IdiomThe Absurd
Arabic
Arabicيعمل من الحبة قبة (Ya'mal min al-ḥabba qubba)
Meaning: To blow something tiny completely out of proportion.
Literally: To build a dome out of a seed
Example: “كسرت كوبًا واحدًا وهو يعمل من الحبة قبة.” — I broke one glass and he's making a mountain out of a molehill.
English equivalent: To make a mountain out of a molehill
Equivalents in other languages
French: En faire tout un fromage Literally: To make a whole cheese out of it
Russian: Делать из мухи слона (Delat' iz mukhi slona) Literally: To make an elephant out of a fly- French: Faire d'une mouche un éléphant Literally: To make an elephant out of a fly
Czech: Dělat z komára velblouda Literally: To make a camel out of a mosquito
Romanian: A face din țânțar armăsar Literally: To make a stallion out of a mosquito
Turkish: Pireyi deve yapmak Literally: To make a camel out of a flea
Spanish: ahogarse en poca agua Literally: To drown in little water
English: make a mountain out of a molehill- French: Se noyer dans un verre d'eau Literally: To drown in a glass of water
Origin: Ḥabba is a seed or grain and qubba a dome, and the two words rhyme. Making a dome out of a seed is blowing a tiny matter up into something monumental, like English "make a mountain out of a molehill." The phrase is common in Egyptian and Levantine speech; no first use is documented.
More Arabic idioms
- الجمل ما يشوف عوجة رقبته (Al-jamal mā yshūf 'awjat raqabatuh) People are blind to their own faults.
- تمخض الجبل فولد فأرا (tamakhaḍa al-jabalu fa-walada fa'ran) A huge fuss producing a tiny result.
- يضرب في حديد بارد (yadrib fi hadid barid) To waste effort on a hopeless task.
- القرد بعين أمه غزال (al-qird bi-ʿayn ummihi ghazāl) Parents see their children as beautiful no matter what.
- اللي ما يعرف الصقر يشويه (illi ma yaʿrif al-ṣaqr yishwīh) Failing to recognize something valuable and destroying it.
- على قد لحافك مد رجليك (ʿalā qadd liḥāfik midd rijlayk) Live within your means.
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