A
Idiom
|
English translation
|
Meaning
|
aasinsilta
|
a bridge of a donkey. From Latin pons asinis
|
A tenuous connection between the old discussion topic and a new one.
|
aataminaikainen
|
from the time of Adam
|
(Of an object) very old, old-fashioned
|
alkaa vetää
|
to start to pull (notice: vetää, much like English set, has various unrelated meanings)
|
To leave immediately.
|
Antaa vetää!
|
let pull
|
To ask someone leave immediately, "Get out/off!".
|
aukoa päätään
|
to open one's head
|
To speak provocatively to someone.
|
E
Idiom
|
English translation
|
Meaning
|
ei olla jäniksen selässä
|
not to be riding a rabbit
|
Not to be in an immediate hurry.
|
ei olla suu tuohesta
|
not to have a mouth of birch bark
|
Not to abstain from alcohol (always used with a negative).
|
ei sylkeä lasiin
|
not to spit into the glass
|
Not to abstain from alcohol (always used with a negative).
|
eilisen teeren poika
|
son of yesterday's grouse
|
Inexperienced, gullible (usually used with a negative)
|
elää kuin pellossa
|
to live as if in a field
|
To live without cleaning up after oneself, or bothering about what others think about one.
|
en minä voi siksi muuttua
|
I can't change into that
|
A statement that a desired object simply isn't available, no matter how much someone keeps asking for it. The word "siksi" (into that) is substituted with the object in question, in translative "-ksi".
|
H
Idiom
|
English translation
|
Meaning
|
heittämällä
|
by throwing it
|
With little or no effort required.
|
heittää lusikka nurkkaan
|
to throw the spoon in the corner
|
To die.
|
heittää veivinsä
|
to throw one's crankshaft
|
To die.
|
heittää (jollakin) vesilintua
|
to throw (something) at waterfowl
|
To throw away. (As in throwing into a lake.)
|
hevoset karkaa
|
the horses will run away
|
An euphemism for "your fly is open".
|
huitsin Nevadaan
hevon kuuseen |
Away, to an unknown place, never to be seen again. While the name Nevada is an obvious reference to the U.S. state, the word "huitsin" is probably a reference to the ancient spirit of the woods according to finnish sagas, Hiisi.
| |
hymyillä kuin hangon keksi (Hangon keksi)
|
To smile very broadly and happily.
|
I
Idiom
|
English translation
|
Meaning
|
ihmisten ilmoilla
|
where people are (lit. in people's air)
|
At a place popular or populated enough to earn one's respect. Can also be used more literally, to mean at a place where one can be rescued.
|
irtoaa kuin mummon hammas
|
breaks loose like a grandma's tooth
|
Goes very, very easily.
|
J
Idiom
|
English translation
|
Meaning
|
joko teet tai itket ja teet
|
either you'll do it or you'll cry and do it
|
A direct order to do something, whether the addressed wants to do it or not. The word "teet" ('you do') can be substituted with whatever verb is necessary from context.
|
Jumalan selän takana
|
behind God's back
|
Possibly a calque from the English phrase "a godforsaken place". Sometimes implies a disrespect of rural communities.
|
juosta pää kolmantena jalkana
|
To run with one's head as a third leg
|
To be in a great hurry
|
juosten kustu
|
(as if) urinated while running
|
Haphazardly implemented.
|
järki jäässä
|
(common sense) frozen
|
Being clueless about something or understanding the point slowly.
|
K
Idiom
|
English translation
|
Meaning
|
kaidalla polulla
|
on the narrow path
|
To live within the law (possible Biblical metaphor).
|
kaksipa päätä makkarassa
|
there're two ends in a sausage
|
two sides of a thing, cf. "two sides of a coin"
|
kana kynittävänä
|
(has) a chicken to pluck
|
To have unresolved disputes, cf. English "bone to pick"
|
Kankkulan kaivoon
|
into the well of Kankkula
|
to go to waste.
|
kestää ikä ja terveys
|
to take the time of one's age and health
|
To take a far too long time, or be of far too much effort.
|
keskellä ei mitään
|
middle of the nowhere
|
Calque from English — natively korvessa
|
kiertää kuin kissa kuumaa puuroa
|
to circle like a cat circles hot porridge
|
To constantly and obviously covet something without actually making a move to get it, or to try to approach a difficult topic of speech in a roundabout way.
|
koira haudattuna
|
a dog buried here
|
An implication that there's something foul behind the scenes, the situation is not what it appears to be.
|
konstit on monet (, sanoi akka, kun kissalla pöytää pyyhki)
|
the ways are many (said the woman while wiping the table with a cat)
|
There's more than one way to do something. Often used when it becomes necessary to resort to unconventional methods.
|
korjata luunsa
|
to pick up one's bones
|
To finally get around to leaving.
|
korvessa
|
in the backwoods
|
A place that is somewhere in an area with no interesting things surrounding it.
|
kuin allit kalliolla (also misheard "nallit")
|
like ducks (exactly: a particular species (Long-tailed Duck) that leaves last in the autumn) on a cliff
|
Left by oneself, without outside support.
