Tag: British English sayings

Every cloud has a silver lining in other languages

Arabic, Basque, Catalan, Croatian, Czech, Dutch, Estonian, Galician, German, Greek, Hebrew, Irish, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Latin, Portuguese, Russian, Scottish Gaelic, Swedish, Spanish, Turkish… Every cloud has a silver lining in other languages

Meaning

In every bad situation there is an element of good.

BBC Learning English Youtube Channel

Every cloud has a silver lining in Arabic

رُبّ ضارة نافعة: “A harmful thing may be beneficial.”
مصائب قوم عند قوم فوائد: “Some people’s adversities are beneficial to other people.”
كل تأخيرة فيها خيرة: “Every delay brings about something good.”

Every cloud has a silver lining in Basque

Bataren gaitza besteak on = lit. With an evil of one thing (or someone) another one can draw benefit. Source: Refranero Multilingüe

Every cloud has a silver lining in Catalan

D’un gran mal en surt un gran bé = lit. From a great evil comes a great good.

No hi ha mal que per bé no vingui = lit. There is no evil that doesn’t come for a a good.

Every cloud has a silver lining in Croatian

Svako zlo za neko dobro = lit. every evil for some good

Every cloud has a silver lining in Czech

Vše zlé je k něčemu dobré. = lit. All bad [things] are good to something. (Every bad [thing] is good for something.)

Every cloud has a silver lining in Dutch

Achter de wolken schijnt de zon //  elke wolk heeft een zilveren voering. // altijd een geluk bij een ongeluk = lit. always lucky in an accident.

Every cloud has a silver lining in Estonian

Vihmaga saab vilja, põuaga põhku.
~ With rain comes grain, with drought (comes) hay.
Õnn ja õnnetus käivad käsikäes.
~ Happiness and unhappiness walk hand in hand.
Õnnest tuleb õnnetus ja õnnetusest õnn.
~ Out of happiness comes unhappiness and out of unhappiness (comes) happiness.
Ka kõige mustem mure kaob valge liiva all.
~ Even the darkest sorrow disappears underneath the white sand.

Every cloud has a silver lining in other languages

Every cloud has a silver lining in French

À quelque chose malheur est bon = lit. In every evil thing there is something good.

Every cloud has a silver lining in French

Every cloud has a silver lining in Galician

Non hai mal que por ben non veña = lit. There is no evil that doesn’t come for a a good.

Every cloud has a silver lining in German

Wo Schatten ist, ist auch Licht.
~ Where there is shadow there is also light.

Es hat allessein Gutes = lit. It has all its good

Nach düstern Wolken scheint die Sonne am stärksten = lit. behing hidden clouds the sun shines stronger.

Every cloud has a silver lining in Greek

«Ουδέν κακόν αμιγές καλού»
or in polytonic spelling (since it’s a Stoic belief, I think Epicurean):
«Οὐδὲν κακὸν ἀμιγὲς καλοῦ»
in Modern Greek pronunciation:
/u’ðen ka’kon ami’ʝes ka’lu/
lit. “There’s no evil without some good

Every cloud has a silver lining in Hebrew

הכל לטובה hakol letova – everything is for the best

Also “מעז יצא מתוק” – [me’az yatsa matok] = “out of the strong came forth sweetness”.

Every cloud has a silver lining in Hungarian

Minden rosszban van valami jó.

Every cloud has a silver lining in Irish gaelic

Tha a’ ghrian air cùlaibh gach sgothan = lit. In every bad situation there is an element of good

Every cloud has a silver lining in Italian

“Dietro ogni nuvola c’è un raggio di sole” (The sun shines behind the clouds).
“Finita la pioggia torna il sereno” (As soon as it stops raining, the sun starts shining).

“Non tutto il male viene per nuocere” – “Not all the bad things come to hurt”

Every cloud has a silver lining in Japanese

苦あれば楽あり(if there is pain, there is another gain) and 災い転じて福となす(misfortune will be transformed into fortune).

Every cloud has a silver lining in Korean

불행 중 다행-something good that comes out of something bad

Every cloud has a silver lining in Korean

Every cloud has a silver lining in Latin

Malum nullum est sine aliquo bono = There is no evil without some good.

Every cloud has a silver lining in Portuguese

Há males que vêm para o/por bem. ( lit. There are bad things that come for the sake o good)

Every cloud has a silver lining in Russian

нет худа без добра /net khuda bez dobra/ – [there is] no bad without good.

Every cloud has a silver lining in Swedish

Varje moln har en silverkant but it’s not a very common expression, but we usually say “Varje moln har en guldkant” – Every cloud have a gold lining.

“Inget ont som inte har något gott med sig” – Nothing evil that doesn’t have something good with it.

Every cloud has a silver lining in Scottish Gaelic

Tha a’ ghrian air cùlaibh gach sgothan = literally, The sun is behind each boat.

Every cloud has a silver lining in Spanish

No hay mal que por bien no venga: There is no evil that doesn’t come for a a good.

Every cloud has a silver lining in Turkish

“Her işte bir hayır vardır.” –> lit. “There is something good in everything.“

Most common English idioms

Common British English expressions translated to Catalan II

Typical British expressions and their equivalent in Catalan language PART 2

Bones!

Welcome back! Here are 20 further common British English expressions translated to Catalan. As in the first part of Common BrE expressions translated to Catalan, they sound very idiomatic in both languages, so, again, if you ever go to the UK or Catalonia and use these expressions, you will probably impress locals.So let’s have a look at these new expressions:

(to) be stuffed

To be stuffed means to be very full. In Catalan language it can be translated as the very idiomatic expression estar tip, for example No en vull més. Estic tip (I’m good. I’m stuffed).

