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。

" ^4 i6 b+ [6 e* S4 land from the above sentence, it even doesn't mean pig.

billzhao

swine    n.
9 m9 [! E* ^4 P7 K: X" R: x! a1 : 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
# Z8 K6 X- y# a# |+ l* X4 u2 : a contemptible person
! ^' d; n1 p2 X/ N$ T5 h( s 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。
$ N, l+ [! C1 [, l  x- n0 Ppig 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。
2 N; A# R" w- l# Tswine 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
4 Y" N9 c9 N( Q6 r% rWith 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。

and from the above sentence, it even doesn't mean  ...

& W+ J$ T5 _5 Y: x
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  
; v& T" @6 D8 y
to play the lute to a cow ：  offering a treat to a unappreciative audience
& M* K; ~7 _2 I/ _  T$ a+ v
to cast pearls before swine
1 j! m/ y. _! L: F
) h7 Y: \3 m* Icaviar to the general

to preach to deaf ears
6 H; k& p; n' @% ^! B6 V5 G
+ H. m/ c% ]$ j1 `, D/ c& Ito talk over sb's head
/ ?6 f' L* J: f. B: t     

The whistle jigs to a milestone.

8 x& Z8 W$ y( B& W0 k) V2 bWith this customer, he felt himself, as it were, casting pearls before swine.
( j, R, J' @9 c6 y# E面对这个客商，他感到好像是在对牛弹琴。

& T; [. K2 X( p# s( D  P, nShe 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


playing a harp before a Buffalo
! f  q( ^# p% ]+ q
play the lute to a cow; preach to deaf ears
) }% `# C$ I' ]8 ^6 S
# w3 }! _/ Y. O
talk to a Brick wall
对牛弹琴


- |. ]  M) D# qTheir 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.
, b0 m. k9 B( Z& i- \  d5 `$ a
! [( I( L1 t3 p: o4 g' g: [, q1 g[ 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.

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。
3 e/ e6 ]1 z3 l' o3 D6 O也有可能外国人不爱学习，学问高的不多。
" ~, X% B  l7 X( `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