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

billzhao

swine    n.
, v: ~5 g" n0 X* A5 T0 k9 ^3 l1 : 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
; {1 g- {& E( E* z: G) ~ swine fever  
, Z( |# V4 y" p1 v* O; 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
© 2005 Merriam-Webster, Incorporated
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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。
* N2 ]# |$ [3 j5 P& N# z: @" npig 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。
3 o. m: W- P/ b( fswine 是文学用语, 指“猪”, 有时借喻“讨厌的人”, 如: You swine! 你这个猪猡!

8 o/ k1 k8 |' Z& Z# P+ s/ ^# s- V8 m（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
% D; G) h" m2 D$ CWith 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。

0 W# e2 K9 _5 ~) Gand from the above sentence, it even doesn't mean  ...

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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  

: k4 Y/ \7 }3 h" p4 \to play the lute to a cow ：  offering a treat to a unappreciative audience

to cast pearls before swine
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caviar to the general
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to preach to deaf ears
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to talk over sb's head
     

The whistle jigs to a milestone.

9 X& D4 u# y5 O# L% k( W! UWith 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。

She read them Shakespeare, but it was casting pearls before swine.
! a( t4 `, m% w她为他们朗诵莎士比亚著作，但那等于对牛弹琴。

' D0 y( ?8 `+ L' j: g) RAn nod is as good as a wink to a Blind horse
5 S9 X' ?! F. W4 j" ]& b对牛弹琴


playing a harp before a Buffalo
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- r- ~1 _8 V, `play the lute to a cow; preach to deaf ears


8 X5 x, w+ b' s% Y+ l5 g: htalk to a Brick wall
对牛弹琴
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Their hints about his behaviour were water off a duck's back.
# d8 `- O" g, y) m% h0 n1 k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.

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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。
, Q' }: F4 z" s+ A4 \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。
( A# Y9 G: V+ v9 M$ b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