Animal expressions O - P

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Here are some more animals to add to the list of expressions. See also  A - D, E - H and K - M.

Oyster


If the world is your oyster, you can do what you want or go where you want.
  • You're young and healthy and you have no commitments - the world is your oyster.

Parrot
If you learn or repeat a piece of text parrot-fashion, you learn or repeat the exact words, usually without understanding them.
  • When we were at school we used to learn history parrot-fashion; all I can remember now is the dates.
If you are as sick as a parrot, you feel very disappointed about something.
  • I felt as sick as parrot when my team lost 5-0 in the final.
Read the blog post As Sick As A Parrot about a man who went to extreme lengths to be like a parrot.



Peacock


Someone who is as proud as a peacock is excessively proud.
  • John has been as proud as a peacock since he won the award. He hasn't missed a single opportunity to remind us.

Pig


Someone who shows unreasonable support for an opinion or plan and refuses to change or listen to different opinions can be described as pigheaded.
  • There's no use arguing with him - he's so pigheaded. Just pretend that you agree with him.
If you pig out (on something), you eat too much of it.
  • We just pigged out on crisps while we watched the match.

Listen to the story about the artistic pig:


Poodle


If you are someone's poodle, you are too willing to support or be controlled by someone in authority.
  • The Prime Minister is the US President's poodle. When told to jump, he asks "how high".

What are your favourite expressions from above? Which ones do you think you'll use? Write some examples of your own.

Comments

Sir Joseph said…
Hi Graham,



I have found animal expressions in Spanish that we call saying, for instance:



Oyster



“Being more bored that an oyster”, it means that it is impossible to be more bored, the most bored, tedious.



Parrot



“Being to parrot”, we say it when people are knowledgeable about it and they know about what they are doing.

“The chocolate of the parrot” we mean that people do cutbacks in hard times and the saving that they do is insignificant and without importance.



Peacock



“Pour you cherries to peacock”, we say it when you are astonished seeing the ability with what anybody does anything very difficult.

Esopo said that the peacock complained to Goddess Juno because it can´t sing like the nightingale. It said that everyone laughed at its voice. Juno said that it was true, but it overtood to nightingale because of its beauty and size. The peacock answered her: Why am I beautiful with a voice like my voice? Juno said: Fates have distributed different presents to each one, beauty for you, song for nightingale and so on. You are only discontented. You can´t be the first to everything.



Pig



“Saint Martín arrives to every pig”. It means that bad behaviour must not go unpunished.



Poodle



I have not found any saying of the poodle in Spanish.



See you
Saturday, 02 March, 2019
Graham said…
Good evening Jose,

There are some animal idioms that I have always felt uneasy about using, the worst one being to "kill two birds with one stone". I thoroughly disapprove of the Spanish saying "every pig has its Saint Martin's day".

I was very pleased to read about the kind alternatives to cruel expressions suggested by PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals):
https://www.peta.org/teachkind/lesson-plans-activities/animal-friendly-idioms/

The idea was widely ridiculed (though not by me):
https://www.standard.co.uk/news/world/peta-mocked-for-suggesting-animal-friendly-alternatives-to-popular-phrases-a4009141.html



I have found some animal-related sayings which we use in Spanish, for instance:

Oyster

“Being more bored than an oyster” means that it is impossible to be more bored. ("tedious" is like "boring" - it describes something that causes you to be bored)

Don't you say "ostras!" when something surprises you?

Parrot

We say “be at a parrot” when people are knowledgeable about something and they know what they are doing. (Can it also have the sense of being alert, ready to respond if something happens?)

With “The chocolate of the parrot” we mean that people make cutbacks in hard times and the saving that they make is insignificant and without importance. (In English you would say it was "just a drop in the ocean")

Peacock

“Pour your cherries to a peacock”, we say when you are astonished to see the ability somebody has to do something very difficult.

Esopo said that the peacock complained to Goddess Juno because it sing like the nightingale. It said that everyone laughed at its voice. Juno said that it was true, but it beat the nightingale because of its beauty and size. The peacock answered her: Why am I beautiful with a voice like my voice? Juno said: Fates have distributed different presents to each one, beauty for you, song for nightingale and so on. You are only discontented. You can´t be the first in everything.

Pig

“Saint Martín arrives to every pig”. It means that bad behaviour must not go unpunished. (I think the equivalent in English is to "get your just desserts")

Poodle

I have not found any saying about the poodle in Spanish.
Monday, 04 March, 2019
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