Moroccan Proverbs

Since I did A year of intensive studies in Morocco I collected and translated Moroccan cultural expressions with a great deal of help from my instructor. Proverbs, expressions and idioms in dialect are great for demonstrating knowledge of the culture. If your target audience, doesn't understand Darija this is no problem. You can take a chunk out of a word count pretty quickly explaining some of these expressions.

ماديرش يدك في غيران باش مايعضوكش الحنوشة Don't stick your hand in holes the ground and you wont get bitten by snakes. The basic meaning of this expression is practice common sense. I hear it in relation to someone who hung around with a bad crowd and later wound up in prison. The other variation of this proverb is, 

ماديرش راسك في نخالة باش ماينقبوكش الدجاج Don't put your face in chicken feed if you don't want to get pecked by the hens.

اللي عضو الحنش كيخاف من الحبل One bitten by a snake will fear a cord. One who was wronged will take caution to avoid a similar situation.
  
جا يكحلها عماها He came to help her with her eyeliner and blinded her. Roughly, he tried to help but only made matters worse. 

اللي ما عندو فلوس كلامو مسوس If he doesn't have money he's not worth listening to. مسوس usually means no salt or sugar in relation to food. The expression is equivalent to the American expression "money talks and bullshit walks". 

دابزو يا الفيران على خميرة الجيران The mice are fighting over the neighbor's yeast. Used to criticize people fighting over something that they have no stake in or no right to. 

امدح صاحبك مع الناس ولومو الراس فالراس Say nice things of your friend around others, chastise him face to face. ٌRoughly, praise in public, criticize in private. 

دير عين شافت وعين ماشافت One eye saw and the other eye did not see. Turning a blind eye to something and going on about your business. 

دير عين ميكا Also to turn a blind eye to something. "ميكا" is a plastic bag.

ما تيحس بالمزود غير اللي مخبوط به You don't feel the whip unless you are the one being beaten with it. You wouldn't understand unless you experienced it. 

الحر بالغمزة والعبد بالدبزة The freeman winks and the slave takes a beating. The figurative meaning is that the freeman understands and the slave only understands force. 

الجيل قيمش ما يحشم وما يرمش The (new) generation only stares, they do not blink or feel shame. The new generation is garbage. 


خصك معاهم الخشيبات Start them off with crayons. This is phrase is appropriate for situations were someone needs to start out from the most basic level to understand a lesson or task. It is similar to "breaking it down Barney style", explaining it in a way that a child can comprehend.

الفقيه دحمان، قرا البرة سبع ايام، وقاليهم الخط عيان The jurist Dahman read the letter for seven days and declared the handwriting was poor. An archaic proverb but it is still understood. It relates to someone who refuses to admit fault for their own shortcomings. 

مول التاج كيحتاج Even the owner of the crown (the king) has needs. The closest equivalent expression that I can think of is "It rains on the rich and poor alike". Even the wealthy experience problems.

اللي كيربي ولاد الناس بحال اللي كيدق الما فالمحراز Caring for other peoples children is like grinding water in a mortar. Despite the care you may offer to other peoples children, in the end you are not their parent. 

تعلمو يا الحجاما فروس ليتاما Barbers, learn on the heads of orphans. The expression highlights the exploitation of orphans and homeless children. 

مية تخميمة وتخميمة ولا ضربة بالنقص Think about it 101 times before cutting with the scissors. Think hard before making a decision which may have permanent consequences.  

اللي بغي لعسل يصبر لقريص النحل If one wants honey he must endure the sting of the bee. Patience and hard work will pay off in the end. 

الگنازة كبيرة والميت فار A grand funeral for a dead mouse. People making a big stink over a minor problem.

اللي قال العصيدة باردة، ادير يدو فيها If he says the porridge is cold, put his hand in it. Used in reference to someone criticizing a problem as a small petty thing. 

