Blair Collection > Collection of Gaelic proverbs and familiar phrases

102
Cha gliabhar greim air uisge no air teine.
No hold can he got of water or of fire.
Cha ghille mur h-umliailt e.
He is no servant U7iless he obeys.
Cha ghlac dòrn dùinte seobhag.
Closed fist tvon't catch hawk.
Cha ghabhann an dom druidte seabhac. — Ir.
With emptie hands men may no hawkes lure. — OJiaucer.
Det er ondt at lokke Hoge med tomme Hctnder. — Dan.
Met ledige handen is het kwaad havikken vangen. — Dutch.
Cha ghleidh an dall an rathad mor.
The blind can't keep the highway.
This is true only in a metaphorical sense.
Cha ghleidheadh tu clach 's a' chladacli.
Yoìò vjouldìi't find a stone on the shore.
Cha ghliiais bròg no bruidheann an droch bliean-thighe.
Tramping or talking wont rouse the bad housewife.
Ascribed to Eoghan a' chinn bhig. See App. III.
Cha ghruagaichean gu leir air am bi am fait f hein.
All are not maidens that wear their ovm hair.
A' are na maidens that wear bare hair. — Scot.
To drop the snood, or fillet, and cover the head, was formerly,
both in the Highlands and Lowlands of Scotland, the sign of
marriage or maternity. The old Highland head-dress of women,
called hreid, was a square of fine linen, pinned round the head,
with part hanging down behind, like some of the head-dresses in
Normandy and Brittany. — Armstr. Diet. s.v. Breid.
Cha le duine fhein a ghàire.
A mans smile is not his own.
I have been told by a wise counsellor, that an old man advised
him always to have his consulting chair set with its back to the
window.
Cha leannan òinsich e.
He is no foolish girl's fancy.
This and the next are generally said ironically of old or unpre-
possessing ' parties ' ,
Cha leannan baothair i.
She is no sweetheart for a fool,
Cha leithne Loch Obha null na nail.
Loch Awe is no broader across than back.
Al. Cha lugh' an uchdach' na 'n leathad. Tlie ascent is no less
than tiie declivity. ' It's as broad as it's long.'