Ullu Banana

December 21, 2020

Today’s Hindi idiom (मुहावरा) is:

उल्लू बनाना।

(Transliteration: Ullu banana.)

Mujhe Phir Ullu Banaya?

Literal translation: To make an owl of.

Figurative meaning: To make a fool of. To play a prank.

Usage in a sample sentence:

उस salesman ने एक नया box के अंदर पुराना फोन बेचकर मुझे उल्लू बनाया।

(Transliteration: Uss salesman ne ek naya box ke andar purana phone baechkar mujhe ullu banaya.)

Translation: That salesman made a fool of me by selling me an old phone inside a new box.

Apna Ullu Seedha Karna

December 17, 2020

Today’s Hindi idiom (मुहावरा) is:

अपना उल्लू सीधा करना।

(Transliteration: Apna ullu seedha karna.)

Literal translation: To straighten one’s owl.

Make me seedha, boss. Do something, anything!

Figurative meaning: To have a hidden agenda of solving one’s own problem. Do something with a hidden selfish motive.

Usage in a sample sentence:

इन दिनों कुछ परोपकारी लोग दान करने का केवल दिखावा करते हैं, जबकि वास्तव में वे सिर्फ कर-कानूनों का फायदा उठाकर अपना उल्लू सीधा करना चाहते हैं।

(Transliteration: In dino kuch paropkari log daan karne ka kewal dikhava karte hai, jabki vastav mein wey sirf kar-kanoonon ka fayda utthakar apna ullu seedha karna chahate hai.)

Translation: These days some philanthropists only pretend to donate, while in reality they just want to help themselves by exploiting tax-laws.