Thai Sayings and Phrases Wanted

[bannork]

A friend in the Interior Ministry was describing her current duties and she used this phrase สากกระเบือยันเรือรบ this puzzled me at first as I know it as a kind of sour milk/yogurt drink but it turned out to mean doing everything from small( a pestle) to big (a warship). She said it's sarcastic, poking fun, perhaps the meaning is similar to ,'a jack of all trades'.

A friend in the Interior Ministry was describing her current duties and she used this phrase สากกระเบือยันเรือรบ this puzzled me at first as I know it as a kind of sour milk/yogurt drink but it turned out to mean doing everything from small( a pestle) to big (a warship). She said it's sarcastic, poking fun, perhaps the meaning is similar to ,'a jack of all trades'.

To add to the above- shops that sell everything from 10 baht combs to 10,000 TVs will often use สากกระเบือยันเรือรบ as part of their sales pitch.

Heard another phrase yesterday-เด็กเหลือขอ an unwanted child, prospective parents tour an orphanage selecting children to be adopted. The ones remaining are เด็กเหลือขอ

[cheeryble]

how to say...

Spring cleaning?

[bannork]

I saw a good one in the unmentionable a couple of days ago.The journalist was describing a politician who had helped to destroy the forest rather than protect it as was his job description. She said his action reminded her of the idiom

หักด้ามพร้าด้วยหัวเข่า to break the handle of the axe with the knee- meaning to act forcefully and selfishly, oblivious and uncaring about the destructive effects of one's conduct- not nice!

Another one referring to bad character-เด็กเหลือขอ literally an unwanted child, referring to an orphanage where adults choose a child to adopt but this one is left behind, no one wants him or her because he's bad.

[cheeryble]

how to say...

Spring cleaning?

PLEASE don't tell me it's tam kwam sa art yay! There must surely be a nice little phrase.....

[tgeezer]

how to say...

Spring cleaning?

PLEASE don't tell me it's tam kwam sa art yay! There must surely be a nice little phrase.....

Spring cleaning: Thorough cleaning of a house or room, often done in the spring.

I guess that you know how to say 'spring' and disappointingly for you, to clean is as you feared.

การทำความสะอาตบ้านหรือห้องอย่างทั่วถึง.

I don't know if there is a Thai equivalent concept of a thorough seasonal cleaning.

[clive90]

Hi, this is my first time on this forum. I need your help.

What s the thai translation of " I still believe in paradise" , but the meaning of "paradise" must not be like heaven butmore like a paradise on the earth.

Thanks for your help

[MaxwellsDemon]

Is there a thai equivalent of "when the going gets tough, the tough get going?"

[TommoPhysicist]

มอง โลก ใน แง่ ร้าย

mawng lock nai ngair raay

To look at the world in a bad light (glass half empty)

[alvin80]

Is there a thai equivalent of "when the going gets tough, the tough get going?"

ความไม่ย่อท้อคือหนทางเอาชนะอุปสรรค

[bannork]

Referring to the recent clash on the badminton court in Canada, the Thai newspaper said the fight was triggered by

แจกของลับ I knew ของลับ meant the genitals or private parts but I couldn't see how แจก , normally meaning to distribute fitted in until I read in the Eng language paper that the fight was triggered by one of the players giving the middle finger to the other. I'm curious as to whether แจกของลับ has a general meaning, ie make an obscene gestureม or if it refers exclusively to giving the middle finger !

[rak sa_ngop]

This seems like a very useful phrase to know, but I am not sure how much of a compliment it is.

ฉลาดเป็นกรด Chalaad pen krod

'Clever as acid'

Does it mean clever in good way (bright, smart) or a bit nasty like sly, cunning etc.

I have tried using it with a Phd student and he did not seem to be offended.

Thanks

[tgeezer]

This seems like a very useful phrase to know, but I am not sure how much of a compliment it is.

