@chigrima is probably replying to this as I type, but that only means you get twice the swedesplaining, @speculativexenolinguist . u.u
- now youâve shat in the blue cupboard
Actual phrase: Nu har du skitit i det blÄ skÄpet.
As far as a I know, this one dates back to ye olde times, where youâd store the night pot in a cupboard by the bed. In the kitchen area, you had another fancier cabinet (blue, for example, is fancy, maybe some flowers painted on there, pretty stuff) where you kept the âchinaâ to eat on. So to say youâve shat in the blue cupboard means youâve made a huge mistake - like using your dinner china for going poo-poo in.
- the taste is like the butt (divided)
Actual phrase: Smaken Àr som baken - delad
Literally means that just the way the butt is split into two ass-cheeks, so peoplesâ tastes and preferences may be divided. The last part of the idiom is often left out since everyone knows what it is.
- thereâs no cow on the ice
Actual phrase: Det Àr ingen ko pÄ isen.
A cow thatâs gotten lost from the pasture and wandered onto the frozen nearby body of water is bad. You may end up with drowned cow. So as long as thereâs no cow on the ice, whatever you need to do isnât really in a hurry. If there WAS a cow on the ice, youâd be in a rush to fix it before it got worse, though.
- i sense owls in the marsh
Actual phrase: Jag anar ugglor i mossen
It means to suspect foul play (fowl play, ha, see it works in English, too), that somethingâs not quite right. Since I didnât know how it originated, Iâll leave you with the wisdom of Wikipedia - itâs originally a Danish idiom where the owls were actually wolves (which makes more sense, something creepyâs about) that got mistranslated into owls because apparently unbaptised children who died out of wedlock turned into owly marsh-spirits-⊠you know, thatâs fucked up creepy, too. That, and I now feel a very strong urge to incorporate cursed owl-featured child-zombies of the marshes into like ALL my original stories. Anyway. Moving on.
- to walk like a cat around hot porridge
Actual phrase: Att gÄ som katten kring het gröt.
Circling but evading an issue, being reluctant to bring something up. Porridge was often served with butter and milk, which were tasties for cats. But the porridge was too hot, so the cat would just slink around, waiting for it to cool down. So evading something until, preferably, someone else brings it up or it goes away. Like the heat of the porridge.
- donât paint the devil on the wall
Actual phrase: MÄla inte fan pÄ vÀggen
This is so visually poetic. It means you shouldnât invite trouble, or borrow misery. Things might just work out fine, so if you start painting up vivid scenarios of everything that COULD go wrong, you may end up screwing things up for yourself. Donât.
Actual phrase: Nu Àr du helt ute och cyklar
Means to be completely and utterly wrong, way off topic, making no sense. Like being out biking and getting yourself utterly lost. Which happens faster if youâre biking than walking? Or something.
Actual phrase: tÄrta pÄ tÄrta
Literally means to stack one cake on top of another. Ie doing something to extreme excess, exaggerating, too much of any one thing. Is often used about language taking a turn for the purpler - you neednât describe the polar bear to be furry and white, itâs a polar bear, theyâre ALWAYS furry and white, kinda thing.
Finally, because no post about Swedish is complete without it, I shall add on my very favourite Swedish insult: Skitstövel. It literally means shit-boot, and I think thatâs beautiful.
stormborns
kaledo-art
baratheonpilled
jbbartram-illu
izzy806
tangentwithtanner
titsay
turnnoffyourmind
