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Da wird der Hund in der Pfanne verrückt

Meaning: An exclamation of utter disbelief.

Language: German

Literally: There the dog goes crazy in the frying pan

Category: The Absurd

Origin: Linked to a satirical tale by Till Eulenspiegel involving a dog named Hopf rendered down in a pan; pure German absurdity.

More idioms — The Absurd

  • 杯弓蛇影 — To frighten yourself with imaginary fears.
  • Μου άναψες τα λαμπάκια — You made me furious.
  • नौ दो ग्यारह होना — To flee or run away quickly.
  • Пасти с Марса — To be totally out of touch with what's going on.
  • На баба ми хвърчилото — Something utterly irrelevant or nonsensical.
  • C'est l'hôpital qui se fout de la charité — Said when someone criticizes another for a flaw they share themselves; the pot calling th…

More German idioms

  • Die Kuh vom Eis holen — To resolve a precarious situation.
  • Sein blaues Wunder erleben — To get an unpleasant surprise.
  • Da haben wir den Salat — Now we've got a fine mess.
  • Den Löffel abgeben — To die.
  • Ins Fettnäpfchen treten — To commit an embarrassing social blunder.
  • Eulen nach Athen tragen — To do something utterly pointless.

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