why it's swine, why not pig?

兰颜知己

With this customer, he felt himself, as it were, casting pearls before swine. 面对这个客商，他感到好像是在对牛弹琴。

, a7 F; @6 G6 C- K8 Kand from the above sentence, it even doesn't mean pig.

billzhao

swine    n.
1 : any of various stout-bodied short-legged omnivorous artiodactyl mammals (family Suidae) with a thick bristly skin and a long flexible snout especially : a domesticated one descended from the wild boar
2 : a contemptible person
, b" C( }1 x4 u$ ]! ~ swine fever  
1 : HOG CHOLERA
& h- G+ ?% N, F& ^: z9 P9 a/ n2 : an acute highly contagious usually fatal disease of swine that is caused by a double-stranded DNA virus (species African swine fever virus of the genus Asfivirus, family Asfarviridae), that resembles but is more severe than hog cholera, and that is indigenous to Africa
8 k* I$ j7 e" K, g7 c© 2005 Merriam-Webster, Incorporated
9 Z" M( E5 [* }+ `. \/ `
The reason to use swine may be that it is more formal a word than pig.

兰颜知己

got u, tks a lot.

Xbfeng

Swine Flu but not Pig Flu.

yuanyuan

pig, hog, swine 都含“猪”的意思。
% V3 i. h/ }* a& G& i) m, Npig 是常用词, 指“猪”、“小猪”、“猪肉”, 如: roast pig 烤猪肉。
hog 指“阉过供食用的公猪”, 尤指“重量超过一百二十磅的阉过的供食用的公猪”, 如: raise hogs 养猪。
swine 是文学用语, 指“猪”, 有时借喻“讨厌的人”, 如: You swine! 你这个猪猡!
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, v8 h( X# N3 R' C) d) g（转自金山词霸）

rainbowfish

Great! Thank you !

金币

原帖由 兰颜知己 于 2009-4-29 12:56 发表
" R  V. ?6 Y7 _/ A6 K+ pWith this customer, he felt himself, as it were, casting pearls before swine. 面对这个客商，他感到好像是在对牛弹琴。

2 j( T2 @8 W) W8 Q! c6 I8 Nand from the above sentence, it even doesn't mean  ...

顺带说一句啊，要想说对牛谈琴的意思不要用这个casting pearls before swine，至少我知在加拿大他们一般不这么说。有时候这些词典真是害人。

billzhao

估计casting pearls before swine是个比较书面话的成语吧，大家都认识，但说话一般不那么说，否则被人说使用 big words.

billzhao

对牛弹琴  
# i" O3 m8 C. ?) r; B7 E2 E7 m
- Q' r# J8 R) Z5 D9 tto play the lute to a cow ：  offering a treat to a unappreciative audience

to cast pearls before swine

caviar to the general

* ^: [3 Q; x6 U/ |% c& j4 u! kto preach to deaf ears

8 b! V+ a! \2 l  _* ]5 @to talk over sb's head
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The whistle jigs to a milestone.

9 o3 E4 ^& [7 E! O; J. c( t* F2 AWith this customer, he felt himself, as it were, casting pearls before swine.
面对这个客商，他感到好像是在对牛弹琴。

& \: H& P/ ?8 p3 x( x; l% U' E5 ~She read them Shakespeare, but it was casting pearls before swine.
她为他们朗诵莎士比亚著作，但那等于对牛弹琴。

An nod is as good as a wink to a Blind horse
) N! V' z* I8 p6 L对牛弹琴

. E8 V# ~$ x8 X  ^
2 A/ l# x! v  t4 {. b/ I+ _ playing a harp before a Buffalo

play the lute to a cow; preach to deaf ears
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3 c3 F4 M( Z+ E
1 I7 L, T- g5 Htalk to a Brick wall
对牛弹琴
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3 @: q) c( x% Y) ~Their hints about his behaviour were water off a duck's back.
( K( K- o, W' E+ a4 Y他们示意他举止不当, 如同对牛弹琴.

! ?- Q/ _' p6 I5 B) f[ 本帖最后由 billzhao 于 2009-4-30 10:49 编辑 ]

金币

原帖由 billzhao 于 2009-4-30 11:41 发表
7 b1 o! ]% C, B5 D- l; H估计casting pearls before swine是个比较书面话的成语吧，大家都认识，但说话一般不那么说，否则被人说使用 big words.

我找了个老外确认了一下，他们好像完全不知有这个说法。

billzhao

可能
可能这种说法太书面语了，也可能out of date了。
6 R; v2 Q6 V; V也有可能外国人不爱学习，学问高的不多。
) a8 h8 x  g, b, Z1 f还有可能是人们的知识水平参差不齐，你问的那几个人在正态分布的尾端。
不管怎么说，既然字典上有了，就是有这种说法，而且是相当的人知道这种说法，否则就不会遍到字典上去了