الشوف ما يبرد الجوف، والناقة ما ترضع الخروف Looking does not quench the thirst and the female camel doesn't nurse the sheep. يبرد الجوف means to cool the esophagus, quench the thirst seems the most reasonable translation. The meaning, wanting and window shopping gets you nothing. Only hard work will get you what you want. 

اخدم يا صغري على كبري Work while you are young and you will benefit when you are older. 

ختار الجار قبل الدار Chose your neighbors before choosing the house. 

شكون داها فيك الحريرة (أو البلبولة) نهار العيد Someone pleased with themselves but in actuality they are like Harrira on Eid al Fitr. Used to criticize someone who thinks very highly of themselves but has no justifiable reason to do so. Kind of like saying "you think you're hot shit in a champagne glass when you are really cold diarrhea in a Dixie cup". To explain the cultural context a little, Harrira is the soup Moroccans eat every day during Ramadan. On Eid, it stays in the fridge and people eat a lot of sweets. 

عشرة دليهود على قنفود ومادبحوه Ten Jews on a hedgehog and they don't slaughter it. Basically, all talk and no action. 

سال المجرب وماتسال الطبيب Question the expert and not the doctor. Go to someone with a relative degree of experience regarding your problem and not a doctor who may only have a textbook level of experience. 

ما يحكك اضهري غير ظفري My back can only be scratched with my own fingernails. No one can fix my problem but myself.

قالو شمتك، قالو جربتك One said to the other I tricked you and the other said I experienced you (for who you are). An awkward translation but the equivalent expression is "fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me". 

اللي قال ليك قال عليك One who tells you (bad things about other people) he will do the same of you. Be wary of the person who talks trash about other people behind their back. 

دوز على الواد الهرهوري ولا دوز على الواد السكوتي Spend time by the babbling brook and not by the dry riverbed. Similar to the expression "it's always the quite ones". Be careful of people who never talk.

اللي تربي على شي حاجة كبر عليها If you are raised with something you grow old with it. Old habits die hard. 

لي حفر شي حفرة كيطيح فيها He dug a hole then fell into it. He dug his own grave.


ما كيعرف راسه من رجله He doesn't know his head from his leg. He has no idea what is going on, "he doesn't know his ass from a hole in the ground". 

الناس في الناس والقرع في مشيط الراس The people are with the people and the bald guy is combing his hair. A comment on someone doing something with little or no benefit. Herding cats, pushing water uphill with a rake, talking to brick walls and so on. 

شحال من الفيل قرصاتوا عقرب How many elephants have been stung by scorpions. Don't judge a book by it's cover.

اخدم بكري ولا روح تكري Work early in life and you will not have to rent. 

دخلناهم يشربوا الرايب قالوا حقنا فالزرايب We let them enter the house for some milk and they said they had a right to everything. Give an inch and they take a mile. 

خبز الدار ياكلو البراني The bread of the household is not for strangers. This is an expression on avoiding marriages outside of the family. It highlights an older rural mindset as family wealth transfers with marriage. 

دوام الحال من المحال Everything gets better with time.

الدنيا دراعة كل واحد كيلبسها ساعة The world is a shirt everyone wears for an hour. Life is short.

الزين إلا زين الفعال Pretty in the face but not in actions. 

وجه الشارفة ما يخفى، ولو تحكو بالحلفة The face of an old woman cant be hidden even if she scrubbed it off with a scratch pad. Not the nicest expression and it is usually said of an older woman who despite her best efforts attempts to appear young.

اللي مدت يدها للحنة، تمدها كلها If you apply henna to her hand, you have to apply it to the entire hand. Finish what you started.

تفكر حبيبك وهواه، تفكر فعايلو ونساه Think of your lover and his love, think of his actions and forget him. Advice for after a break up, move on.

العشق المزروب، كله عيوب Rushing love is shameful.

حل عينيك قبل الزواج، أما بعدو غيرغمضهوم Get to know your fiance well before getting married.

زواج ليلة تدبيره عام Live together a year before getting married.

