Die Katze im Sack kaufen

Swedish: att köpa grisen i säcken — literally: to buy the pig in the sack
French: Acheter chat en poche — literally: To buy a cat in a bag

Meaning: To buy something sight unseen and get cheated.

Language: German

Literally: To buy the cat in the sack

Category: Animals

Origin: Medieval market swindlers sold a sack supposedly holding a piglet; the buyer who didn't look found only a worthless cat.

Equivalents in other languages

Dar gato por liebre — To swindle by passing off something inferior as the real thing.
Tagliare la testa al toro — To settle a matter decisively, once and for all.
猫の額 (Neko no hitai) — A very small space, especially of land.
Водить за нос (Vodit' za nos) — To deceive or string someone along.
Nem que a vaca tussa — No way; under no circumstances.
亡羊补牢 (Wáng yáng bǔ láo) — It's not too late to act after a setback to prevent further loss.

Eine Extrawurst verlangen — To expect special treatment.
Da kannst du Gift drauf nehmen — You can bet your life on it; it's absolutely certain.
Den Nagel auf den Kopf treffen — To be exactly right.
Da wird der Hund in der Pfanne verrückt — An exclamation of utter disbelief.
Die Kuh vom Eis holen — To resolve a precarious situation.
Sein blaues Wunder erleben — To get an unpleasant surprise.