ฉลาดเป็นกรด Chalaad pen krod

'Clever as acid'

Does it mean clever in good way (bright, smart) or a bit nasty like sly, cunning etc.

I have tried using it with a Phd student and he did not seem to be offended.

Thanks

Both ฉลาด and กรด are adjectives and they both mean 'sharp' (as in wit/ inteligence). I don't think that one is better than the other so you might use either to describe a person perhaps.

เป็น, I always try to make 'is' not 'as' so to use เป็น they need to be treated as nouns which is the case with 'as' I suppose.

How do you use it?

[DavidHouston]

For what it's worth, here is the entry in the Royal Institute's "Dictionary of New Words" Volume 1:

"ฉลาดเป็นกรด ก. เฉียบแหลม เช่น เด็กคนนี้ฉลาดเป็นกรด ต้องอบรมให้ดี อย่าให้ใช้ความฉลาดในทางที่ผิด."

" . . . intelligent and bright, for example 'This kid is as sharp as a tack; he needs to be trained right so that he does not use his intelligence in a negative manner.' "

Without the RI's entry, I might have thought that the phrase was reflection of the English "acid wit". However, acidity of wit is something not often possessed by children. Think Winston Churchill.

[tgeezer]

For what it's worth, here is the entry in the Royal Institute's "Dictionary of New Words" Volume 1:

"ฉลาดเป็นกรด ก. เฉียบแหลม เช่น เด็กคนนี้ฉลาดเป็นกรด ต้องอบรมให้ดี อย่าให้ใช้ความฉลาดในทางที่ผิด."

" . . . intelligent and bright, for example 'This kid is as sharp as a tack; he needs to be trained right so that he does not use his intelligence in a negative manner.' "

Without the RI's entry, I might have thought that the phrase was reflection of the English "acid wit". However, acidity of wit is something not often possessed by children. Think Winston Churchill.

The definition of ฉลาด in RID 2525 is เฉียบแหลม. This is how languages grow I suppose.

[klons]

สมภารกินไก่วัด a superior who has relations (romantic or sexual) with subordinate

literal; the boss monk eats the Temple chickens.

[rak sa_ngop]

Here's another one (taken from my Jack Reacher book 'Echo Burning')

ร้อนตับจะเเตก ron tap tja tek

Loosely translated: [the weather] is hot enough to bust my liver!

Or does ตับ mean something else in this phrase?

[lizajack2013]

thanks for sharing it

[Jackson86]

Who can help me with some translation? Please PM me ! Khop khun krab !!!

[rak sa_ngop]

Another Jack Reacher classic:

มันไม่ได้ยาถเหมืนพวกเทคโนโลยีจรวด man mai dai jaak meuan phuak teknologi tjaruat

"It's not rocket science"

[briandanes]

Some funny replies:

Salop salop salai - thais say when they want to slap you
Som nam naa - serves you right

[briandanes]

Some funny replies:

Salop salop salai - thais say when they want to slap you
Som nam naa - serves you right

[txp158]

I saw a good one in the unmentionable a couple of days ago.The journalist was describing a politician who had helped to destroy the forest rather than protect it as was his job description. She said his action reminded her of the idiom

หักด้ามพร้าด้วยหัวเข่า to break the handle of the axe with the knee- meaning to act forcefully and selfishly, oblivious and uncaring about the destructive effects of one's conduct- not nice!

Another one referring to bad character-เด็กเหลือขอ literally an unwanted child, referring to an orphanage where adults choose a child to adopt but this one is left behind, no one wants him or her because he's bad.

หักด้ามพร้าด้วยหัวเข่า

uhm...the original proverb is written as อย่าหักด้ามพร้าด้วยเข่า which means => do not forcefully make something (someone) do something, because not only it will not work, you might end up hurting your self.

[txp158]

This seems like a very useful phrase to know, but I am not sure how much of a compliment it is.

