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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- u7 g. O) i' J4 G& P' ]and from the above sentence, it even doesn't mean pig.

billzhao

swine    n.
# n/ I, Z: H; Z" r4 {1 : 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
# o( T3 D$ O* u% M6 L% y2 : 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
- e/ O" }  t( O$ K3 w* \0 q© 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。
$ I" W' {, N" H; 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。
1 ?) z% U3 g- s" Iswine 是文学用语, 指“猪”, 有时借喻“讨厌的人”, 如: You swine! 你这个猪猡!
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（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
7 S; L% b4 f6 `1 a$ B0 f, ?) aWith 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. n& o" O  Z  K
5 @  r  c5 k% Xand from the above sentence, it even doesn't mean  ...

6 `# O' i; q% q% j
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  
# {& c$ ^6 h# I  z3 V- |
8 |) b% ^3 [8 R. t2 J0 z" ^2 Pto play the lute to a cow ：  offering a treat to a unappreciative audience
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to cast pearls before swine

/ z# ?# _1 U- M! c/ g$ ncaviar to the general

to preach to deaf ears

to talk over sb's head
     
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8 L& {$ S7 y2 N4 rThe whistle jigs to a milestone.

* k9 h' L& t! c1 [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。

# z: ~, Y0 ]+ k* L4 W. MShe read them Shakespeare, but it was casting pearls before swine.
1 N' K0 V# d; w6 c2 ]7 \7 _她为他们朗诵莎士比亚著作，但那等于对牛弹琴。
# \6 a# a" }' {4 y+ H4 R
6 R  F0 Y; u- D; f. @/ PAn nod is as good as a wink to a Blind horse
# Z9 z# A$ w0 u1 U4 [( q: g( x2 I& R对牛弹琴


playing a harp before a Buffalo
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. J( `" `) r) |  r3 I/ Yplay the lute to a cow; preach to deaf ears
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talk to a Brick wall
4 a. v4 j1 u; G$ x) h对牛弹琴


/ k, Q) J/ D0 E) D( ]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.
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; q! F1 S! m8 X& Z$ p0 I[ 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
+ A" {% @/ p$ f6 Z$ Q! D7 N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.

* D2 V  z% X) `9 k4 x# f  m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
* _5 g4 X* a* c- Y* h/ G: `可能这种说法太书面语了，也可能out of date了。
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。
- e& U, W' {! _3 `* Y6 Z" b* C6 n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