IdiomDaily Life
Ukrainian
UkrainianРозбити глек (Rozbýty hlek)
Meaning: To fall out and ruin a friendship.
Literally: To break the jug
Example: “Після тієї сварки вони розбили глек назавжди.” — After that quarrel, they burned their bridges for good.
English equivalent: To burn one's bridges
Equivalents in other languages
English: burn one's bridges
French: Brûler ses vaisseaux Literally: To burn one's ships
Origin: A clay jug (hlek), once broken, cannot be mended. Breaking the jug is ending a friendship or partnership for good. The phrase is colloquial and has no documented story behind it.
More Ukrainian idioms
- Брати ноги в руки (Braty nohy v ruky) To hurry up and get moving quickly.
- Передати куті меду (Peredaty kuti medu) To overdo something well past the right measure.
- Як сніг на голову (Yak snih na holovu) Completely out of the blue; totally unexpected.
- Дати драла (Daty drala) To run away fast.
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