|
kuin Euroopan/maailman omistaja
|
like someone who owns Europe/the world
|
Acting excessively posh and snobby. Usually an implication of misplacen superiority towards others.
|
kuin kaksi marjaa
|
like two berries
|
Two people or things that seem extremely alike; two peas in a pod.
|
kuin perseeseen ammuttu karhu
|
like a bear which has been shot in the ass
|
Being extremely cranky.
|
kuin seipään niellyt
|
as if swallowed a spear
|
Standing unnaturally or needlessly upright. To be seemingly nervous.
|
kuin tervan juontia
|
like drinking tar
|
Extremely slow, difficult, or ardurous.
|
kuin tuhka tuuleen
|
like ash in the wind
|
Disappeared without trace.
|
kuin viilipytty
|
like a pot of sour milk
|
Very calm.
|
kukkona tunkiolla
|
like a rooster on top of the carbage pile
|
Boasting oneself, being "king of the hill"
|
L
Idiom
|
English translation
|
Meaning
|
ei (tule) lasta eikä paskaa
|
this won't result in either a baby or shit
|
Describes an unsuccessful, painful effort.
|
lavealla tiellä
|
on the wide road
|
To live outside the law (possible Biblical metaphor).
|
lukea kuin piru Raamattua
|
read like the Devil reads the Bible
|
To deliberately look for loopholes, in order to follow the letter without following the spirit.
|
lähteä kuin hollituvasta
|
to leave as if leaving an inn
|
To leave without cleaning up after oneself. The word "hollitupa" comes from the verb "hålla" (keep) in the Swedish language.
|
puhua läpiä päähän(sä)
|
to speak a hole into (one's) head
|
To make statements without requisite knowledge. Often used of one's own words
|
M
Idiom
|
English translation
|
Meaning
|
Manu on työnsä tehnyt, Manu saa mennä
|
Manu has done his job, Manu is dismissed
|
An ironic expression, when faced with ingratitude after doing a favor. (Does not refer to the former president Mauno Koivisto.)
|
(tuli kuin) Manulle illallinen
|
(it came like) like an evening meal to Manu
|
Gaining something good without any effort
|
Matti kukkarossa
|
Matti in a wallet
|
Broke (no money).
|
menneen talven lumia
|
previous winter's snow
|
Not relevant anymore, often used of past offences or sorrows, similar in tone to English "let bygones be bygones".
|
mennä pipariksi
|
to become gingerbread
|
Something goes completely wrong.
|
mennä putkeen
|
go into the tube (or pipe)
|
To succeed, to work as planned.
|
(istua ja) miettiä syntyjä syviä
|
(to sit and) contemplate the deep births
| |
(heittää) mäkeen
|
(throw) into the hillslope
|
To throw away.
|
N
Idiom
|
English translation
|
Meaning
|
nenänvalkaisu
|
nose-bleaching
|
Sobering up, as in the sense of not drinking alcoholic beverages for a week or a month.
|
nousta väärällä jalalla
|
to rise/get up from the bed with the wrong foot
|
To be very grumpy first thing in the morning when everything seems to go wrong. Similar to English "get up on the wrong side of the bed".
|
O
Idiom
|
English translation
|
Meaning
|
ojasta allikkoon
|
from the ditch to the duck pond
|
out of the frying pan into the fire, from one bad situation to another
|
oksat pois
|
the branches are off (the tree)
|
used to describe almost anything (mostly anger) in excessive quantity. also used in conjunction with the subject of immediate action
|
olla hukassa
|
be in a 'loss'; also, hukka means "wolf"
|
Being lost, missing, in despair, perished.
|
olis kirveellä töitä
|
there would be work for an axe
|
Something should be corrected, possibly with quite harsh means.
|
oma lehmä ojassa
|
with one's own cow in the ditch
|
Having a personal interest or investment in the matter.
|
(maksaa) oppirahat
|
(pay the) learning costs
|
Learn a lesson the hard way
|
otti ohraleipä / olkileipä
|
it took a barley bread / straw bread (slightly ungrammatical). After losing the rye harvest, one had to sow barley, an inferior crop, before the winter
|
To encounter severe problems.
|
P
Idiom
|
English translation
|
Meaning
|
panna tikkua ristiin
|
cross two matches
|
To perform even the most minimal effort. Cf. English "lift a finger".
|
persaukinen
|
have the ass open
|
No money.
|
(kiivetä) perse edellä puuhun
|
(to climb) into a tree arse first
|
To do something in a needlessly complicated way, failing to see an easier way
|
perseet olalla
|
to carry one's buttocks on one's shoulders
|
to be really drunk
|
peukalo keskellä kämmentä
|
with one's thumb in the middle of one's palm
|
Very bad at doing something, usually manual labour. Cf. English "All Thumbs".
|
pieniin päin
|
towards small ones
|
Pregnant.
|
pihkassa
|
in resin
|
A crush on someone
|
pilvin pimein
|
with dark clouds
|
A huge (often excessive) amount of something, possibly from the concept of gathering dark clouds covering the sky.
