対牛弾琴

Meaning: Wasting effort on an unappreciative audience.

Language: Japanese

Literally: Playing a lute to a cow

Category: Animals

Origin: Originally Chinese (对牛弹琴), adopted into Japanese.

More idioms — Animals

• 蛇足 — Something completely unnecessary; a superfluous addition.
• 猫に小判 — Giving something valuable to someone who can't appreciate it.
• Estar en la edad del pavo — To be at an awkward teenage phase.
• Estar como una cabra — To be completely crazy.
• Meter la pata — To make a blunder or put your foot in it.
• In bocca al lupo — Good luck! (replied with 'Crepi!' — may it die).

More Japanese idioms

• 口が滑る — To accidentally let something slip.
• 杞憂 — Unnecessary worry about things that won't happen; baseless anxiety.
• 傍若無人 — Behaving without regard for others' feelings or presence around you.
• 一期一会 — Treasure each encounter as unique and irreplaceable in life.
• 四面楚歌 — Being surrounded by enemies with no hope of escape or support.
• 鯖を読む — To fudge the numbers in your favor, especially your age.

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