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.
# {/ j: J9 E+ z6 q$ X+ h1 : 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
, k6 g5 \3 m0 S2 : a contemptible person
9 t) ~9 g+ {9 n3 S. K swine fever  
  g& F, O( G+ Q% d% w1 : 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。
7 ~# R% p1 E4 A! v! bhog 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。
6 a  z3 H' ?( r+ D, ~swine 是文学用语, 指“猪”, 有时借喻“讨厌的人”, 如: You swine! 你这个猪猡!

- N; e9 u  T# f/ ~$ C/ |& l! Y& ?（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。
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and from the above sentence, it even doesn't mean  ...

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" O: ]% v4 V; W5 R( Y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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to play the lute to a cow ：  offering a treat to a unappreciative audience
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to cast pearls before swine

caviar to the general
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+ Y+ }  ~* w+ |0 M! Mto preach to deaf ears
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to talk over sb's head
     

) R% f( T" J7 |+ _  v% f8 rThe whistle jigs to a milestone.

  k  \% E2 {1 Q' J) g% tWith 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。

# Q+ U; @# R. H) `1 a8 T# _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。

An nod is as good as a wink to a Blind horse
" H5 }. \. M1 K% H/ b. x对牛弹琴
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) C& R# j  Z# F" d. I4 i! n' \" F playing a harp before a Buffalo
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  S& S5 }2 ]' d% Fplay the lute to a cow; preach to deaf ears

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talk to a Brick wall
对牛弹琴
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- W/ F$ d0 W* b0 J  S! F% iTheir hints about his behaviour were water off a duck's back.
) G" H1 Z. d: v. y; U他们示意他举止不当, 如同对牛弹琴.
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[ 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
7 c& l/ f" |2 K* 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.

' Q; [, U9 @% n* r, L# R5 H
# ^+ B6 A, d9 I9 x+ U4 g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。
; u: Z" W( v5 _# h5 Q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。
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