IdiomAnimals
Swedish
Swedishsurt sa räven
Meaning: To claim that something undesirable was not worth having anyway, as a way of masking disappointment.
Literally: Sour said the fox
Example: “Hon sa att hon ändå inte ville ha jobbet. Surt sa räven.” — She said she didn't want the job anyway. Sour grapes.
English equivalent: Sour grapes
Equivalents in other languages
Hindi: अंगूर खट्टे हैं (Angoor khatte hain) Literally: The grapes are sour
English: sour grapes
Origin: Short for surt, sa räven om rönnbären (sour, said the fox about the rowanberries), the Swedish form of Aesop's fable of the fox and the grapes: unable to reach them, the fox declares them sour anyway. In Sweden the unreachable fruit became the rowanberries of the north, which really are sour.
More Swedish idioms
- slåss mot väderkvarnar To engage in a futile struggle against imaginary or trivial enemies.
- ha is i magen To remain calm and composed under pressure, resisting the urge to act rashly.
- bära eller brista To succeed or fail; to endure the test or collapse under it.
- mitt på ljusan dag In broad daylight; openly and obviously, not in secret.
- Att glida in på en räkmacka To have things handed to you without effort.
- Att ha rent mjöl i påsen To have a clean conscience; nothing to hide.
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