10 popular Russian idioms about ANIMALS
What do a cat, a crow and an elephant have in common? There's an expression with each of them in Russian.
1. “Тянуть кота за хвост.” (“Tyanut kota za khvost.”)
“To drag a cat by its tail.
To deliberately delay a decision or stall for time.
You can find more expressions about cats here.
2. “Считать ворон.” ( “Schitat voron.”)
“To count crows.”
To be absent-minded, distracted by trivialities, instead of spending time productively.
3. “Не в коня корм.” (“Ne v konya korm”)
Not in a horse feed.”
People say this when all their efforts have been wasted and haven’t yielded any results.
4. “Делать из мухи слона.” (“Delat iz mukhi slona.”)
“To make an elephant out of a fly.”
To exaggerate events, to give a huge significance to a minor mistake or problem. You can dive deeper into this expression here.
5. “Стреляный воробей.” (“Strelyany vorobey.”)
“A sparrow that’s been shot at.”
This is how people describe an experienced person who is extremely hard to deceive. As is often the case, this expression arose from the observations of birds. A sparrow that recognizes gunshots won’t go near the bait. That's why they say, "You can't fool a sparrow that’s been shot at."
6. “Купить кота в мешке.” (“Kupit kota v meshke.”)
“To buy a cat in a sack.”
This expression appeared in the Russian language in the 19th century; it was borrowed from the French – "Acheter chat en poche." The meaning remains the same: to buy an unknown product, usually as a victim of fraud.
7. “Подложить свинью.” (“Podlozhit svinyu.”)
“Lay down a pig.”
To trick someone or cause trouble.
8. “Медвежья услуга.” (“Medvezhya usluga.”)
“Bear service.”
When help only causes harm, it means you've been done a disservice. You can read more about this expression here.
9. “Трудиться как пчела.” (“Truditsya kak pchela.”)
“Work like a bee.”
To work tirelessly.
10. “Как с гуся вода.” (“Kak s gusya voda.”)
“Like water off a goose’s back.”
This is said when nothing affects a person and they're indifferent to everything.
