“Give someone the cold shoulder”in other languages
Deliberately ignore someone.
English
Dutch
French
Spanish
Same idea, different pictures
English turns a cold shoulder; the story about unwanted guests being served a cold shoulder of mutton is a later invention. Spanish puts someone under the law of ice, la ley del hielo. Dutch looks at them with the neck, met de nek aankijken: you turn your back and they get only your neck.
French makes grimace soup, faire la soupe à la grimace: the cold welcome at home, dinner served with a scowl.
More sayings in other languages
- Give someone what for
- Go all out
- Go away empty-handed
- Go off on a tangent
- Go overboard
- Go pear-shaped
- Go to rack and ruin
- Go under the knife
- Good riddance