ฉลาดเป็นกรด Chalaad pen krod

'Clever as acid'

Does it mean clever in good way (bright, smart) or a bit nasty like sly, cunning etc.

I have tried using it with a Phd student and he did not seem to be offended.

Thanks

Both ฉลาด and กรด are adjectives and they both mean 'sharp' (as in wit/ inteligence). I don't think that one is better than the other so you might use either to describe a person perhaps.

เป็น, I always try to make 'is' not 'as' so to use เป็น they need to be treated as nouns which is the case with 'as' I suppose.

How do you use it?

ฉลาด and กรด in this context could be seen as adjectives or nouns because It's a saying which is known to be a proverb. Without interpretation, by itself, it doesn't mean anything or it could be seen as a poor written phrase or incomplete sentence. In other words, ฉลาดเป็นกรด (Chalaad pen krod) can not be translated directly. You can not translate garbage into something meaningful. You can only translate the proverb after you make sense of it in the original language.

The synnonym of clever is sharp just like that of dense is obtuse. As sharp object can cut through anything, so too strong acid can eat through anything That's how they come up with the pharse, cleaver as acid.

[bannork]

Is there an English equivalent to the Thai หมองูตายเพราะงู ? I think it means the (skilled) person, expert, dies because of his own carelessness, error.

Not the same as paint himself into a corner or dig his own grave. I can't think of any phrase offhand.

[somjitr]

Referring to the recent clash on the badminton court in Canada, the Thai newspaper said the fight was triggered by

แจกของลับ I knew ของลับ meant the genitals or private parts but I couldn't see how แจก , normally meaning to distribute fitted in until I read in the Eng language paper that the fight was triggered by one of the players giving the middle finger to the other. I'm curious as to whether แจกของลับ has a general meaning, ie make an obscene gestureม or if it refers exclusively to giving the middle finger !

แจกของลับ is not really an idiom in Thai. It was probably an ad-hoc phrase for a sensational headline. แจก means give, and ของลับ means genital. In Thai culture, giving the middle finger is associated with the male genitalia, rather than "f*** you", which is not a standard phrase in Thai (although "f*** your mom" is). The Thai verbal insult equivalent to giving someone the middle finger would be "ควย."

Never use this phrase without context. I'm Thai and I wouldn't know what it meant.

[Neeranam]

Is there an English equivalent to the Thai หมองูตายเพราะงู ? I think it means the (skilled) person, expert, dies because of his own carelessness, error.

Not the same as paint himself into a corner or dig his own grave. I can't think of any phrase offhand.

I think the English equivalent would be "live by the sword , die by the sword".

[bannork]

Discussing idioms with Thais is often fun, more than once I've found they don't always agree among themselves as to the meaning, so it was with นำ้ตาจระเข้

One person said it was similar to the English meaning, namely fake tears by someone who had harmed or caused someone else to suffer, in English of course it could simply be relief the husband is dead, it doesn't have to mean the widow harmed him, though she may have done, but a lady disagreed claiming it was when a godfather or mafia figure couldn't get what he wanted and cried for himself in sheer rage or frustration.

I suspect the former meaning is more correct as it is said the act of crunching the victim causes tear drops to fall from the crocodile's eye(s), a purely biological reaction, not sympathy, but naturally open to misinterpretation as the victim sadly disappears between those fearsome teeth and scaly skin.

Does anyone else have any views on this?

[bannork]

What a shame this thread is so dormant, it used to be so active.

In English we say 'an old flame' to mean a girl/boy friend from the past, and i think we mean someone that is significant- hence the flame-

In Thai they say-ถ่านไฟเก่า old charcoal or firewood- because it can reignite again!

[Baa_Mango]

เลือดของพ่อ

blood of father.. ie apple doesn't fall far from the tree

girl i went to uni with said this in the context of her heavy alcohol abuse,inherited from her dad

[Neeranam]

เลือดข้นกว่าน้ำ