Polish Poland

robić dobrą minę do złej gry

Idiom USED On Occasion BY Some People

(to put on a good face for a bad game) • To pretend you're doing well when the situation is actually bad. Similar to the English expressions 'to put on a brave face' or 'to put on a Poker face' (depending on the context).

"Rozstanie bardzo w nią ugodziło, ale robiła dobrą minę do złej gry, udając, że cieszy się swoją nowo odzyskaną wolnością."

"The breakup really struck her, but she put on a good face for the bad game and pretended she was enjoying her newly gained freedom."

Portuguese Mozambique

danone

Expression USED On Occasion BY Some People

(n.) • Danone is a yogurt made for small children uded to describe young man dating older women.

"Ih amiga, deixaste teu marido por um danone de verdade?"

"Oh my god, you really left your husband for a danone?"

Dutch Netherlands

met stomheid geslagen

Expression USED On Occasion BY Most People

(to be hit with stupidity) • To be flabbergasted, but usually in a bad way.

"Ik was met stomheid geslagen toen ik erachter kwam."

"I was hit with stupidity when I found out."

Polish Poland

nie mój cyrk, nie moje małpy

Expression USED On Occasion BY Some People

(not my circus, not my monkeys) • It’s an expression used to say it’s not my problem so I’m not going to worry about it!

“Och nie, Thomas i Ileana znów się kłócą!” “Nie mój cyrk, nie moje małpy.”

“Oh no, Thomas and Ileana are fighting again!” “Not my circus, not my monkeys.”

Dutch Netherlands

hoog of laag springen

Standard Phrase USED On Occasion BY Almost Everyone

(jump high or low) • When there is nothing you can do to change something about a situation.

"Je kunt hoog of laag springen, ik ga mijn mening niet veranderen."

"You can jump high or low, but I'm not going to change my mind."

English United States

it’s been a minute

Expression USED On Occasion BY Millenials

It’s been a while, it’s been a long time, it has not happened recently

"It’s been a minute since I’ve seen my coworkers in person. The office has been closed for over a year. "

Dutch Netherlands

relativeringsvermogen

Word USED On Occasion BY Everyone

(n.) • An ability to put things into perspective, which happens to be an important quality to have in Dutch culture.

"Het is belangrijk om een beetje relativeringsvermogen te hebben."

"It's important to have 'relativeringvermogen'"

English Worldwide

milkshake duck

Expression USED On Occasion BY people on the internet

(n.) • A milkshake duck describes the phenomena on the internet for a viral story to appear wholesome, only to be ruined later by the backstory of the person or thing featured in the story. It is based on a tweet by @pixelatedboat that says "The whole internet loves Milkshake Duck, a lovely duck that drinks milkshakes! *5 seconds later* We regret to inform you the duck is racist".

"Did you see the video of the guy on zoom with the filter saying he was not a cat?" "I did! So funny. Too bad it turned out to be a milkshake duck."

Polish Poland

strzelać

Slang USED On Occasion BY Students

(to shoot) • A verb describing not knowing the answer in a multi-choice assignment but choosing one anyways.

"Nie uczyłem się na sprawdzian, więc strzelałem."

"I didn't study for the exam, so I was shooting."

Portuguese Brazil

o Papa é argentino, mas Deus é brasileiro

Expression USED On Occasion BY Adults

(the Pope is Argentine, but God is Brazilian) • It is used whenever Brazil faces or is compared to Argentina. You can also just say "God is Brazilian" when something good happens in Brazil.

"Acho que a Argentina ganha a próxima copa" "Não mesmo! O papa é argentino, mas Deus é brasileiro"

"I think Argentina wins the next world cup" "No way! The Pope is Argentine, but God is Brazilian"

Italian | Milanese Lombardy, Italy

schiscetta

Name USED On Occasion BY Some People

(little squash) • Word used in the Milanese dialect to refer to a lunchbox carrying food for school/university/work.

"Vieni a mangiare la pizza con noi?" "Andate voi, io mi sono portata la schiscetta".

"We are going out to eat pizza, are you coming with us?" "You guys go, I brought my schiscetta today".

Portuguese Brazil

tirar o cavalinho da chuva

Expression USED On Occasion BY Everyone

(to take the little horse off the rain) • When someone should not get their hopes up.

"Mãe, posso jogar videogame?" "Pode tirar o cavalinho da chuva porque você precisa estudar pra prova."

"Mom, can I play videogame?" "You can take the little horse off the rain because you need to study for the test."

English United Kingdom

wicked

Slang USED On Occasion BY People Over 30

(evil) • Another word for cool, awesome, great, amazing or fun

"What did you think of the rollercoaster?" "It was wicked!"

"What did you think of the rollercoaster?" "It was great!"

German | Austrian Dialect Austria

hätti wari dadi!

Idiom USED On Occasion BY Everyone

(had I, did I, would I) • Similar to "woulda, coulda, shoulda", this phrase is used to dismiss hypothetical thoughts of what could have been.

"Wann i gwusst hätt, dass so staut, wär i früher losgfahren!" "Hätti, wari, dadi!"

"If I had known there would be this much traffic, I'd left earlier!" "Had I, did I, would I!"

Dutch Netherlands

vlees noch vis

Expression USED On Occasion BY Some People

(neither meat nor fish) • When something or someone is neither one nor the other, doesn’t belong to anything specific.

“Deze publicatie is vlees nog vis, is het dagboek of een autobiografie? “

"This publication is neither meat nor fish, is it a dairy or an autobiography?"

Dutch Netherlands

feest der herkenning

Expression USED On Occasion BY Some People

(party of recognition) • An experience that is enjoyable because it evokes a feeling of recognition.

"Ik vond vorige week al mijn oude LP's. Ik heb ze meteen opgezet, en het was echt een feest der herkenning."

"I found all my old LPs last week. I put them on immediately, and it was a real party of recognition."

Portuguese Brazil

virado no Jiraya

Expression USED On Occasion BY Teens

(to be acting like Jiraya) • When someone's very angry because something upsetting happened, or simply woke up in a bad mood, they are "like Jiraya".

"Elisa ficou virada no Jiraya quando viu que ficou em terceiro lugar no concurso."

"Elisa started acting like Jiraya after she discovered that she got third place in the contest. "

Dutch Netherlands

bomvol

Word USED On Occasion BY Some People

When something is very full (as if it were about to explode).

"Mijn inbox is echt bomvol."

"My inbox is bomb full."

Polish Poland

obiecywać komuś gruszki na wierzbie

Idiom USED On Occasion BY Everybody can use it

(to promise someone pears on the willow) • When you promise something that is not possible / to make empty promises.

"Prezydent obiecywał gruszki na wierzbie, byleby tylko wygrać wybory."

"The president promised the pears on the willow to win the elections."

French France

C'est comme pisser dans un violon.

Expression USED On Occasion BY Some People

(It's like pissing in a violin.) • Used to describe something useless and ineffective, or to complain about not being listened to after asking somebody to do something. Pissing in a violin is ineffective, it won't make a sound.

"Quand je demande à ma fille de ranger ma chambre, c'est comme pisser dans un violon !"

"When I ask my daughter to clean her room, it's like pissing in a violin!"