|
Porvoon mitalla
|
More than asked for
| |
potkaista tyhjää
|
to kick empty space
|
To die.
|
pukukummitus
|
suit ghost
|
A person who insists on being sharply and formally dressed, but who appears to do little, if any, actual work. Almost always used of men, but sometimes of women too.
|
puurot ja vellit sekaisin
|
confusing normal (solid) porridge and a more liquid form of porridge
|
Confusing two unrelated things, either for each other, or as relating to each other. Cf. comparing apples and oranges.
|
päin seiniä / puuta / honkia / ...
|
against the walls / tree / dead pines / ...
|
Completely wrong.
|
R
Idiom
|
English translation
|
Meaning
|
rikkana rokassa
|
as a piece of trash in the broth
|
As the bad exception in an otherwise good company.
|
ruista ranteessa
|
rye in one's wrist
|
Physically strong.
|
rysän päältä
|
from the top of a large fish trap
|
Caught straight from doing a no-good thing. Cf. English "caught red-handed". The American TV program "Cheaters" is translated to "Rysän päältä" in Finland
|
S
Idiom
|
English translation
|
Meaning
|
(viedä) saunan taa(kse)
|
(take) behind the sauna
|
"To put off/execute". Due to fire hazard, saunas were built at a distance from the house, and what was or happened behind the sauna was out of sight, "behind the backyard". Normally, there was a "tunkio" or a cargabe pile behind the sauna, and when e.g. a sick or injured horse or dog needed to be put off, it was taken behind the sauna for the job.
|
soittaa suutaan
|
to play one's mouth (as a musical instrument)
|
To boast, or to speak provocatively.
|
soitellen sotaan
|
playing an instrument when going to the war
|
To be unprepared, whether it is a task at hand or one is going somewhere without thinking what is needed to take along.
|
sokerina pohjalla
|
as the sugar on the bottom
|
As a final bonus, benefit or gift
|
T
Idiom
|
English translation
|
Meaning
|
tulevana vuonna tuohikuussa
|
in a coming year, in the birch bark month
|
At an indeterminate point in the future, possibly never. "Tuohikuu" is a fictional month but sounds like the rural-oriented Finnish names for the 12 months.
|
tuohikuussa pukinpäivänä
|
in the birch bark month on the day of the goat
|
Same as above.
|
tulla kuin havumajaan
|
to come as if coming into a hut made of tree needles
|
To enter a house easily, often against the wishes of the house's owner
|
tumput suorina
|
with one's mittens straight
|
Not doing anything, with an implication that one should be doing something.
|
tykätä kyttyrää
|
to like + some hump (the unusual grammar is hard to translate)
|
To dislike. Implies vindictiveness. Often juxtaposed with the antonym.
|
U
Idiom
|
English translation
|
Meaning
|
ulkona/pihalla kuin lumiukko
|
out like a snowman
|
Not to know anything about the a given thing and thus be stunned, or to say things that are not relevant to the thing.
|
V
Idiom
|
English translation
|
Meaning
|
vaiheessa
|
in a phase (backformation from asking "in which phase?")
|
Not yet ready or finished, with an implication of not knowing when it will be. Originally army slang.
|
vaikka lampaat söisi
|
for sheep to eat
|
A great number or amount, especially one that will stay great after partaken of.
|
vetää herne nenään
|
pull a pea up one's nose
|
To be provoked.
|
vetää hirsiä
|
to pull cabers / to pull logs
|
To sleep.
|
vetää jojoon/ kaulakiikkuun
|
to put in a yo-yo/ throat-swing
|
To execute by hanging. Almost always used of suicide.
|
vetää turpaan
|
(sudden action) to the muzzle
|
To beat someone, especially punch in the face. The verb vetää is a verb with diverse, disparate meanings, used to indicate a sudden jerk or a single, quick movement.
|
vintti pimeni
|
the attic blacked out
|
Someone fainted
|
vuonna miekka ja kypärä/kivi/kilpi
|
in the year of sword and helmet/stone/shield
|
Very long time ago.
|
vuonna yks ja kaks
|
in the year one and two
|
Very long time ago.
|
vuonna käpy ja nakki
|
in the year of cone and wiener
|
Very long time ago
|
vääntää rautalangasta
|
to twist from wire
|
To explain with very simple terms.
|
Y
Idiom
|
English translation
|
Meaning
|
yhdeksän hyvää ja kahdeksan kaunista
|
nine good things and eight beautiful things
|
Lots of good-sounding promises, with an implication they are unlikely to be kept.
|
yritys hyvä kymmenen
|
good attempt ten (slightly ungrammatical)
|
Good, but failed, attempt.
|
Ä
Idiom
|
English translation
|
Meaning
|
äitinsä näköinen
|
looks like one's mother
|
Not looking good at all. Comes from an allegation of being the son of a whore.
|
Ö
Idiom
|
English translation
|
Meaning
|
(seisoa kuin) Ö aapisen laidassa
|
(to stand like) the letter Ö (the last letter of the Finnish alphabet) in the corner of the spelling book
|
Not having a clue, being useless.
|
No comments:
Post a Comment