ProverbHuman Nature
Italian origin
Italian originTanti galli a cantar non fa mai giorno
Meaning: When too many people give orders, nothing gets done.
Literally: With so many roosters crowing, day never breaks
Example: “In quel comitato tutti vogliono comandare: tanti galli a cantar non fa mai giorno.” — Everyone on that committee wants to be in charge: too many cooks spoil the broth.
Equivalents in English, French, Spanish, Japanese, German, and 4 more languages
English: Too many cooks spoil the broth
French: Trop de cuisiniers gâtent la sauce (literally: Too many cooks spoil the sauce)
Spanish: Muchas manos en un plato hacen mucho garabato (literally: Many hands on a plate make a mess)
Japanese: 船頭多くして船山に登る (Sendō ōku shite fune yama ni noboru) (literally: With too many captains, the ship climbs the mountain)
German: Viele Köche verderben den Brei (literally: Many cooks spoil the porridge)
Dutch: Veel koks bederven de brij (literally: Many cooks spoil the porridge)
Russian: У семи нянек дитя без глазу (U semi nyanek ditya bez glazu) (literally: With seven nannies, the child loses an eye)
Polish: Gdzie kucharek sześć, tam nie ma co jeść (literally: Where there are six cooks, there's nothing to eat)
Korean: 사공이 많으면 배가 산으로 간다 (Sagongi maneumyeon baega saneuro ganda) (literally: With too many boatmen, the boat ends up on a mountain)
Origin: One rooster announces the dawn; when a whole yard of them crow at once, morning never seems to come.
Explore another collection: Compliments & Insults
Compliments and insults from around the world, from the sweet to the savage.
- Che rompiscatole What an insufferable pest — someone who endlessly pesters and never lets you be.
- Testa quadrata A rigid, inflexible blockhead who refuses to see beyond their fixed ideas.
- È un mammone An overgrown man who can't make a decision without his mother — the Italian archetype of…
Keep exploring