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Language-related proverbs
The idioms of this page are used to indicate that something is highly unlikely ever to happen, or that it will never happen. This phrase is thought to come from an old Scottish proverb.
An unofficial symbol of the city of Cincinnati, Ohio in the USA is a flying pig, partly a result of Cincinnati's associations with the pig trade during the 19th century.
Arabic, Bosnian, Bulgarian, Catalan, Chinese, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Esperanto, Finnish, French, German, Hinidi, Hungarian, Italian, Latin, Latvian, Luxembourgish, Macedonian, Malayalam, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Romanian, Serbian, Slovenian, Spanish, Swedish, Tagalog, Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian, Welsh
(fil mushmush) في المشمش
in the apricot
[ contents ]
Kad na vrbi rodi grožđe
When grapes rippen on the willow
На куково лято
(Na kukovo ljato)
In a cuckoo summer
[ contents ]
Quan les vaques volin
When cows fly
除非太陽從西邊出來
[除非太阳从西边出来]
(chúfēi tàiyáng cóng xībiān chūlái)
Unless the sun would rise from the West
Kad na vrbi rodi grožđe
When grapes rippen the on willow
Na sveto nigdarjevo
On St. Nobody's day
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Až naprší a uschne
After it rains and dries
Až na svatého Dyndy.
On the St. Elsewhen's day
'Dyndy' is a non-existent name in Czech, rhyming with the Czech word
'jindy', meaning some other time.
[ contents ]
Når helvede fryser til is
When hell freezes over
Når der er to torsdage i en uge
When there's two Thursdays in a week
Wanneer Pasen en Pinksteren op één dag vallen
When Easter and Whitsun fall on the same day
Met sint-juttemis
With St. Juttemis
[ contents ]
When pigs fly / and pigs might fly.
When hell freezes over.
On a cold day in hell
Not in a month of Sundays.
[ contents ]
En la triĵaŭda semajno
On the week with three thursdays
[ contents ]
Kun helvetti jäätyy
When hell freezes over
Kun lehmät lentävät
When cows fly
Quand les poules auront des dents
When chicken have teeth
la semaine des 4 jeudis
the week with 4 Thursdays - (French school children used to get Thursdays off)
à la Saint Glinglin
On Saint Glinglin's day (doesn't exist)
[ contents ]
Wenn Ostern und Pfingsten auf einen Tag fallen
When Easter and Whistun fall on the same day
Am Sankt Nimmerleinstag / an Sankt Nimmerlein
On Saint Never's day / on Saint Never
Wenn die Hölle zufriert
When Hell freezes over
Wenn es im Sommer schneit
When it snows in summer
[ contents ]
sooraj pashchim se ugega
When the sun will rise in the west
Majd ha piros hó esik
When it's snowing red snowflakes
Majd ha cigánygyerekek potyognak az égből
When gipsy children are streaming from the sky
Majd ha a pokol befagy
When Hell freezes over
[ contents ]
Alle calende greche
By the Greek calendar
Quando voleranno gli asini
When donkeys will fly
Quando Pasqua viene a maggio
When Easter falls in May
L'anno del mai / L'anno del mai e il mese del poi
The year of never and the month of then
Nella settimana dei due giovedì
In the week with two thursdays
Quanno pisceno le galline
When hens piss (Roman dialect)
[ contents ]
Ad kalendas Graecas
on the Greek Kalends - unlike the Roman calendar, Kalends did not feature
in the Greek calendar, so this phrase is roughly equivalent to "at British Thanksgiving"
(Thanksgiving is not celebrated in the UK).
Kad pūcei aste ziedēs
When the owl's tail blossoms
Kad slotaskātam lapas plauks
When the broomstick's leaves open
Wann Päischten op Neijôrsdag fällt
When Whistun and New Year's Day fall on the same day
[ contents ]
Кога врбата ќе роди грозје (Koga vrbata ke rodi grozye)
When grapes will grow on willows
На куково лето (Na kukovo leto)
In the year of the cuckoo
Kakka malannu parakkum
The crow will fly upside down
[ contents ]
Når griser flyr
When pigs fly
Når det snør i helvete
When it's snowing in hell
[ contents ]
Na Święty Nigdy
on Saint Never's Day
Kiedy mi kaktus na ręku wyrośnie
When the cactus will grow on my hand
Quando a vaca tussa / quando a vaca tossir
When the cow coughs
No Dia de São Nunca
On Saint Never's day
[ contents ]
la Paştele cailor
at horses' Easter
la Sfântu-aşteaptă
on Saint Wait's day/at Saint Wait
când o zbura porcul
when the pig should fly
când o face plopul pere
when the linden tree bears pears
când o face plopul pere şi răchita micşunele
when the linden tree bears pears and the willow wall-flowers
când mi-oi vedea ceafa
when I'll see the back of my head
La Paştele cailor şi la nunta vacilor
At Easter of the horses and at the wedding of the cows
Когда рак на
горе свистнет
(Kogda rak na gore svisnet)
When the crayfish on the hill whistles
[ contents ]
Kad na vrbi rodi grožđe
When grapes grow on willows
Ob svetem nikoli
On Saint Never's Day
Cuando las ranas críen pelo
When frogs grow hair
El día del arquero
Goalkeeper's day
När grisar flyger
When pigs fly
När helvetet fryser till is
When hell freezes over
[ contents ]
Pagputi ng uwak
When the crow turns white
Pag-itim ng tagak
When the heron turns black
ตอนเซเว่นปิด (ton sē wēn pit)
when the 7-11 is closed
ชาติหน้า (chāt nha)
next lifetime
Balık ağaca/kavağa çıkınca
When fish climb trees/poplar trees
[ contents ]
коли рак на
горі свисне
(koly rak na gori svisne)
when the crayfish on the hill whistles
коли воша пчихне
(koly voša pčyxne)
when louse will sneeze
[ contents ]
Pan fydd moch yn hedfan
When pigs fly
Pan fydd uffern yn rhew drosodd
When hell freezes over
[ contents ]
Books of idioms, proverbs and sayings in many languages
People who have contributed to this section
If you would like to make any corrections or additions to this page, please
contact me. If you can provide audio recordings
of any of these phrases, please send them to
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It's all Greek to me | It's raining cats and dogs | As easy as falling off a log | A sandwich short of a picnic | It's small world | When pigs fly | Out of sight, out of mind | Other idioms in many languags
Useful foreign phrases | Tongue twisters | Language-related proverbs
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