The writing prompts invite postcrossers to write about a different topic on their postcards’ messages every month. These are just suggestions though — if you already know what you want to write about, or the recipient gives you some pointers, that’s great too!
For this month’s writing prompt, Jane suggested a fun idea in the forum topic. Idioms and sayings related to colour are common, but can mean very different things in different countries. For example, “to be blue” means one thing in English (being sad), while in German it means something else altogether (being drunk).
I only speak English well, so I don’t know how well a lot of the idioms I say translate into other languages. For example, if I say “tickled pink”, is there an equivalent of that in French or Japanese or Farsi…? If I talk about “being the black sheep”, would that make sense if it was translated literally into other languages? I feel like “black sheep” might translate quite well, because sheep are usually white (if you ask someone to draw a sheep, they’ll probably draw something white and fluffy), and it’s pretty clear that the black sheep would stand apart from a herd of white sheep… though this, too, is probably regional. If you have mostly black sheep in your country, maybe the term for someone different would be “white sheep”…?
And what about other idioms? That seems a lot less simple. “Red herring”, a favourite term for mystery writers in English, for example… I can imagine that you could say “red herring” in another language and it’d just sound like you were speaking literally of a fish that is red. I’m definitely curious to hear whether that term translates, or how you’d refer to a misleading clue in your language!
It’s a fascinating subject, and we’d love to read your answers here in the blog comments. But you can also use it as a topic to write about this month, if you’re not sure what to say!
59 comments so far
I think that 'the grass is always greener on the other side" may be translated in German as "die Kirschen in Nachbars Garten schmecken immer süßer" ... which literally translates as 'the cherries in a neighbours garden always taste sweeter' ha ha ha
English: underdog. Indonesian: kuda hitam (black horse)
English: the grass is always greener on the other side. Indonesian: rumput tetangga selalu lebih hijau (neighbor's grass is always greener)
In Ukrainian the word "красно, красний" which seems similar to the word "red" has different meanings in different word combinations. "Красно дякую" is "thank you so much" (not "red thank-you"), "красний кут" is "the home altar" (not "the red corner"), "красний світ" is "the beautiful world" (not "the red world"), "красна дівиця" is "a young beautiful girl" (not "the red girl"), "красна ціна" is "the most expensive cost" (not "the red cost").
In German we say "promise the blue from heaven" if someone promises you everything to get what he want.
In French, "hareng rouge" (red herring) is used by authors to tell about a wrong path in the polars or thrillers for the books or in films.
In Hebrew we say "he sees the world through pink glasses", meaning: he is doesn't face the (harsh) reality of life.
A "blue dream" is often an unattainable dream.
“bluestocking” is a woman who is completely absorbed in bookish and scientific interests, callous, devoid of femininity and charm.
In America when we say, I’m seeing red, we mean, I’m mad as hell, lol
When someone says, oh he’s yellow, that means he’s cowardly or not a very brave person.
Happy New Year everyone. I’d love to get postcards from you. I love reading everyone’s interests and where you are from. Xo
Linde USA.
Oh also, when someone says, he/she only sees the world through rose colored glasses, that means that person is impervious to harsh realities around them. Usually a positive person and only sees things in a beautiful or positive way. Which is a nice way to be. It’s a personal sheltering of anything bad or negative. But you still have to avail yourself to reality.
When someone says, “ their green” that mean they are very new at something or in an infantile stage.
When someone says, the grass is always greener on the other side, that means it could be worse. Never want to walk in someone else’s shoes because you don’t know what that persons life is like or what their fate it. It also means when people feel dissatisfied with their life, they look at people who they think have more ir a better life. The true statement is…. The grass isn’t always greener on the other side. I say, appreciate what you have because it can be taken from you in an instant. Always be grateful.
Another color reference is, “out of the blue”, which means “unexpectedly!” Without warning.
In Greece we say : ''mavra matia kaname na se doume'' which is translated as : our eyes are black cause we haven't seen you for a long time...
