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January 30, 2021
Today’s Hindi idiom (मुहावरा) is:
हवा से बातें करना।
(Transliteration: Hawa se batein karna.)
Literal translation: To talk to the breeze.
Figurative meaning: To run very fast. To move with great speed.
Usage in a sample sentence:
जब से उसने वह घोड़ा खरीदा है, जॉन हवा से बातें करते चलता है। उसके पास हमारे साथ बात करने का फुरसत ही नहीं है।
(Transliteration: Jab se ussne woh ghoda kharida hai, John hawa se baatein karte chalta hai. Usske paas hamare saath baat karne ka fursat hi nahin hai.)
Translation: John has been (talking to the air) going about speedily ever since he bought that horse. He does not have the time to talk with us.
Origins of the idiom: Since the breeze blows with some speed, anyone wanting to talk to the breeze must also move with the same speed to keep up with it. This concept is used in this idiom to convey the meaning that someone is walking or running too fast. Such a person is said to be “talking to the breeze.”
January 28, 2021
Today’s Hindi idiom (मुहावरा) is:
चप्पा-चप्पा छानना।
(Transliteration: Chappa chappa chaan-na.)
Literal translation: To search ‘chappa’ by ‘chappa.’ (Chappa is a small length, defined as ‘four fingers wide.’)
Figurative meaning: To search minutely (within a specified area).
Usage in a sample sentence:
पुलिस ने फरार अपराधी की तलाश में शहर का चप्पा चप्पा छान मारा, लेकिन वोह नहि मिला।
(Transliteration: Pulees ne faraar apraadhi ki talash mein shahar ka chappa chappa chaan mara, lekin woh nahi mila.)
Translation: The police searched ‘chappa chappa’ (every inch) of the city for the absconding criminal, but they could not find him.
Origins of the idiom: Chappa is a small measure of length, defined as the width of four fingers held together. When we search for something very minutely over a given area, we do it by searching one small area at a time. We may say that we searched “inch by inch” or we may say in Hindi, “chappa by chappa.”
January 27, 2021
Today’s Hindi idiom (मुहावरा) is:
चूना लगाना।
(Transliteration: Choona lagana.)
Literal translation: To apply lime putty.
Figurative meaning: To defraud. To scam. To swindle.
Usage in a sample sentence:
उस दुकानदार ने मुझे ५००० रुपये का चूना लगाया। वोह मुझे बताया था कि यह असली Italian है, लेकिन यह वास्तव में एक सस्ती Chinese copy निकला।
(Transliteration: Uss dukaandaar ne mujhe 5000 rupaye ka choona lagaya. Woh mujhe bataya tha ki yeh asli Italian hai, lekin yeh vastav mein ek sasti Chinese copy nikla.)
Translation: That shopkeeper swindled 5000 rupees off me. He told me that this was real Italian, but it turned out to be actually a cheap Chinese copy.
Origins of the idiom: Lime putty is used to hide cracks in the cement wall so that when it is painted over, the wall looks perfectly fine. No one would be able to guess where the cracks were before the putty was applied. The putty covers up for any cracks or unevenness on the surface of walls. What you see is not what you get. So, when we get scammed by a scamster, we idiomatically say that the scamster applied lime putty.
January 26, 2021
Today’s Hindi idiom (मुहावरा) is:
कटी पतंग होना।
(Transliteration: Kati patang hona.)
Literal translation: To be a cut kite.
Figurative meaning: To float from one place to another aimlessly.
Usage in a sample sentence:
न कोई उमंग है
न कोई तरंग है
मेरी ज़िंदगी है क्या
इक कटी पतंग है
Transliteration:
Na koi umang hai
Na koi tarang hai
Meri zindagi hai kya
Ek kati patang hai
Translation:
I have no ambition
I have no desire
What is my life
But a cut kite
Origins of the idiom: It is not the kite that is cut, but the string to which the kite is tied. When the string is cut, the kite begins to float randomly in the air and gets tossed around in the wind while being pulled down by gravity. The idiom uses this metaphor to describe the situation in some people’s lives, when they find themselves aimlessly going from one place to another or from one meaningless job to another or from one relationship to another. They are like a kite with its string cut. The sentence today is from a song written by lyricist Anand Bakshi for a 1970 Hindi movie ‘Kati Patang.’
