kick against the pricks
Meaning: To resist authority or fate in a way that only hurts oneself.
Language: English
Literally: (Already vivid in English)
Example: “He spent his teens kicking against the pricks and his twenties apologizing.”
Category: Animals
Origin: An ox kicking against the sharp goad (the "prick") only wounds itself. The image is ancient Greek, and English readers know it from the King James Bible (Acts 9:5): "it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks."
Equivalents in other languages
- Spanish: dar coces contra el aguijón — literally: to give kicks against the goad
- French: Ruer dans les brancards — literally: To kick in the shafts
More idioms — Animals
- hell for leather — As fast as possible.
- buy a pig in a poke — To buy something without examining it first.
- a Trojan horse — Something that seems harmless but hides a threat inside.
- the dogs bark, but the caravan moves on — Let critics complain; one carries on regardless.
- neither fish nor fowl — Something that fits into no clear category.
- give free rein — To give someone complete freedom to act.
More English idioms
- not a soul — Absolutely nobody.
- drain the cup to the dregs — To endure a hardship or humiliation to the very end.
- the icing on the cake — An extra good thing added to something already good.
- only have eyes for — To be interested in or attracted to one person only.
- lose sleep over — To worry a lot about something.
- like rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic — Doing something pointless while a disaster happens.
From our false friends
- Firma — Actually means 'signature'. Metti la tua firma = Put your signature here.
- Magazzino — Actually means 'warehouse' or 'storeroom'. A magazine (periodical) is una rivista.
- Conveniente — Actually means 'affordable', 'good value', or 'suitable'. È conveniente = It's a good dea…