Mavra matia is : black eyes
Happy New Year !
Thought would share a few .. The idiom in Tamil, The transliteration in Tamil, The literal meaning and probable equivalent ... in that order...
கோபம் வரும் போது குழி தோண்டு Kobam varum pothu kuzhi thondu Dig a hole when angry When angry, count to ten Advises to control anger by distraction, emphasizing the importance of patience.
நாய் வளர்த்தாலும் வால் நேராகாது Naai valarththalum vaal neraagadhu Even if you raise a dog, the tail won't straighten You can't teach an old dog new tricks Indicates the difficulty in changing inherent nature or long-standing habits.
American English
Green with envy=jealous
Red hot=Super Sexy, very attractive
Blue moon=once in a while, rare
Seeing red=furious
Black widow=deadly woman
Feeling blue=sad, melancholy
Yellow belly=coward
White knight=good guy
Black knight=bad guy
Since you said farsi, i know the cute expression “your place is green” means that your presence was missed - as in we saw the grass growing on the spot where you should've been standing!
In nursing we say "its a code brown" which means there is quite a nasty bowel accident to clean up!
What an interesting topic! I don't speak any other languages well enough to know whether any of the colour-related expressions I use translate. I'd like to know if 'a bit green around the gills' translates? In English, it means that someone is looking or feeling unwell or nauseous. 🤢
This year a new colour expression entered the Finnish language, käärijänvihreä (Käärijä green) to refer the green colour of Finland's ESC representant Käärijä's bolero because we were crazy about ESC this year.
Some things are different even in the same language, depending on location/dialect. My Canadian “green thumb” (meaning that I am good at gardening and have a facility for growing plants) became “green fingers” when I moved to the UK. However, I was told that my “black thumb” (= my plants die despite my best efforts) did not have an equivalent “black fingers”! Perhaps the British are just naturally better gardeners 👍🪴😆
So much thought is put into this Forum. Even monthly TOPIC IDEAS. Bravo👏👏 to those of you "behind the scenes" brainstorming to keep this Hobby intetesting. You are doing so FABULOUSLY‼️🎉
In the Italian language there are many expressions connected to a color.
The color black, for example, is used in many expressions: from the traditional and almost international "black sheep" to indicate an element that stands out from others (often in a negative way), "seeing black" to indicate being pessimistic, "being black" for being really angry, furious, "making someone black" to indicate the action of hitting someone (especially metaphorically), "working in black" to indicate a service carried out in an illegal manner from a tax point of view and contributory, without payment of the taxes due, "put black on white" which means to make it clear, especially in formal writing, "crime news" to indicate journalistic articles concerning crimes, murders, bloody events.
These are just some examples regarding the color black, but many other colors are represented in idiomatic expressions: "seeing everything pink" (being optimistic, always being able to find a positive side in any situation), having a "blue fear" (really trying so afraid), "of point in white" (out of the blue, in an unexpected way), "in red light" (said about something - films, neighborhoods, books - linked to eroticism), "being green from envy" (to be very, very envious), "to be red with shame" (a person who is very, very embarrassed), "to have a green thumb" (to have great skill in growing and caring for plants and flowers), "Being to the green" (being broke, being left without money, reduced to almost poverty), "having blue blood" (to indicate people who have noble origins), "spending a sleepless night" (not being able to sleep for the whole night, from a medieval custom)...
And these are just some "colourful" expressions that can be found in the Italian language, almost a literal rainbow: and - lastly - I couldn't help but mention the expression "to speak of all colours", that is, to express comments of "all kinds" , talking about someone or something, saying all sorts of things, often negative.
Happy New Year 2024 to everyone from Rome, Italy
"Grey zone". This is that zone between the extremes of black and white.
An example sentence from the Cambridge Dictionary: "The grey zone between war and peace has grown considerably."
Other uses often refer to an area of ambiguity / uncertainty, where rules or social mores are broken under the guise of "it's not 'technically' illegal".