January 25, 2021
Today’s Hindi idiom (मुहावरा) is:
रायता फैलाना।
(Transliteration: Raita failana.)
Literal translation: To spill the Raita (an Indian side-dish made of yoghurt mixed with sliced cucumbers, mint leaves, salt and water).
Figurative meaning: To create a mess in any situation where things were going well.
Usage in a sample sentence:
हमारी शादी की पार्टी अच्छी चल रही थी, लेकिन अचानक मेरे पति की एक्स-गर्लफ्रेंड आई और पार्टी में रायता फैला दिया।
(Transliteration: Hamari shaadi ki party achchi chal rahi thi, lekin achanak mere pati ki ex-girlfriend aayi aur party mein raita faila diya.)
Translation: Our wedding party was going well, but suddenly my husband’s ex-girlfriend came and spilled the Raita (spoiled everyone’s mood).
Origins of the idiom: Raita is a fluid side-dish that is kept on the dinner table when dinner is laid out. Some people are careless and they spill the raita while serving themselves. Besides this creating a mess on the dinner table, some of the guests are forced to go without the raita. This creates a bad mood among the guests at a dinner party. This situation has been adopted in everyday speech to mean any situation where someone does something to spoil the mood or vitiate the general atmosphere.
January 24, 2021
Today’s Hindi idiom (मुहावरा) is:
बात काटना।
(Transliteration: Baat kaatna.)
Literal translation: To cut the talk.
Figurative meaning: To speak out of turn. To interrupt while someone is speaking.
Usage in a sample sentence:
ज़्यादातर, मैं जो भी कहूँ, मेरे पति मेरी बात काटते रहते हैं। यह भी घरेलू हिंसा का एक हल्का रूप है।
(Transliteration: Jyadatar, mai jo bhi kahoon, mere pati meri baat kaathe rehte hain. Yeh bhi ghareloo hinsa ka ek halka roop hai.)
Translation: Most of the time, whatever I say, my husband keeps interrupting me. This too is a mild form of domestic violence.
Origins of the idiom: When someone is speaking and another person interrupts the speaker, it feels as if the second person is cutting off the first person’s talk. By cutting in, the second person forces the first person to stop talking or makes him feel that what he had to say was not important. This perception of ‘cutting off’ someone’s talk would have given rise to this idiom.
January 23, 2021
Today’s Hindi idiom (मुहावरा) is:
आटे में नमक।
(Transliteration: Aate mein namak.)
Literal translation: Salt in wheat-flour.
Figurative meaning: Almost negligible amount.
Usage in a sample sentence:
600 डॉलर प्रति महीना कोई राहत नहीं देगा। यह तो आटे में नमक के बराबर है।
(Transliteration: Che sau dollar prati mahina koi rahat nahin dega. Yeh toh aate mein namak ke barabar hai.)
Translation: $ 600 a month will not provide any relief. This is equal to salt in flour.
Origins of the idiom: Wheat flour naturally contains no salt. Even when we make rotis with it, the quantity of salt we add to the flour is very, very small. It is an insignificant or negligible amount. It is as good as nothing. This idiom uses that fact to point out and make us communicate with others the insignificance of certain other things, like a ridiculously tiny so-called relief package scheme announced by the government.
January 22, 2021
Today’s Hindi proverb (कहावत) is:
उल्टा चोर कोतवाल को डांटे।
(Transliteration: Ulta chor kotwal ko dante.)
Literal translation: Contrarily, the thief scolds the watchman.
