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。
+ ~- y3 a# k7 J+ u
$ t! i( G. R  J6 b- ]5 n# L+ wand from the above sentence, it even doesn't mean pig.

billzhao

swine    n.
1 U: d, J7 u5 t# A" L9 d. M3 n1 : 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
swine fever  
1 : 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
© 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。
: B2 ]: v1 K4 r* E+ d$ a( i) Jhog 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!
6 s# `5 O; L% f1 M' w$ c" S2 `" `
0 B; Y7 Y( A( B' e7 u（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
- Q0 z8 l: I5 G4 N$ x$ M) @" @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。
/ i5 w2 e: P, b+ |$ ]& i+ _2 ~4 n3 s
and 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  

& _- y4 _5 T4 d1 T, a/ P# U5 ^to play the lute to a cow ：  offering a treat to a unappreciative audience

5 N( v; Q0 Q" v/ @3 Tto cast pearls before swine

; y8 d' V* R/ x3 F. P7 ?4 I: T0 |caviar to the general
4 [( \, l. i- n% G( j/ `
/ U: G  Y/ D+ ?3 m% \/ e. Dto preach to deaf ears
7 W. }8 R& S8 o9 d3 _5 s
, A5 `+ x; _) T7 hto talk over sb's head
9 N( M6 ~0 _$ x( r7 }     

4 @% f7 c* D2 ?" _( {The whistle jigs to a milestone.

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。
3 L: F1 X/ G; L) [, k1 G
/ G# c/ `1 k7 [3 K6 u$ T( zShe 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。
+ F# Y# C2 Z' W3 p: y
2 _) x8 j' p5 {An nod is as good as a wink to a Blind horse
对牛弹琴

% Z: L3 |- ?0 q
: N2 h- _7 h( }! u- U playing a harp before a Buffalo
3 _% Y; T) ^! @  z9 {% z2 I
play the lute to a cow; preach to deaf ears

4 b4 g7 a7 y1 @9 Q+ H+ m6 }& O
talk to a Brick wall
对牛弹琴
4 V9 y: y6 i4 E4 S/ ]
, T# k; x! q; L
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
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.

2 n- o6 b2 p" @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。
7 F5 w4 P: D$ g. _3 I/ O) E也有可能外国人不爱学习，学问高的不多。
; ]5 d3 D6 B. w5 g, T, Y5 k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。
  R: s% ^4 B: B4 S4 D! P1 y2 `' o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