What it means: вЂњItвЂ™s an excuse you use when two people were supposed to do it, but nobody did. Literal translation: вЂњIt fell between chairs.вЂќ What it means: вЂњIt refers to somebody who didnвЂ™t have to work to get where they are.вЂќ Literal translation: вЂњTo slide in on a shrimp sandwich.вЂќ We also use вЂDet Г¤r ingen fara pГҐ taket,вЂ™ or вЂThereвЂ™s no danger on the roof,вЂ™ to mean the same thing.вЂќ What it means: вЂњThereвЂ™s no need to worry. Literal translation: вЂњThereвЂ™s no cow on the ice.вЂќ In English, the phrase is вЂњbuying a pig in poke,вЂќ but English speakers do also вЂњlet the cat out of the bag,вЂќ which means to reveal something thatвЂ™s supposed to be secret. Other languages this idiom exists in: We hear from translators that this is an idiom in Swedish, Polish, Latvian and Norwegian. What it means: That a buyer purchased something without inspecting it first. Literal translation: вЂњTo buy a cat in a sack.вЂќ

What it means: вЂњI donвЂ™t understand a thing about what that person is saying.вЂ™вЂќ Literal translation: вЂњI only understand the train station.вЂќ It refers to real objects, though - not abstract meanings.вЂќ

What it means: вЂњYou are not seeing what everyone else can see. Literal translation: вЂњYou have tomatoes on your eyes.вЂќ Which made us wonder: what are their favorite idioms in their own tongue?Д«elow, we asked translators to share their favorite idioms and how they would translate literally. As our TED Translator volunteers translate TED Talks into 116 languages (and counting), theyвЂ™re often challenged to translate English idioms into their language. WhyВ add fuel to the fire? Idioms are those phrases that mean more than the sum of their words.

What does it mean to вЂњhave tomatoes on your eyes?вЂќ Find out belowвЂ¦

Beneath your beautiful meaning