أش خاصك العريان خاتم آمولاي Does the naked person require the ring of a lord? Someone without means with fantasies of marriage or something else far out of reach. It's an invitation for someone to get their head out of the clouds and join us on planet Earth.

يا تطلب الزيت من الشفانجي Go to the shfanji if you want oil. A shfanji is the guy who deep fries and sells shfanj, a doughnut like pastry. Naturally he would have cooking oil in bulk but people don't really ask them for oil, they go to the store. The implied meaning is go to someone that can actually help you with your problem.

الفقيه اللي نتسناو براكته ادخل للجامع ببلغته The Fqih offered his blessing but then entered the Mosque while wearing his slippers. He's a hypocrite. 

اربط حمارك مع الحمير، يتعلم الشيق والنهيق وخرجان الطريق I like this expression, lots of good rhymes at the end. It kind of rhymes in translation too. Tie your donkey with other donkeys, he will only learn to breath, bray and from the path he'll stray. Beware of the company you keep, they will teach you bad habits.

الحمار مخبي ووذنيه برّا The donkey is hiding but his ears are sticking out in plain sight. You can't hide from you problems.

طاجين الشمايت، النصبا وقلة ليدام This one is kind of funny, it's a description of a very bad Tajine and worst of all, no gravy. It's similar to "rotten to the core".

ضرب الحديد ماحدو سخون Strike the iron while it's still hot. Take advantage of the opportunity before it passes you by.

بالزز ولا بالخاطى/ بغيتي ولا كرهيتي Whether you like it or not.

كان كيبالي الضو There was a glimmer of hope.

حنا ولاد اليوم/ اللي وقع وقع حنا ولاد اليوم We are the children of today. Live in the now.

حرفة بوك لا يغلبوك To follow in the father's footsteps.

نوضوها تشطح دارتها بصح Women who dance lack morals. More of a comment on a woman's character and typically said by women during weddings.

ما كينسي البنت في امها غير همها A daughter can not forget her mom except when there are problems. 

حماتي لالتي وبنتها مولاتي My mother-in-law is my queen and her daughter is my lady. The direct translation is strange but it relates to newlywed wives or wives to be. The suggestion is that the woman treat her husband's family with extreme respect. 

حماتي وجه الدلو هي حارة وولدها حلو My mother-in-law's face is like a bucket, she is awful but her son is sweet. This is a more realistic expression of the mother-in-law daughter-in-law relationship based on popular stereotypes. 

الطلاب يطلب ومرتو تصدق The beggar begs and his wife gives charity. A criticism of a spouse who cannot live within her means.

ما كيسخنلوش الماء Their (lies) can't heat water. They're completely full of shit.

البكاء وراء الميت خسارة Crying before death is a pity. Don't waste tears on something that is out of your hands or that you can't fix.

طاح الحك وصاب غطاه Two peas in a pod. Usually said if two people are perfect for each other. 

ما تشري حتى تقلب أو ما تسحب حتى تجرب Don't purchase something without inspecting it or befriend someone without getting to know them. 

دخول الحمام ماشي بحال خروجو Entering the bathhouse is not like leaving it. "Time to pay the piper". When you go to the hammam you get to enjoy yourself, gossip, get clean but when it is time to leave you must pay. 

ما قدو فيل زاده فيلة He was not done with one (male) elephant and was given another (female). To make matters worse.

لالة زينة وزادها نور الحمام Lalla (meaning close to princess) is beautiful and more beautiful in the light of the bathhouse. The expression seems positive but it is quite the opposite. It is said in relation to an evil woman who always says things that no one wants to hear.

فران وقاد بحومة An oven that goes all around the neighborhood. An extremely capable person. 

الفم المسدود ما يدخلو دبان Flies do not enter a closed mouth. If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all. Don't speak poorly of others. 

الدنيا شي عطاتو وشي زواتو The world gives you things and punches you in the stomach. You get both the good and bad in life.