In french we have :
à l'eau de rose=sentimental
avoir la main verte=good gardener
apporter des oranges à=visit someone
rire jaune=laugh forcefully
être gris=being inebriated
As it's 23:26 CET on 1 January, I guess it's safe to say that some people in the world are still taking care of their "Kater" (=hangover) as they were "blau" last night. "Blau sein" in German is simply a synonym for being drunk.
Oh, seeing the world through pink glasses means you've just fallen in love.
Just want to echo another commenter who applauded your creative ideas for the blog! Thank you! Loved reading this and the comment thread!
"Green with envy" (jealous)
"Blue in the face" (wasted actions)
"In the pink" (healthy)
"Blue blazes" (hell)
"Black list" in trouble or untrustworthy
"Black Heart" uncaring or cruel
"Grey area" not very bad, not very good, generally unsure rules.
"You're yellow" disgrace for timidity, or cowardice.
In Australia, a "blue" is a brawl, " true blue" means loyal, real or genuine and a red haired (usually male) person is nicknamed "Blue" or "Bluey "
And the song offers us colorful suggestions:
- bluer than the blue of your eyes, I can't see anything better, even the blue of the heavens...
- coffee color, I love your coffee color....
- I'll go to sleep in the white paradise...
In parts of India" gulabee thand hai" meaning a nice chill in the air.
My son recently mentioned the 'colourful letter people' meaning the abbreviation letters used to represent the growing group of those in the now extending LGBTQ community. I've also heard references to 'rainbow' people. Rainbow as I understand meaning an umbrella of all races and communities. We see this in the Olympic games logo of colours for all the countries.
I once told a German person that he spoke English well, and his reply was something like, "My English is not the yellow of the egg."
Well said.
Some from Dutch:
Paarse krokodil (Purple crocodile)
A more recent expression, which entered the language after a 2005 commercial for insurance services and has come to signify exaggerated bureaucracy.
Je ergert je groen en geel (you're annoyed/irritated green and yellow)
when you are greatly disturbed by something in your environment.
Je ergens blauw aan betalen (you pay somewhere blue)
having to pay a lot of money for something.
Grijze muis (gray mouse)
Someone who is shy, doesn't want to stand out, or doesn't want to be the center of attention.
Je draait het liedje grijs (you turn the song gray)
Gramophone records used to be made of black vinyl, which turned grey after using them a lot. Listening to one song a lot.
De rode draad (the red thread)
Understanding the essence / core of the story.
Zwart op wit (black on white)
It means it has been written down, you have written proof.
Zwartrijden (black riding)
Travel without paying for you ticket
Zwartwerken (black working)
Work without paying taxes you owe.
Zwartkijker (black watching)
Someone who watches television without paying. Someone who views pessimistically.
I myself am not a native Dutch speaker, so if I'm doing any of these phrases disservice please feel free to let me know.
"Tickled pink" doesn't have a "colorful" equivalent in French... we can translate by "être fou de joie" (so happy that you become mad) or "être aux anges" (being with angels)
In Brazil:
- Yellow smile (sorriso amarelo): Laughing or smiling unnaturally, in a forced, fake or embarrassed way
- Play green (jogar verde): Say something with the intention of getting some statement or information about the subject
- See life rosy (ver a vida em cor de rosa): face life with optimism or naivety
- Being in the red (estar no vermelho): Difficult economic situation, being in debt.
- Tremble like a green stick (tremer como vara verde): be very nervous, be afraid
In Portuguese we also have lots of colour-related expressions.
For example, we also use green to talk about being jealous - verde de inveja and yellow to talk about laughing forcefully - sorriso amarelo.
The Portuguese expression for "The grass is always greener on the other side" is "A galinha da minha vizinha é sempre mais gorda do que a minha", which can be translated as "My neighbour's chicken is always fatter than mine".
