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。

* a% K4 v3 N8 f/ b. L1 Gand from the above sentence, it even doesn't mean pig.

billzhao

swine    n.
0 T9 V: v7 e$ n; D" _4 t; [" I1 : 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
% i) G2 `, i! N2 : a contemptible person
+ c; J8 I, p* i  O 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
# T$ N9 x' S5 ^© 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。
- G9 v5 `2 V4 |" J2 ~4 cpig 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。
+ G% P+ M- K$ x5 o+ j8 i+ r5 Vswine 是文学用语, 指“猪”, 有时借喻“讨厌的人”, 如: You swine! 你这个猪猡!

  [0 t/ m4 s( a" w（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
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。
* D# t) w- G1 `$ {) n- ~
$ p6 V/ s+ p8 ?and from the above sentence, it even doesn't mean  ...

, Y% E+ Z! o  R8 r% K9 E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  

to play the lute to a cow ：  offering a treat to a unappreciative audience
4 ]9 {1 w5 y7 {; r4 X. U6 L0 ~* c
+ z( |' r. Q+ s3 b& Z# |- o) tto cast pearls before swine
5 M! z  j8 Q) f& O" I
" N6 ?1 i1 H- |! A, ycaviar to the general
# S9 x* X# R- ~
to preach to deaf ears
  c! S/ O0 n% N3 a* F* V
7 X0 e/ B9 S, H. B7 f8 x$ R2 H9 pto talk over sb's head
     

The whistle jigs to a milestone.

" o: p+ L' V" x: QWith this customer, he felt himself, as it were, casting pearls before swine.
7 i  X3 k* H/ }: p; c5 z面对这个客商，他感到好像是在对牛弹琴。
+ H& P; M4 x5 H* C/ F% i7 I5 u
) ^9 e: R  c5 ~( S# HShe 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
对牛弹琴
, k0 B! }9 L7 v) \, B/ o: X

playing a harp before a Buffalo

play the lute to a cow; preach to deaf ears
( K8 ^2 ], |) f, Y
6 C! e- [! Y& s8 w
talk to a Brick wall
对牛弹琴
% \& t* _, I8 G/ d4 Z
3 _  v4 Y' I& q( w1 B
Their hints about his behaviour were water off a duck's back.
. c% X# v/ u) L& u7 O他们示意他举止不当, 如同对牛弹琴.
- C2 [5 i* y  P# U% b% j1 p
4 Z4 }: i9 {, Q; t[ 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
" q' @/ V  i+ O! ~- [" Y+ E6 S6 a# C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.

# K" W) D3 g4 b/ N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。
: z3 a- k; D# X* \/ N5 p7 t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。
4 U1 S/ T- O; p6 l/ ?# 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