CEELBAS Learning Centre


Core Idioms of Polish Culture

Unit 1: Human body group I

GŁOWA (HEAD)


1. coś komuś chodzi po głowie (literally: sth is walking on sb’s head) eqvialent: to be on sb’s mind

 

2. marzenie ściętej głowy (lit: the dream of the cut head), eq: a pipe dream

 

3. wybić coś komuś z głowy (lit: to knock sth out from sb’s head), eq: to get sth out of one’s head

 

4. mieć cały dom na głowie (lit: to have the whole house on the head) eq: to be responsible for everything

 

5. zawracać komuś głowę (lit: to turn back sb’s head) eq: to bother sb

 

WŁOSY (HAIR)


6. zawisnąć na włosku (lit: to hang by a little/thin hair), eq: to hang by a thread (a hair)

 

7. włos się komuś zjeżył (lit: sb’s hair is ruffeled), eq: sth makes my hair stand on end  

 

8. dzielić włos na czworo (lit: to divide a hair into four parts), eq: to split hairs

 

TWARZ (FACE)


9. coś z ludzką twarzą (sth with a human face), eq: sth with a human face

 

10. śmiać się komuś prosto w twarz (to laugh straight in sb’s face), eq: laugh in sb’s face

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Unit 2: Human body group II

RĘCE (HANDS):

1. mieć dwie lewe ręce ( to have a two left hands), eq: to be all thumbs


2. poprosić kogoś o rękę (to ask for sb’s hand), eq: to propose or ask sb to marry you


3. mieć lepkie ręce (to have a sticky hands), eq: sticky fingers


4. mieć dziurawe ręce (to have a leaky hands), eq: to be all thumbs


5. wziąć sprawy w swoje ręce (to take the things in sb’s own hands), eq: to take the law into one’s own hands


NOGI (LEGS):

6. kula u nogi (to be a ball next to the leg), eq: to be a drag or to be a millstone round sb’s neck


7. do góry nogami (the legs up), eq: upside down, head over heels


8. złapać pana Boga za nogi (to grab God by the feet), eq: to pull it off


9. wstać lewą nogą (to get up with a left leg), eq: to get out of bed on the wrong side


10. stanąć na własnych nogach (to stand on your own feet), eq: stand on sb’s own two feet



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Unit 3: Human body group III

OCZY (EYES):

1. mydlić komuś oczy (to soap sb’s eyes), eq: to pull the wool over someone’s eyes


2. rzucić okiem (to throw an eye at sth), eq: to glance


3. wpaść komuś w oko (to fall into someone’s eye), eq: to catch one’s eye


USTA (LIPS):

4. nabrać wody w usta (to feel the mouth with water), eq: to keep one’s mouth shut


USZY (EARS):

5. drewniane ucho (wooden ear), eq: tone-deaf


6. ściany mają uszy (walls have ears), eq: walls have ears


JĘZYK (TONGUE):

7. ciągnąć kogoś za język (to pull at sb’s tongue), eq: cross-question or to grill someone


8. trzymać język za zębami (to hold one’s tongue behind one’s teeth), eq: hold one’s tongue


NOS (NOSE):

9. kręcić nosem (to spin a nose), eq: to turn up one’s nose at someone or sth, to be fussy


10. mieć muchy w nosie (to have the flies in the nose), eq: to sulk


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Unit 4: Human body group IV

SERCE (HEART):

1. mieć serce na dłoni (to have a heart on a palm), eq: to have a heart of gold

2. zdjąć/spadł komuś kamień z serca (drop a stone from sb’s heart), eq: a huge relief


3. złamane serce (broken heart), eq: broken heart

4. iść za głosem serca (follow the voice of your heart), eq: to let your heart rule your head


5. serce podchodzi komuś do gardła (heart coming up to a throat), eq: to have one’s heart in one’s mouth


BRZUCH (BELLY):

6. wiercić komuś dziurę w brzuchu (to drill a hole in the belly), eq: to badger



7. leżeć do góry brzuchem (to lie belly up), eq: to idle


8. brzuch komuś pęka (sb’s belly is bursting), eq: to guzzle or overeating


PLECY (BACK):

9. wbić komuś nóż w plecy (to stab the knife in sb’s back), eq: stab sb in the back