This is really a very interesting writing prompt.
een donkerbruin vermoeden hebben(NE), have a dark brown suspicions= knows something almost for sure
In Czech, black sheep does not mean someone different, but rather someone bad. We usually say the black sheep of the family and it means a failed son, a prodigal, a traitor. But it doesn't always have to sound rude and negative. It is an exaggeration to say that the famous fisherman Jakub Wágner, who comes from a family of musicians, is just such a black sheep of the family, because he does not devote himself to music, but has chosen a different field.
As opposed to the black sheep, we have the white crow, which means exactly what can be expected. An honest, decent, good person in a group of people where everyone is dishonest, evil and greedy.
As for other colors, sometimes we turn green with envy, see red (anger) or, conversely, look at the world through rose-colored glasses when we are in love. We have a gray zone in the economy, the grass is greener behind the fence and we promise the one we love blue from the sky.
Talked until (one) is blue in the face. Meaning talked at great length and exhausted. (Lack of oxygen)
In Hindi (बाल सफेद होना) 'bal safed hona' i. e. Hairs becoming white means a person with lot of experience of life. Another saying( जा मू काला कर)' ja mu kala kar 'i.e.make your face black it means go away you have done enough wrong. Another one( मू पे काली पोतना) mu pe kali potna i.e. Making my face black it means your behavior has made me ashamed in the society. Another गाल गुलाबी होना gal gulabi hona i.e. Cheeks getting pink means falling in love with someone
Neela-Peela ho jana (Turn blue and yellow):
Used to describe someone angry and irritated, but in a lighthearted, teasing manner.
Lila - der letzte Versuch
Violet - the last try (for a woman to get a husband:)
Das Blaue vom Himmel herunterlügen
To ly the blue down from the sky
I don't have because everyone did it for me. So thank you'll.
Happy 2024.
There's a few in english (at least American english) I've not yet seen here:
to green light = to get the go-ahead to do something, as an approval
Caught red handed = caught doing something wrong with incontrovertable evidence
Once in a blue moon = rarely or infrequently
A golden opportunity = a not to be missed chance to get something one might really want
Red tape = an inordinate amount of bureaucracy to get through
Once in a blue moon Eric would get a golden opportunity to get a leg up in the world, but most of the time he had to slog through a ton of red tape to get anywhere. What makes me blue is that after he got caught red-handed cheating the system, he'd never get a green-light again. No second chances.
Here's a few more:
Apparently if you go out and paint the town red (party it up and get really drunk), that makes you blau in Berlin.
A white lie is a small "innocent" little lie one tells to get out of doing something one doesn't want to do.
Too many white lies, and they won't roll out the red carpet for you...roll out the red carpet = do everything you can to make someone feel welcome, especially for special people (red carpet at the oscars...)
Which is sort of the opposite of brown nosing which is also known as sucking up to someone. Literally it refers to putting your nose up someone's butt.
But, if you do that, you might come through with flying colors meaning with great success.
We also refer t blue collar workers and white collar workers in America. These have to do with class distinctions; blue collar is working class wage earner, white collar is professional salaried worker, likely more educated.
This was a fun topic!
Here are a few saying in Romanian:
1 - „Negru/neagră de supărare”, which translates literally to „so upset that he/she's black". It's not exactly the equivalent of "being blue", since it refers to an emotional state in which you're both very sad and very angry.
2 - „Vede roșu în fața ochilor”, that is to say „seeing red”. The meaning is the same as in English - pure, unadulterated rage.
3 - This might be very regional, or at least specific to people who know about the theatre scene during communism, but there's a saying that refers to a "white dog" („câine alb”), which is the equivalent of the "red herring" in English. The story goes that a stage director that wanted to get something in his show past the vigilant eye of the censorship (who would send inspectors to previews of shows, to prevent any `problematic` messages), had a white dog cross the stage at a certain point, for no apparent reason, just to distract whoever needed to be distracted from what was being said. It worked. So the saying stuck, at least among thespians.
4 - „s-a înverzit de ciudă”, meaning „to become green with envy”.
5 - „înroșit până în vârful urechilor” or „roșu ca racul”, meaning „red to the tips of the ears” or „red as a crayfish” - when someone is very ashamed or embarrassed about something.
