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。

5 O$ q8 @& L* Cand from the above sentence, it even doesn't mean pig.

billzhao

swine    n.
& ]4 x4 [( M' T1 : 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
6 Y5 m: h' r' d: o3 w- S swine fever  
+ I. {. B( D) C! O; L5 |9 D5 c1 b1 : HOG CHOLERA
2 : 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
2 M2 Y5 @  e& @# P1 i* s) R) Y© 2005 Merriam-Webster, Incorporated

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。
pig 是常用词, 指“猪”、“小猪”、“猪肉”, 如: roast pig 烤猪肉。
1 R" S+ @& i3 ]" n" k8 lhog 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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+ ~4 {* v1 ~1 U) Y# D（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
  s2 I# C% |* N3 L" gWith 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。
9 E! P1 M7 [- R3 \! w! y/ q# [4 ?
+ Y6 v- t7 l! r; s0 fand 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  
3 L  L1 N* [8 R6 A* ?- o* f% k  }  n
to play the lute to a cow ：  offering a treat to a unappreciative audience
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to cast pearls before swine
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caviar to the general

  R/ c' ^( ^) cto preach to deaf ears
. a5 Q% f- _+ V5 l. i1 b7 E
: Z' ?; t# a% y, Ato talk over sb's head
     

The whistle jigs to a milestone.
, s0 q; L; o* f; d
With this customer, he felt himself, as it were, casting pearls before swine.
3 N# O9 i' l& H. ~, f面对这个客商，他感到好像是在对牛弹琴。
4 @7 b: J4 D0 O2 A+ z2 T
. r0 g: S% F0 R& h1 @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。

& i- k8 O( k. T  }An nod is as good as a wink to a Blind horse
/ J' z; t0 G4 e对牛弹琴
1 D$ a. i' x' k6 h1 i  b; n* x
: x) `7 L+ }" `
6 N5 J6 P+ x  O1 D! Y, t playing a harp before a Buffalo
: O0 p# t: [5 K) Z3 }4 N8 f2 _' a- _
* f2 o: A. s" K8 `play the lute to a cow; preach to deaf ears
- W6 a$ f: S0 G
; Q+ R" |7 D) F2 K
talk to a Brick wall
  y: v. O! i% P( O& r% K对牛弹琴
9 F0 K; X0 i! g
' d& q2 F! R, |( c: r
$ Y, ~: V2 c2 _! x4 @Their hints about his behaviour were water off a duck's back.
他们示意他举止不当, 如同对牛弹琴.

[ 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
) x8 {/ `  q+ @/ i/ r2 y* X" W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.

9 v1 A+ n' f# ^: M# S- D* ^/ Q( d
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。
也有可能外国人不爱学习，学问高的不多。
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。
: P6 Y2 j; u+ \, R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