Top ten Danish sayings according to me
My ten favourite Danish sayings/turns of phrase (in no particular order), just because I love language. I say all of these regularly. Enjoy!
goddag mand, økseskaft – hello man, axe handle
This one is used when someone answers a question you asked in a nonsensical way or just in general when someone has said something foolish or nonsensical. you can read about the origin in Danish here.
det kan ske, det kniver med gaflerne – it may spoon it knives with the forks / it happens that the forks are in short supply
Not used in any specific situation other than when someone says det kan ske 'it happens', because ske 'spoon' and ske 'happen' just so happen to be homonyms. Additionally kniv 'knife' and knibe 'be in short supply' are almost homophonous, especially if kniv was a verb.
fra folk og fulde børn skal man høre sandheden – from people and drunk children you will hear the truth
This is not actually the saying, it's supposed to be børn og fulde folk, but it's more fun like this. Originally, this refers to the fact that neither children, nor the drunk tend to think too hard before speaking, thus they tend to tell the truth.
det haster ikke mere end det jager – it's no more urgent than urgency
Excuse my creative liberties here, as both haste and jage mean 'be urgent'. It is more or less synonymous with "take it easy, no rush" – a sort of Danish hakuna matata.
To me, as someone from Western Jutland, jager should always be pronounced jawer ['ja.wʌ] in this saying.
stå med håret i postkassen – to have gotten one's hair stuck inside the mailbox
A metaphor for when you are in some sort of trouble or problematic situation where you feel like you have no power to change your unlucky situation. Often used when you are disappointed as a result of being cheated somehow.
det kan noget – it does something
My best approximation of an English version is "it's got a certain je ne sais quois", because that's literally what it means. It does something for you, specifically, but you're not entirely sure what exactly it is that it does – but it works!
man kan æggehvide, hvad man æggeskal – one egg whites what one eggshells | one cannot know what one should not do
Another pun, I am sorry for being your literal dad, I guess. Basically æggehvide 'egg white' sounds like ikke vide 'not know' and æggeskal 'eggshell' sounds like ikke skal 'should not'
ikke nå nogen/noget til sokkeholderne – not being able to reach someone/something's garters
When someone/-thing is not nearly as good as someone/-thing else. You know, it barely reaches above their knee!
hvor der handles, der spildes – where stuff gets done, stuff gets lost
Exactly what it says on the tin. Its English cousin is "you can't make an omelet without breaking a few eggs".
fanden og hans pumpestok – the Devil and his pump stick
Yes, this is as vulgar as it sounds. This one is used last in lists of things that are excessive, e.g, vi skulle støvsuge, slå græs, fjerne spindelvæv, dampe gulvtæppet og Fanden og hans pumpestok 'we had to vacuum, mow the lawn, remove cobwebs, steam the carpet and God knows what else'.
Honourable mention for this one that I learnt while looking stuff up in the dictionary:
[ID: A screenshot from Danish online dictionary ordnet.dk of the entry for the saying 'anbringe bagdelen i klaskehøjde'. It explains the saying and additionally recommends the entries for smæk and øretævernes holdeplads. End ID]
to place one's backside (ass, bum) in smacking height.
TRANSFERRED MEANING cause oneself to end up in a situation where one might very easily be exposed to criticism and negative reactions from one's surroundings – e.g., by speaking openly about a certain case USE informal
SEE ALSO spanking | the whoopings' parking space
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