potato

  In the Arab world they distinguish between those who are goodhumoured, damak khafeef, literally, their blood is light, and the opposite, damak tieel, their blood is heavy. But however wellmeaning, humour always carries the risk of failure:

  pikun (Kapampangan, Philippines) one who cannot take a joke

  nye kartoshka (Russian) no joking matter (literally, no potato)

  jayus (Indonesian) someone who tries to make a joke which is so unfunny that you laugh anyway

  Pulling your nose

  The different expressions for ‘pulling someone’s leg’ reveal subtle distinctions in approaches to teasing. For the Germans it’s jemandem einen Bären aufbinden, literally, to fasten a bear onto someone; for the French it’s mettre en boite, to put someone in a box. The Spanish pull your hair (tomar el pelo), the Finns pull your nose (vetää nenästä), while the Czechs go one further and hang balls on your nose (věšet bulíky na nos).

  Worry-wart

  But better, surely, to laugh at your troubles than live on your nerves:

  bēi gōng shé yng (Chinese) worrying about things that aren’t there (literally, seeing the reflection of a bow in a cup and thinking it’s a snake)

  qaquablaabnaqtuq (Iñupiat, Inuit) to be tense because of an impending unpleasantness

  doki doki (Japanese) the feeling of great anxiety when someone is about to do or doing something very nerve-racking

  hira hira (Japanese) the feeling you get when you walk into a dark and decrepit old house in the middle of the night

  como cocodrilo en fabrica de carteras (Puerto Rican Spanish) to be extremely nervous (literally, to be like a crocodile in a wallet factory)

  No balls

  We all aspire to zanshin (Japanese), a state of relaxed mental alertness in the face of danger; but for most of us our reactions are all too human when bad things really do happen:

  les avoir à zéro (French) to be frightened (literally, to have one’s testicles down to zero)

  ngua mat (Vietnamese) unable to stand something shocking

  khankhanana (Tsonga, South Africa) to fall backwards rigid (as in a fit or from extreme fright)

  jera (Indonesian) so scared by a past experience that one will never want to do it again

  Spider on the ceiling

  Then again, rather be healthily scared than driven round the bend:

  keçileri kaçirma (Turkish) to lose one’s marbles (literally, to kidnap the goats)

  avoir une araignée au plafond (French) to be crazy (literally, to have a spider on the ceiling)

  lud ko struja (Serbian) crazy as electricity

  más loco que un plumero (Spanish) crazier than a feather duster

  vrane su mu popile mozak (Croatian) he’s crazy (literally, cows have drunk his brain)

  IDIOMS OF THE WORLD

  A sandwich short of a picnic

  šplouchá mu na maják (Czech) it’s splashing on his lighthouse

  hij heeft een klap van de molen gehad (Dutch) he got a blow from the windmill

  ne pas avoir inventé le fil à couper le beurre (French) not to have invented the cheese wire to cut butter

  hu khay beseret (Hebrew) he lives in a movie; his whole life is like a movie

  non avere tutti i venerdì (Italian) to be lacking some Fridays

  tem macaquinhos no sotão (Portuguese) he has little monkeys in the attic

  udaren mokrom čarapom (Serbian) hit with a wet sock

  ikke at være den skarpeste kniv i skuffen (Danish) not to be the sharpest knife in the drawer

  4. Social Animals

  ui mai koe ki ahau he aha te mea nui o te ao, māku e kī atu he tangata, he tangata, he tangata! (Maori)

  ask me what is the greatest thing in the world, I will reply: it is people, it is people, it is people!

  Most of us are sociable creatures, unable to avoid relying on those around us to keep us happy:

  bukaladza (Tsonga, South Africa) to dispel boredom by doing something such as paying a visit

  buren (Dutch) to look in upon one’s neighbours

  lishashamana (Lozi, Niger-Congo) the habit of running out to see anything that happens

  gezellig (Dutch) an atmosphere of cosiness, of being with good friends, and spending time together laughing and having fun; the kind of moments that create memories

  Hermit

  Better that than being the odd one out:

  lappsjuka (Swedish) a state of melancholy through being so isolated

  encontrarse como un pulpo en un garaje (Spanish) to be like a fish out of water (literally, to be like an octopus in a garage)

  nkunkula pansi (Mambwe, Zambia) an orphan who has no one to look after him and passes his time playing in the dust

  Whacking aunt

  When we do get together, are our conversations as morally improving as they might be?

  gigirhi-gigirhi (Tsonga, South Africa) to go from village to village exchanging gossip

  Klatschbase (German) a person who always gossips (literally, whacking aunt)

  ngasngás (Tagalog, Philippines) a scandal caused by gossip

  Bären aufbinden (German) to tell false tales (literally, to tie a bear onto someone)

  False friends

  sober (Estonian) male friend

  drug (Russian) good friend

  fun (Yoruba, Nigeria, Benin and Togo) to give

  host (Czech) guest

  Party spirit

  For some the urge to socialize can get the better of their wiser instincts:

  mawadishiweshkiwin (Ojibway, North America) the habit of making visits too often

  mit der Tür ins Haus (German) failing to take someone by surprise, to be too direct, to be too forward (literally, to fall with the door into the house)

  paglaguma (Tagalog, Philippines) the act of joining others in a party although uninvited

  paracaidista (Central American Spanish) a freeloader, gatecrasher; also someone who jumps into a discussion without knowing anything about the subject (literally, parachutist)

  Storm-free shack

  But then who c
an resist a really good bash?

  parapetowka (Polish) the first party in someone’s new apartment (literally, a windowsiller – as there’s no furniture yet)

  ipeje (Yoruba, Nigeria, Benin and Togo) an invitation to a banquet

  ponkal (Tamil) a boiling, a bubbling-up; a great festival in honour of the sun entering the sign Capricorn (the name comes from the cooking of the celebratory rice)

  eine sturmfreie Bude (German) a flat without the parents, thus allowing the children to throw a party (literally, a storm-free shack)

  nachspil (Swedish) a follow-up party

  After-parties

  In Japan, the second, sometimes spontaneous gathering that happens after you have left the main party is called nijikai. If you move on after a while to a third place, it’s called sanjikai.

  Looking over the fence

  Some guests are obviously more welcome than others:

  partigangare (Swedish) a fanatical partygoer

  laumaeläin (Finnish) a gregarious animal

  Zaungast (German) a guest who looks over the fence to get at least the music of the party (literally, fence guest)

  aguafiestas (Spanish) a killjoy, one who throws water on a party (literally, water party)