Swedish idioms in painfully literal translation Swedish idioms in painfully literal translation In the first few versions of owenyoungman.com--back when it was on the mcs.net server, in late 1994 and early 1995--I linked to a site called kulturCHOCK, "a Swedish-American journal of being neither here nor there." One of this hilarious but now defunct journal's features was an ever-growing list of Swedish idioms, translated word for word into English and then transliterated into something approximating their meaning.
Truth be told, the list is still growing in a new home, and Wayne Gretzky has posted there. Or so it says. But the idioms started to turn smutty (and I suspect some of them aren't really idioms at all), so here I have culled a dozen or so that capture the spirit of the original endeavor.
"Throw yourself against the wall!" (Släng dig i väggen!) --that is to say, "Get outta here!"
"Don't yell 'hi' until you're over the stream!" (Ropa inte hej förräns du är över bäcken!) --that is, don't claim success until you've actually reached your goal.
"There is no cow on the ice as long as the back legs are on land." (Det är ingen ko på isen, så länge bakbenen står på land.) -- There's nothing to worry about . . . yet.
"I sense owls in the moss." (Jag anar ugglor i mossen.) -- Something feels wrong.
"There's a dog buried here!" (Här ligger en hund begraven!) -- There's something fishy going on!
"If you are going to play the game, be sure you're not allergic to it." (Den som sig i leken ger han får leken tåla.) -- You'd better understand what you're getting into.
"He has planted his last potato." (Han har satt sin sista potatis.) -- He's had it.
"He doesn't have clean flour in the bag." (Han har inte rent mjöl i påsen.) -- He's up to something.
"Make magic with your knees." (Trolla med knäna.) -- Do the impossible.
"No matter how you twist and turn, your butt is always in the back." (Hur man än vänder sig är alltid ändan bak.) -- There are some things you just can't change.
"One more word and the shirt is empty!" (Ett ord till och skjortan är tom!) -- Shut up, or I'll slug you!
"This way no children will be made." (Så här blir inga barn gjorda.) -- It's time to go do something else.