Pesce fuor d’acqua and other fish idioms!

Sometimes when I speak a foreign language I feel like a “pesce fuor d’acqua” . And so I end up being “muto come un pesce”. How many ways to say fish in Italian! Here are some!

Pesce fuor d’acqua and other fish idioms – 1

“Essere muto/silent come un pesce,/fish” is not advisable for a student of Italian because to practice the language you have to speak. If someone treats you “a pesci /fishes in faccia/on the face”  you can also get angry because it means they’re insulting you or having offensive behavior with you. In extraordinary cases in a hostile or different environment you might feel  “un pesce /fish fuor d’acqua/out of the water” but don’t let it get you down, instead “buttatevi/jump in a pesce” that means to approach the situation with enthusiasm and energy.

Fish idioms- 2

But it is not over because Italian creativity with the word fish sees other idiomatic phrases. “Chi dorme non piglia pesci/Those who sleep don’t catch any fish” or “Il pesce puzza dalla testa/the fish stinks from the head” or “L’ospite è come il pesce dopo tre giorni puzza/The guest is like fish: it smells after three days” are other sayings that help us to express in a synthetic way concepts that would need many more words. The first one corresponds to the English, “The early bird catches the worm”. The second one means corruption starts at the top. The last one means that if you are a guest at somebody’s place you should be polite and not stay too long, but know when to leave before becoming intruding and invade one’s privacy.

Fish and other animals – 3

There are also proverbs with other animals, too. For example with ferocious animals like: “essere una tigre di carta” or “vendere la pelle dell’orso prima di averlo ucciso” or “cavalcare la tigre”. But also with insects or parts of animals related to our daily lives: “morire come le mosche” or “bruciarsi le ali” or “avere le zampe di gallina” or “abbassare la cresta”.

Have you ever heard such idioms? Think about their meaning and share your ideas with us!

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