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.
+ d2 ]' S, l4 F1 : 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
7 A# [7 e  l5 t9 O# i, |2 : a contemptible person
swine fever  
. k" `- P1 r% N. i8 U1 : 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: g  `- P  D) q, ^" V© 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。
pig 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。
' ^+ W7 P1 y# |' dswine 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 r/ X+ ]# t' M; f( sWith 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  ...

4 \/ j  V9 c/ e6 B+ ]
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

: k5 W& k$ l& `- w/ G1 K/ Ncaviar to the general

" A6 ^+ r$ U0 w6 ~* Lto preach to deaf ears

. `/ l6 r2 S+ M/ }2 p$ a8 |to talk over sb's head
     
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/ _! w6 r- p" a8 R5 x1 x( i: T& C# B& lThe whistle jigs to a milestone.
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With this customer, he felt himself, as it were, casting pearls before swine.
% _0 ]5 Y- B7 `; m面对这个客商，他感到好像是在对牛弹琴。

* ~2 H( h9 {5 P4 l; sShe 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。
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An nod is as good as a wink to a Blind horse
5 Q4 v: L. a; Z4 c1 L& r+ ]1 V" X对牛弹琴
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0 R8 f- |2 S+ r5 h0 J; X" G* D9 A) Z playing a harp before a Buffalo
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$ V, \8 V5 X2 E5 e. H; |6 Z1 Vplay the lute to a cow; preach to deaf ears

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talk to a Brick wall
4 ^( D" F9 `, ?( f3 y0 e8 Q) `4 h+ v. C对牛弹琴

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5 i) W; R  f& V% |. C0 S2 sTheir 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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[ 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
8 G7 G0 F% A5 p4 s8 t3 Q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.

# x: ^- N3 i& v& F# J, J
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
7 e8 \+ h% u5 U3 W2 {9 E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。
4 S* |& w- N" j8 J- P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。
5 j. x  f2 I" ^. z% J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