Non sapere che pesci pigliare
Meaning: To be at a complete loss what to do.
Language: Italian
Literally: To not know which fish to catch
Category: Animals
Origin: A fisherman who can't decide which fish to go for pictures bewildered indecision.
Equivalents in other languages
- Slovak: Byť v koncoch — literally: To be at the ends
- English: at one's wits' end
More idioms — Animals
- Acertar na mosca — To be exactly right; to hit the bullseye.
- Dar com os burros n'água — To fail despite all your effort.
- Считать ворон (Schitat' voron) — To idle and let chances slip by.
- 月とすっぽん (Tsuki to suppon) — Two things alike at a glance but worlds apart.
- 一箭双雕 (Yī jiàn shuāng diāo) — To achieve two things with a single act.
- Att ha en räv bakom örat — To be cunning and sly.
More Italian idioms
- Avere un chiodo fisso — To be obsessed with one idea.
- arrampicarsi sugli specchi — to attempt to defend an indefensible position or grasp at straws.
- per amore o per forza — by any means necessary; whether one wishes it or not.
- mettere radici — to settle in a place permanently or commit to something long-term.
- tirare l'acqua al proprio mulino — to act in self-interest, redirecting resources or advantage to oneself.
- tenere a freno la lingua — to refrain from speaking; to keep silent.
From our compliments & insults
- Che rompiscatole — What an insufferable pest — someone who endlessly pesters and never lets you be.
- Testa quadrata — A rigid, inflexible blockhead who refuses to see beyond their fixed ideas.
- È un mammone — An overgrown man who can't make a decision without his mother — the Italian archetype of…