10. ciarki chodzą komuś po plecach (shivers are walking on sb’s back), eq: shivers goes up and down sb’s spine


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Unit 5: Colours

1. biały kruk (white raven), eq: as rare as hen’s teeth


2. czarne myśli (black thoughts), eq: gloomy/black thoughts


3. robić coś na czarno (to do sth in black), eq: moonlight, to moonlight or illicit working


4. czerwony jak burak (as red as a beetroot), eq: as red as a beetroot


5. marzyć o niebieskich migdałach (to dream about blue almonds), eq: daydreaming or to have one’s head in the clouds


6. nie mieć zielonego pojęcia (do not have a green idea), eq: not know diddly/squat or not to have the foggiest idea,not to have the faintest idea, not to have a clue


7. patrzeć przez różowe okulary (look through rose-coloured glasses), eq: see/look through rose-tinted glasses/spectacles


8. obiecywać złote góry (to promise the golden mountains), eq: promise wonders/the moon/the earth


9. szara rzeczywistość (grey reality), eq: grim reality


10. widzieć coś w jasnych barwach (to see sth in the bright tones), eq: to paint a rosy picture of sth


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Unit 6: Flora’s World

1. wąchać kwiatki od spodu (to smell the flowers from the bottom), eq: pushing up the daisies


2. jak grochem o ścianę (peas against the wall), eq: like talking to a brick wall


3. zbijać/robić na czymś kokosy (to make a coconuts), eq: to make a profit/fortune, to make pots of money


4. trząść się jak osika (to shake like an Aspen), eq: tremble like a leaf


5. głuchy jak pień (deaf as a trump), eq: deaf as a post


6. zapuścić korzenie (to grow the roots), eq: put down roots


7. kapuściany głąb (cabbage stalk), eq: dunderhead


8. ubierać się na cebulę (get dresses as an onion), eq: to wear several layers of clothes


9. niedaleko pada jabłko od jabłoni eq:(apples does not fall far from the tree), eq: to be a chip off the old block; like father, like son


10. sezon ogórkowy (cucumbers season), eq: silly season


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Unit 7: Fauna’s World

1. podłożyć komuś świnię (to plant sb a pig), eq: do the dirty on sb


2. płakać jak bóbr (to cry like a beaver), eq: cry one’s heart out


3. uparty jak osioł (stubborn as a donkey), eq: stubborn as a mule


4. siedzieć jak mysz pod miotłą (to sit like a mouse under a broom), eq: be as quiet as a mouse


5. mieć sokoli wzrok (to have a falcon’s sight), eq: have eyes like a hawk


6. zjeść konia z kopytami (to eat a horse with the hooves), eq: can eat a horse


7. kura domowa (home hen), eq: housewife


8. kura znosząca złote jajka (the hen that lays the golden eggs), eq: the goose that lays the golden eggs or cash cow


9. gruba ryba (fat fish), eq: bigwig, big fish, big cheese,


10. mieć węża w kieszeni (to have a snake in the pocket), eq: be tight-fisted

 

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Unit 8: Left/Right Hand Side, Numbers

1. lewa strona ubrania (left side of cloth), eq: the wrong side


2. prawe/lewe skrzydło partii (right/left wing of the party), eq: right/left wing of the party


3. dziecko z prawego łoża (a child from a right bed), eq: legitimate child or born in wedlock


4. być prawą ręką (be a right hand), eq: or right-hand man


5. być jedną nogą na tamtym świecie (to be one foot on the other world), eq: not long for this world or have one foot in the grave


6. upiec dwie pieczenie na jednym ogniu (to roast two meats in one fire), eq: to kill two birds with one stone


7. cztery litery (four letters), sit-upon or behind, backside


8. spadać na cztery łapy (to fall on four paws), eq: land on one’s feet


9. mieć swoje pięć minut (to have their five minutes), eq: to have one’s moment of glory


10.strzał w dziesiątkę (shoot in ten), eq: hit the bull’s-eye


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Supported by the following organisations:
Funded by CEELBAS: Centre for east European Language Based Area Studies * *
Developed by the School of Languages and Cultures and the Humanities Research Institute at The University of Sheffield