# All Slavic languages: bull in a china shop



## Anna Mary

Does anyone know how does it go the Croatian expression / idiom for "bull in a china shop"

hvala
Anna


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## natasha2000

Sta znaci, "bull in a china shop"?


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## melon collie

I don't know Croatian but in general it means clumsily and rudely.
In Russia we have an expression with the same meaning "слон в посудной лавке" (literally - an elephant in a china shop).


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## Jana337

melon collie said:
			
		

> I don't know Croatian but in general it means clumsily and rudely.
> In Russia we have an expression with the same meaning "слон в посудной лавке" (literally - an elephant in a china shop).


Yup, slon v porceláně. 

Jana


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## martini_

po polsku: Słoń w składzie porcelany.


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## natasha2000

Slon u staklarskoj radnji


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## cadavir

natasha2000 said:
			
		

> Slon u staklarskoj radnji



As far as I know that is not correct!

Croatian | English
slon  = elephant [en]
bik = bull [en]

the right translation should be:
"Bik u staklarskoj radnji"

And it's usualy used when talking about a person who is rather insensitive.

Cad


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## natasha2000

cadavir said:
			
		

> as far as I know that is not correct!
> 
> croatian | english
> slon = elephant [en]
> bik = bull [en]
> 
> the right translation should be:
> "Bik u staklarskoj radnji"
> 
> and it's usualy used when talking about a person who is rather insensitive
> 
> Cad


 
If you want to translate literally, then you're right. 

But in Croatian/Serbian/etc... we say Slon u staklarskoj radnji, for a clumsy person....

For us, the sinonym for clumsiness is an elephant, not a bull. for English people, it is a bull.


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## clementine_915

In german it' s also an elephant (Elefant in der Porzelankiste), but I didn' t know that something similar exist in croatian.


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## Juri

In Slovenian is used "Slon v stekleni menažeriji"or: "v trgovini kristala".
Elephant in glass menagerie;or in the crystal shop.


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## kudikamo

natasha2000 said:


> Slon u staklarskoj radnji



It's also said: "k'o slon u *staklani*".


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## reka

Juri said:


> In Slovenian is used "Slon v stekleni menažeriji"or: "v trgovini kristala".
> Elephant in glass menagerie;or in the crystal shop.


 
Interesing, I only know: slon v trgovini s porcelanom


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## sokol

Mod note:

As contributions already contain a great deal of _other_ than BCS versions of the idiom I changed the title, and thus the topic of this thread.


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## Orlin

Bulgarian: като слон в стъкларски магазин = like an elephant in a glass shop.


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## TriglavNationalPark

Juri said:


> In Slovenian is used "Slon v stekleni menažeriji"or: "v trgovini kristala".
> Elephant in glass menagerie;or in the crystal shop.


 
Here's a related Slovenian expression:

*kot svinja z mehom* = (to treat something) poorly or carelessly -- lit.: "like a swine/sow with a bellows"


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## knjigca

reka said:


> Interesing, I only know: slon v trgovini s porcelanom


Me too. I think it's the only one that is actually used in Slovenian.


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## Azori

Slovak:

(ako) slon v porceláne / slon medzi porcelánom


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