To add to my previous entry there is an old saying, mostly heard on old black and white movies "Dont fire until you see the whites of their eyes". Meaning dont shoot unless they are coming right at you.
"Silver threads among the gold" - meaning the person is aging.
"Golden opportunity" - a perfect time to start a new job, meet a new person, or take advantage of timing.
"Go green" - use organic products, and save the environment.
"white as a sheet" - frightened
🇧🇪 In Flemish we say, 'I have a dark-brown suspicion', which means you're pretty certain of something.
A few sayings about Hungary: - you get a green light = you get a permit;
- yellow with envy;
- the mod of making white also black = he lies unabashedly;
- purple head = very angry;
- purple has no steam = no idea;
- stomach turns blue = talks too much;
- then if red snow falls = never day;
- he's in a rosy mood = he's in a good mood;
- brings together a lot of green = talks nonsense.
Oh MY! What a wonderful writing prompt. I use sayings related to color, all the time, and tickled pink is my favorite and most used. I appreciate all those who shared their sayings also and have learned some new ones, that I will use.
In the Russian language we use"black sheep " a lot, as well as "white crow", which is similar to black sheep, you know, how many white crows are there? Also, lots of color-related idioms:
Blue dream - the dream you aspire to reach the most;
Red with anger - when people get so furious their faces literary turn red;
White as a fungus - very pale person, my mom uses this phrase a lot;
A take of a white ox - multiple repetition of something said or done, something similar to a poem House that Jack built
Blue blood - be a member of the elite or rich, upper classes
Blue beard - a jealous man
Catch a golden fish - get lucky
Golden hands - a skilled person
Gray mouse - ordinary, refular person
What a wonderful theme. One of my favorite quotes is from Walter Gropius: "Meine Lieblingsfarbe ist bunt."
The translater give me for Farbe-color and for bunt also color. But my feelings for "farbig" und "bunt" are different. "Bunt" is a childrens drawing or a brezzy summer dress. "Farbig" is a paintig from a famous artist, more serious.
But both words include all colors; besides white, grey and black.
n Poland we say "dream about blue almonds" which means to dream about something unattainable, to have unrealistic dreams.
When a fact, a situation or something else isn't perfect or optimal, Germans say "Das ist nicht das Gelbe vom Ei". Translated in English this would be: "It isn't the yellow of the egg". 😉
In German we say "Reden ist Silber, Schweigen ist Gold."
(to talk is silver and to be quiet is gold). And the meaning behind it:
"Sometimes it's better to say nothing."
Amazing! Congrats to all our members! Thanks to our support team for gathering all the data for us!
In Belgium, we have the expression: " een witte raaf". I translate: a white raven. Now Raven are usually black. A white raven is someone or something very rare. An exceptional appearance or person.
In Russian we have some colour idioms(I'll write them in translation):
"To be a while crow" - to be special, mostly with negative shade;
"Black humour"- humour with bad and sad meaning;
You can call somebody "green", when you're jeer at the person, it means that person haven't got enough life experience and skills,
If you call something "gold" it means that objects is very expensive;
"Blue", except about colour, also has two meanings: "to be freezed, feel cold" and "to be drunk";
"Turning red" has the same meaning as in English.
Some sayings mentioned here are known in Finnish, too, like "seeing red" (nähdä punaista), "green with envy" (kateudesta vihreä), "black sheep" (musta lammas) or "white lie" (valkoinen valhe), the colour being the same. What about "mustasukkainen" (having black socks, meaning being jealous) and "keltanokka" (literally having yellow beak or nose, meaning being a beginner)? I think we say "a cloud can have a golden lining" but in other languages it's the colour silver instead of golden. After holiday season, many have "nenänvalkaisuviikot" in January (literally weeks for turning one's nose white, meaning having no alcohol at all). When I say "saan harmaita hiuksia", I'm getting grey hair, I worry a lot about something.
And then there is Mellow Yellow, the meaning of which might not be appropriate for these pages!
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