User:AdrianTM/Sandbox

Romanian proverbs sandbox

Please feel free to edit this. Thanks. -- AdrianTM (talk) 17:36, 20 November 2007 (UTC)

Proposals:

• have subsections for different type of proverbs: about character, about work, about friendship, love (there might be some overlap but that's unavoidable)
• translation: provide a literally translation and an equivalent (if there's an appropriate equivalent), where appropriate provide etymology.

References:

• We need to find references, I had a book of Equivalent Romanian-English proverbs, don't have it anymore. :-(

Relations

Friends and enemies

• Apără-mă de găini, că de câini nu mă tem.

Translation: "Defend me from chickens, for dogs I'm not afraid of."

Note: it refers to people: the chicken are the mean people, the treacherous friends, the dogs are the known enemies

• Fereşte-mǎ, Doamne, de prieteni, cǎ de duşmani mǎ apǎr singur.

Translation: "Defend me, Lord, from my friends, because from enemies I can defend myself."

• Aruncă binele în dreapta şi în stânga, şi la nevoie o să-l găseşti."

Translation: "Throw the good to your left and right, and you'll find it when you'll need it."

• Prietenu, la nevoie se cunoaşte!

Translation: "A friend in need is a friend indeed."

Relatives and family

• Sângele, apă nu se face.

Literary translation: "Blood doesn't turn into water."

Equivalent: "Blood is thicker than water."

Love

• Ochii care nu se văd se uită...

Literary translation: "The eyes which don't see each other, forget each other."

Equvalent: "Out of sight, out of mind."

Brevity of speech

• Ascultă cu urechile, vezi cu ochii, dar taci cu gura.

Translation: "Use your ears to listen, use your eyes to see, but use your mouth to shut up."

• Dacă tăceai filosof rămâneai.

Translation: "Had he kept silent he would have passed for a wise man."

• Fiecare pasăre, pe limba ei piere.

Translation: "Every bird dies by its own tongue."

• Vorba multă, săracia omului

Translation: "Too many words are the poverty of mankind"

Money and wealth

• Banu-i ochiu' dracului"

Translation: "Money is the devil's eye."

Learning

• Cine are carte, are parte!

Equivalent: "Knowledge is power."

• "S-a dus bou... şi-a venit vacă!" (Ion Creangă—Amintiri din copilărie)

Translation: "He went as an ox and came back as a cow."

Meaning: Used for a person that spends a lot of time and money to study and gains nothing. (In Romanian, ox/cow is used for a person who lacks judgement, a fool)

Origin: Wealthy Romanians used to send their spoiled kids to Paris to study, but most of them came back unchanged or worse.

Industriousness

• Nu lăsa pe mâine ce poţi face azi.

Translation: "Don't leave for tomorrow, what you can do today."

• Treaba lăsată de azi pe mâine, baltă ramâne.

Translation: "Don't leave for tomorrow what you can do today."

• Cine se scoală de dimineaţă, departe ajunge.

Translation: "Early risers travel far away."

• Omul sfinţeşte locul.

Translation: "The man blesses the place."

Fools and foolish behaviours

• Câinele moare de drum lung şi prostul de grija altuia.

Translation: "A dog dies from too much walking, a fool from worrying about other's business."

• Nu te pune cu prostul că are mintea odihnită.

Translation: "Don't argue with a fool, he has a rested mind."

• Nu-i prost destul dacă nu e şi fudul!

Translation: "The fool who's not conceited, is not fool enough!"

• Un prost incurcă, şi zece înţelepţi nu pot descurca"

Translation: "One fool tangles and ten wise men cannot untangle."

• Satu' arde şi baba se piaptănă.

Translation: "The village is burning while granny is combing her hair."

• Leneşu' mai mult aleargă — scumpu' mai mult păgubeşte

Translation: "The lazy one runs more — the stingy one loses more."

Health

• Unde nu intră soarele pe geam, intră doctorul pe uşă.

Translation: "If the sun doesn't come through the window, the doctor will come through the door."

Other subjects

• Apa trece, pietrele rămân.

Translation: "Water flows, but rocks remain."

• Azi fură un ou, mâine un bou!

Translation: "He who steals an egg today, will steal an ox tomorrow!"

• Câinele bătrân nu latră degeaba.

Translation: "The old dog doesn't bark without reason."

• Nu iese fum fără foc.

Translation: "There's no smoke without fire."

• Copii cuminţi şi baba frumoasă, cine dracu' o mai vǎzut?!...

Translation: "Quiet/obedient children and beautiful old woman, who the hell ever saw?!"

• Dacă doi spun că eşti beat, du-te şi te culcă.

Translation: "If two people say you're drunk, go to bed."

• Drumul spre iad e pavat cu intenţii bune.

Translation: "The road to Hell is paved with good intentions."

• Până ajungi la Dumnezeu te mănâncă sfinţii.

Translation:

• Mâţa blândă zgârie rău.

Translation: "The gentle cat scratches the worst."

• Nu da vrabia din mână pe cioara de pe gard.

Translation: "Don't give the sparrow in the hand for the crow on the fence."

• Nu vinde pielea ursului din pădure.

Translation: "Don't sell the skin of the bear from the forest. [before you shot it]"

• Ori te poartă cum ţi-e vorba, ori vorbeşte cum ţi-e portul.

Translation: "Either act as you speak, or speak as you act."

• Râde ciob de oală spartă.

Literary translation: "The splinter laughs at the broken pot."

Equivalent: "Pot calling the kettle black"

• Viaţa asta-i bun pierdut, de n-o trăieşti cum ai fi vrut!" (George Cosbuc-Poezii, "Decebal către popor")

Translation: "Life is a waste if you didn't live as you would have wanted to!"

These will be the categories in which the page will be listed: {{sisterlinkswp|Category:Proverbs}} {{catmore1|[[Proverb]]}} [[:Category:Adages]] [[:Category:Language]] [[:Category:Phrases]]