IdiomFood & Drink
Afrikaans
AfrikaansNou is die gort gaar
Meaning: Now we're really in trouble.
Literally: Now the barley porridge is cooked
Example: “Die kar het gebreek en die telefoon is dood. Nou is die gort gaar!” — The car's broken down and the phone is dead. This is a fine kettle of fish!
English equivalent: Fine kettle of fish
Origin: Gort is groats or pearl barley, and gaar cooked. "Now the barley is cooked" means things have come to a head and trouble is here. Dutch has related phrases with gort, and the Afrikaans form is colloquial; no first use is documented.
Equivalents in other languages
German: Da haben wir den Salat Literally: There we have the salad
Swedish: Nu är det kokta fläsket stekt Literally: Now the boiled pork is fried
English: fine kettle of fish
More Afrikaans idioms
- Jakkals trou met wolf se vrou A sunshower — rain while the sun shines.
- Hy is van sy trollie af He has lost his mind.
- Koeitjies en kalfies Idle small talk.
- Bobbejaan agter die bult To worry about troubles that may never come.
- So skaars soos hoendertande Extremely rare; almost non-existent.
- 'n Halwe eier is beter as 'n leë dop Half a loaf is better than none.
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- They complain wrongfully of the sea, who twice suffer shipwreck. Repeated misfortune from the same cause reveals poor judgment rather than bad luck.
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