Figurative meaning: To not acknowledge your own bad deeds (or shortcomings) but instead to find fault with the person trying to curb or to check you.
Usage in a sample sentence:
मुख्य न्यायाधीश ने राष्ट्रपति को कुछ असंवैधानिक करने से रोकने की कोशिश की, लेकिन उल्टा राष्ट्रपति ने मुख्य न्यायाधीश को ही नौकरी से निकाल दिया। एक पुराना हिन्दि कहावत याद आया: “उल्टा चोर कोतवाल को डांटे।”
(Transliteration: Mukhya nyayadeesh ne rashtrapati ko kuch asanvaidhanik karne se rokne ki koshish ki, lekin ulta rashtrapati ne mukhya nyayadeesh ko hi naukri se nikaal diya. Ek purana Hindi kahavat yaad aaya: “Ulta chor kotwal ko dante.”)
Translation: The Chief Justice tried to stop the President from doing something unconstitutional, but on the contrary, the President fired the Chief Justice. This reminded me of an old Hindi saying “Ulta chor kotwal ko dante.”
Origins of the proverb: We come across many such ironic situations in our lives. A thief goes to steal, and after he has done his stealing, when he finds the watchman sleeping on duty, the thief scolds the watchman for not doing his job well. Or, the same thief comes back later to accuse the watchman of stealing. This proverb is closely related to one of the previous proverbs: “Chori aur seena jori.”
January 20, 2021
Today’s Hindi idiom (मुहावरा) is:
आटे दाल का भाव मालूम होना।
(Transliteration: Aate daal ka bhav maloom hona.)
Literal translation: To come to know the prices of wheat-flour and daal.
Figurative meaning: To realize that life is not easy. To become aware of the harsh realities of life.
Usage in a sample sentence:
Hostel में life बहुत easy था। जब मैं अपने own घर में shift हुआ, तब मुझे आटे दाल का भाव मालूम हुआ।
(Transliteration: Hostel mein life bahut easy tha. Jab mai apne own ghar mein shift hua tab mujhe aate daal ka bhaav maloom hua.)
Translation: Life was very easy in the hostel. After I shifted out to my own house, I realized the harsh realities of life.
Origins of the idiom: Roti made out of wheat flour and daal is the staple diet of many people in India. When you go shopping for these basic things, and you have to pay for them, you realize how much each of them actually cost. The person who does not have to buy these things on a regular basis is unaware of the prevailing prices and the difficulty in ensuring that the kitchen is always well stocked. This idiom uses these common simple daily food items while alluding to the other more complicated things that make life difficult.
January 19, 2021
Today’s Hindi idiom (मुहावरा) is:
आँखें बिछाना।
(Transliteration: Aankhen bichana.)
Literal translation: To lay (as in unrolling and laying a carpet for a VIP to walk on) or to spread (as in spreading a mat for someone to sleep) eyes.
Figurative meaning: To receive an arriving person with great affection. To wait longingly for a person you love.
Usage in a sample sentence:
कब से आँखें बिछाये बैठी हूँ, तुम कम से कम एक sms तो भेज सकते थे कि late आओगे।
(Transliteration: Kab se aankhen bichaye baitthi hoon, tum kam se kam ek SMS toh bhej sakte thae ki late aaoge.)
Translation: Since when I am sitting with my eyes spread; you could have at least sent one SMS that you’d be late.
Origins of the idiom: This idiom also uses our eyes to convey the value we attach to the person eagerly awaited or just arrived. When we longingly wait for someone, our eyes naturally are fixed on the road or the path that the person will come by. This ‘fixing’ of our eyes to the road is described in a more poetic manner by saying our eyes are ‘laid’ or ‘spread’ on the pathway. Some people say that this idiom also means “to welcome very affectionately someone who has just arrived.” I think the welcoming part is a natural culmination of the ‘waiting’ that took place before the person actually arrived.
Know Yourself - Γνώθι Σεαυτόν 
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