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。
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! A  ^7 j3 l  }; {and from the above sentence, it even doesn't mean pig.

billzhao

swine    n.
) J* N4 ]) _7 n1 u0 i- p1 : 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
% w" L2 p% b; q2 a2 : a contemptible person
swine fever  
" W; R& g* W* c1 : HOG CHOLERA
% Q2 H- V0 ~/ }' ]. F2 : 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
© 2005 Merriam-Webster, Incorporated
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6 V1 @; X6 \5 q: U7 v" a# TThe 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。
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!

（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
8 H$ n" }4 h/ JWith 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。

4 Y& W  j, q0 d& E3 {5 z$ d. Wand from the above sentence, it even doesn't mean  ...

* E5 n' r+ _' b9 y" R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  
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. B6 Q$ Z" A+ Mto play the lute to a cow ：  offering a treat to a unappreciative audience

. ]4 w! f" Z6 I+ b8 I" F* U  Dto cast pearls before swine
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caviar to the general

/ y7 l2 Z  \  k3 \1 u0 ]& V9 g- zto preach to deaf ears

* J( E' g- R4 R2 @8 g1 b3 l) bto talk over sb's head
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  W9 [3 X# F6 ~% z. T" UThe whistle jigs to a milestone.
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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。
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+ z! F5 }7 Z: {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。
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' G) {9 O+ |8 x$ I( i5 @# a$ ~An nod is as good as a wink to a Blind horse
" V; s$ F1 I: o' C  K对牛弹琴
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playing a harp before a Buffalo

play the lute to a cow; preach to deaf ears
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& y% {5 g. K' T5 T' R8 italk to a Brick wall
对牛弹琴


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
% e; g4 T3 ~: 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.

1 W& \1 J1 m) ^! O" a( r! u
+ S/ }4 V, m4 p+ u: g! l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。
& w- P* L7 }# `  C# e也有可能外国人不爱学习，学问高的不多。
8 }7 R! c, N$ i1 x( I- i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。
6 ~" j- p( v0 Z) w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