IdiomAnimals
English
Englishsly as a fox
Meaning: Very cunning.
Example: “The old farmer is sly as a fox when it comes to selling a horse.”
Origin: Foxes have stood for cunning in European folklore since the medieval tales of Reynard the Fox. The comparison is long established in English.
Equivalents in other languages
Swedish: Att ha en räv bakom örat Literally: To have a fox behind the ear
Spanish: tener más conchas que un galápago Literally: To have more shells than a Galápagos tortoise
More English idioms
- walk a tightrope To be in a situation where one small mistake would be disastrous.
- take one's ball and go home To quit in a sulk and spoil the activity for everyone else.
- a spare tire A roll of fat around the waist.
- give and take Mutual compromise, where each side concedes something.
- on the sly Secretly, so as not to be seen.
- small potatoes Something unimportant or trivial.
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Words that look familiar in another language but mean something else entirely.
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