/non kaˈvare un ˈraɲɲo dal ˈbuko/ lit. ‘not to get a spider out of the hole’
Italian idiom, informal. To be stuck and unable to work something out.
Draft Not yet checked by a native Italian speaker.
How do people use Non cavare un ragno dal buco
?
Informal, said after a lot of effort that led nowhere: “ci abbiamo provato, ma non abbiamo cavato un ragno dal buco”. It’s always negative and usually in the past. With “ne” it means you won’t get anything out of a person or situation: “non ne caveresti un ragno dal buco”.
Non cavare un ragno dal buco
in real sentences
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Ci abbiamo provato, ma non abbiamo cavato un ragno dal buco.
We tried, but we got nowhere.
Tatoeba, sentence by xicotenga, CC BY 2.0 FR
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Non ne caveresti un ragno dal buco!
You’d never get anything out of it!
Tatoeba, sentence by Guybrush88, CC BY 2.0 FR
Where does Non cavare un ragno dal buco
come from?
The picture is poking at a spider’s hole for ages and never getting the spider to come out. Italian Wiktionary lists it under “ragno” with the meaning “to achieve nothing”. We found no date or first use.
Mistakes learners make with Non cavare un ragno dal buco
Dropping the “non”. Without it the sentence says you did pull the spider out, which isn’t an idiom at all.
Other Italian idioms like Non cavare un ragno dal buco
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?
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