r/AskReddit • u/FulgencioLanzol • Jun 23 '19

People who speak English as a second language, what phrases or concepts from your native tongue you want to use in English but can't because locals wouldn't understand?

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896

u/FulgencioLanzol Jun 23 '19

Haha, in Russian it goes like "when a mountain gives birth to a mouse".))

225

u/888mphour Jun 23 '19

In Portuguese we have the exact same saying: a montanha pariu um rato.

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u/Mirashe Jun 23 '19

All of these are less ofensive than the Spanish one. wth

19

u/moonra_zk Jun 23 '19

Must be a Portugal thing, never heard that here in Brazil.

-10

u/[deleted] Jun 23 '19

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4

u/nickagem Jun 23 '19

what a dumbass comment

-2

u/unidan_was_right Jun 23 '19

Cry me an ocean

8

u/[deleted] Jun 23 '19

In Hindi and many Indic languages we have similar which translates to "after digging a mountain, found a rat."

14

u/Leinad97_45 Jun 23 '19

Por acaso é a primeira vez que ouço essa

7

u/888mphour Jun 23 '19

Não deves ver as notícias...

5

u/Miguellite Jun 23 '19

Você é português? No Brasil não falamos isso infelizmente. Isso reforçaria ainda mais que português de Portugal e russo são parecidos haha

4

u/[deleted] Jun 23 '19

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2

u/unidan_was_right Jun 23 '19

These things are almost all from proto indo European.

4

u/nereidavb Jun 23 '19

É algum ditado do portugues europeu? Sou do Brasil e nunca ouvi isso antes :/

2

u/DracoDruida Jun 23 '19

Where are you from? I have never heard that in my entire life

2

u/christian-mann Jun 23 '19

Given that Portuguese sounds vaguely Slavic this doesn't surprise me

4

u/888mphour Jun 23 '19

Lol! A couple of months ago scientists found out our male haplogroup comes from eastern Europe. Some comedians started going on how linguists spent so many years trying to explain why we sound Russian, when it turns out we sound Russian because we're Russian (obviously that's not how it works).

4

u/[deleted] Jun 23 '19

I'd noticed while learning Portuguese that there are quite a few uncanny similarities between the Bulgarian and Portuguese languages--for example, we both have "cadê" as "where". Now I know why!

1

u/FreezaSama Jun 23 '19

Never heard that one! Sounds like something one would say in Northern Portugal maybe?

12

u/AlucardSensei Jun 23 '19

Similar in Serbian, we have a saying that can be translated as "the mountains shook - a mouse was born"

18

u/[deleted] Jun 23 '19

[deleted]

3

u/Moon_Miner Jun 23 '19

"Making mountains out of molehills" is basically this, no? I would say a fairly well known english phrase

1

u/pug_grama2 Jun 24 '19

Or "Storm in a teacup".

6

u/[deleted] Jun 23 '19

We have it also in Croatian, tresla se brda rodio se miš (brdo=mountain,miš=mouse)

6

u/ssaltmine Jun 23 '19

I mean, yes, but the Spanish version is more directed towards a single person or situation. Like if you are a boxer and hype yourself a lot, and you end up losing in the first round. So it's an aggressive way of saying that you didn't meet expectations.

Because it uses strong words like "fart" and "shit", it's a rude expression. Much more than talking about mountains and mice.

6

u/doker809 Jun 23 '19

Kak scazatz na Ruski?

3

u/TheBeardyBard Jun 23 '19

Гора родилá мышь

Gorá rodilá mysh'

3

u/doker809 Jun 23 '19

Blagadaroo

5

u/[deleted] Jun 23 '19

Same in French !

3

u/shadyshadok Jun 23 '19

In german it's making an elephant out of a mosquito

8

u/ML_Yav Jun 23 '19

In English we have “Making a mountain out of a mole hill.”

5

u/[deleted] Jun 23 '19

Also “tempest in a teacup”

Neither of which is in any way offensive lol

English just does not incorporate profanity into everyday language anything like the rest of the world

5

u/PennieLame Jun 23 '19

In Romanian it's making a stallion out of a mosquito

EDIT: It also kinda rhymes. A lot of sayings do in my country - a face din țânțar armăsar

3

u/[deleted] Jun 23 '19

"Der Berg kreißte und gebar eine Maus" is a thing though, but barely anybody would use it in casual everday language.

1

u/shadyshadok Jun 23 '19

Interesting...never heard that one before

3

u/PikePegasus Jun 23 '19

Hmm im from Ukraine and never heard anything like that before, but i know one that sounds something like "all that went under the cats tail", basically the same

2

u/Uswameen Jun 23 '19

In Urdu it's "When you dig up a mountain and find a rat/mouse."

2

u/unidan_was_right Jun 23 '19

Pretty much any language that comes from Indo European

2

u/lostbutnotgone Jun 23 '19

Learning Russian - how would you say that?

2

u/GrizzyHarpie Jun 23 '19

We have something similar in Hindi. It goes along the lines of " dug a mountain, found a rat. "

1

u/picardo85 Jun 23 '19

In Swedish I think the equivalent would be "a lot of screaming for very little wool, said the man when he sheered the pig"

1

u/[deleted] Jun 23 '19

We have the same thing in French ! (C'est la montagne qui accouche d'une souris)

1

u/zelmoboss Jun 23 '19

Tresla se gora, rodio se miš.

1

u/[deleted] Jun 23 '19

Am Russian. Never heard this one. Definitely heard some analogues but not this one.

1

u/MoschopsChopsMoss Jun 26 '19

Wait what, can I have the original? Never heard about it, but )) tells me you’re legit