  • Estic tip

I’m gutted

I’m gutted means that I am very disappointed. In Catalan, you can say M’he quedat xof / Estic decebut/da.

I’m gutted

(To) be in a pickle

It means (to) be in a difficult or confused situation. In Catalan Estar (ficat) en un merder / embolic.

I’m in a pickle.

That’s mental / It’s mental

Something is crazy or surprising. In Catalan És de bojos (to say that something is a madness) or Quina passada or Brutal (for a surprising thing) depending on the context..

It’s mental!

Give me a bell

It basically means Get in touch with me or Call me. Very similar to the expression we saw in the first part Give me a tinkle (on the blower)> In Catalan, you can say Fes-me un truc or just Truca’m (Call me).

Give me a bell

(to) be in a mood

It means (to) be in a bad mood / upset. In Catalan slang you can say Estar ratllat. In a colloquial language you can say No estar del tot fi/fina or Estar de mala lluna.

I’m in a mood

Crickey / Blimey

It is an expressions to show shock or surprise. In Catalan, you can say Ostres!, ospa! (this one quite provincial), Caram! or, in slang language Wala! (this one quite urban).

(to) take the mickey out of someone

It means to make a joke about someone or to tease them. You are taking the mickey out of me. In Catalan You are taking the mickey out of me can be translated as Em fots el pèl or Me l’estàs fotent.

He’s taking the mickey out of us.

(to) pull someone’s leg

Very similar to make the mickey out of someone. This somewhat old-fashioned expression means to make a joke about someone or to tease them. In Catalan Prendre / fotre el pèl.

(to) faff about / around

We are constantly doing it, specially with social networks. Waffing about or around means to waste time doing unimportant tasks instead of the thing that one should be doing. In Catalan you can say Fer el dropo or Perdre / Matar el temps.

(to) lose the plot

(to) Lose the plot means (to) become confused / (to) do something crazy. In Catalan you can say anar-se’n l’olla. Se m’ha anat l’olla (I lost the plot).

I’ve lost the plot

That’s crap

Slang. You wouldn’t use it in a formal situation. You use it to say that something is not good, that something is rubbish, of low quality. In Catalan you can say És una merda or de merda (if it works as an adjective). For instance una peli de merda (A crap movie). We love the expression Una merda pinxada en un pal (literally, a shit pricked with a stick) to refer to something that is worth nothing.

(to) nick

(to) Nick is slang for (to) steal something. In Catalan you can say Pispar (slang). There is also the slang word mangar, if you like. It is not so genuine as pispar, but many people say it.

(to) have had one’s chips

(to) fail at something or lose an opportunity. In Catalan you can say Cagar-la or espifiar-la. L’he cagat! (=I’ve had my chips!). Nano, l’has cagat! (Dude, you’ve had your chips!)

You’ve had your chips.

The bee’s knees

Slang. Something that is excellent, of a high quality. In Catalan language is ser la hòstia, una passada, brutal. Top. Pensa que és la hòstia, però només és una altra poser d’Instagram (=She thinks she is the bee’s knees, but she’s just another Instagram poser).

(to) take the biscuit

It means (to) be rude/offensive/particularly bad. In Catalan is ser un estúpid, ser un impresentable, (or un borde).

Shattered

As we saw in the first part of this series, it is synonymous with Knackered, which means very tired. In Catalan it is Fet pols or Rebentat. Estic fet pols. Estic rebentat. (I’m knackered. I’m shattered).

I’m shattered

I’m not being funny, but…

It means I don’t mean to be rude, but… (very idiomatic, it sounds very British). In Catalan you can say No és per tallar el rotllo, però… Notice that here the word funny changes its meaning.

I’m not being funny, but…

A spanner in the works

It refers to something unexpected that can disrupt or confuse a situation. In Catalan you can say Posar pals a les rodes. For instance, Van retirar el finançament per l’espectacle i això va posar pals a les rodes (The funding for the show was withdrawn so that really threw a spanner in the works). As you may know, a spanner is a tool with a shaped opening or jaws for gripping and turning a nut or bolt, so the metaphor is quite clear here.

(to) head somewhere

It essentially means (to) go somewhere. In Catalan, Fer cap a algun lloc. Fem cap a la festa. We’re heading for the party.

Mint / That’s mint

It refers to something that is excellent or in perfect condition. In Catalan you can say Genial, perfecte or de pu*a mare.. (the missing word is t). For instance That’s mint! (Està perfecte)

Brolly

Slang for umbrella. Informal. Oh, no! I forgot my brolly! Catalan: Paraigües.

Beeb

Colloquial expression for BBC. Informal.

Uni

Short for University. Informal. Catalan: la Uni.

Telly

Short for television. Informal. There’s nothing on the telly. Catalan: No fan res a la tele.

Chrimbo

Colloquial for Christmas. Informal. Are you going away for Chrimbo? Catalan: Nadal.

Footy

Short for football. Informal. Catalan: Futbol.

Offie

Short for Off-License. Informal. I’m just going to get some beers from the offi. Catalan: Botiga de queviures

Tommy K

Colloquial for Tomato Ketchup. Informal. Catalan: Ketchup.

Veg

Short for vegetables. Informal. Catalan: verdures.

Bicky

Short for biscuit. Informal. Catalan: galeta.

Brekky

Short for breakfast. Informal. Catalan: esmorzar.

Tocat del Bolet is a blog that aims to promote and share Catalan language and culture throughout its most typical expressions, in a fun and informative way.

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Common British English expressions translated to Catalan I

Common British English expressions translated to Catalan III (Slang edition)

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Have a good one! (Que vagi bé!)