{"id":11181,"date":"2019-10-31T05:00:46","date_gmt":"2019-10-31T05:00:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/german\/?p=11181"},"modified":"2019-10-25T22:35:24","modified_gmt":"2019-10-25T22:35:24","slug":"german-sayings-expressions-26-geister","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/german\/german-sayings-expressions-26-geister\/","title":{"rendered":"German Sayings + Expressions 26: Geister!"},"content":{"rendered":"

Finally, Halloween is here! But do you want to use some ghostly sayings and expressions? Then you’re in the right place! Where I looked at the word\u00a0Geist\u00a0<\/em>last week<\/a>, we now use it in a\u00a0Sprichwort\u00a0<\/em>(saying) and an\u00a0Ausdruck\u00a0<\/em>(expression). Let’s go!<\/p>\n

For older posts, please\u00a0follow this link.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Der\u00a0Geist ist willig, aber das Fleisch ist schwach<\/strong><\/em><\/h2>\n
\"\"<\/a>

He really wants to surf, but does he feel like it? (Image by Patrick Fore at Unsplash.com)<\/p><\/div>\n

Literally: The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.<\/em><\/p>\n

The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.<\/strong><\/p>\n

What this means is quite straightforward. With your common sense, your mind, you want to achieve something, but temptation, the body, holds you back. This is a bit about the interplay of mind and body, obviously.<\/p>\n

While you won’t hear this Sprichwort\u00a0<\/em>a lot anymore, it’s an interesting premise. It comes from\u00a0a passage in the Bible, which goes like this:<\/p>\n

“Wachet und betet, dass ihr nicht in Versuchung fallt! Der Geist<\/b> ist willig, aber das Fleisch ist schwach.”<\/em><\/p>\n

(Wake and pray, so you do not fall into temptation! The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”)<\/p>\n

In everyday German, you might use it to refer to a task you really want to accomplish but you simply don’t do it. Here’s an example:<\/p>\n

Mario: Ich m\u00f6chte mindestens zehn Kilo abnehmen!<\/em><\/p>\n

Kevin: Dann los, setz’ dich auf’s Rad, und iss ein bisschen weniger.<\/em><\/p>\n

Mario: Ja, ich wei\u00df. Aber im Winter ist es so kalt auf dem Fahrrad, und mir schmeckt fettiges Essen einfach besser in der kalten Jahreszeit.<\/em><\/p>\n

Kevin: Der Geist ist willig, aber das Fleisch ist schwach. Da musst du jetzt mit leben.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

(Mario: I want to lose at least ten kilos!<\/p>\n

Kevin: Then go, get on the bike, and eat a little less.<\/p>\n

Mario: Yeah, I know. But in Winter, it’s so cold on the bike, and I just enjoy greasy food better in the cold time of the year.<\/p>\n

Kevin: The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. You’re gonna have to live with that now!)<\/p>\n

Jemanden auf den Geist gehen<\/em><\/strong><\/h2>\n
\"\"<\/a>

Gehe der Geistlichen nicht auf den Geist!<\/em> (Image by Maria Teneva at Unsplash.com)<\/p><\/div>\n

Literally: To go somebody on the ghost<\/em><\/p>\n

To get on somebody’s nerves<\/strong><\/p>\n

This is a fun one! You’ll see\u00a0Geister\u00a0<\/em>(ghosts) during Halloween everywhere. But sometimes, all of this Halloween stuff is also really annoying. The jump scares, the cobwebs sticking on your clothes, the fiftieth time you hear “trick-or-treat”…\u00a0Es geht dir sowas von auf den Geist!\u00a0<\/em>(It totally gets onto your ghost!).<\/p>\n

But to translate\u00a0Geist\u00a0<\/em>here as\u00a0ghost\u00a0<\/em>isn’t really fair. As discussed in last week’s post<\/a>,\u00a0Geist\u00a0<\/em>also refers to the mind. And when you occupy, intrude somebody’s mind without being asked to do so, that might be seen as quite annoying. So the origin of this Ausdruck <\/em>is quite self-explanatory.<\/p>\n

There are variations of this, too.\u00a0Auf die Nerven gehen\u00a0<\/em>(like the English “nerves”), the vulgar\u00a0auf den Sack gehen\u00a0<\/em>(“to get on the sack”) or the interesting, probably euphemistic auf den Keks gehen\u00a0<\/em>(“to get on the cookie”). But\u00a0auf den Geist gehen\u00a0<\/em>is definitely the original. And the most fitting for Halloween!<\/p>\n

Here’s an example of how to use it:<\/p>\n

“Mein Gott, mir geht dieses Halloween-Fest auf den Geist!”, the monk said.<\/em><\/p>\n

“My god, this Halloween celebration is getting on my nerves!”, the monk said.<\/p>\n

Enjoy the trick-or-treating! Do you have Sprichw\u00f6rter\u00a0<\/em>and\u00a0Ausdr\u00fccke\u00a0<\/em>related to Halloween in your language? Let me know in the comments below!<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"\"

Finally, Halloween is here! But do you want to use some ghostly sayings and expressions? Then you’re in the right place! Where I looked at the word\u00a0Geist\u00a0last week, we now use it in a\u00a0Sprichwort\u00a0(saying) and an\u00a0Ausdruck\u00a0(expression). Let’s go! For older posts, please\u00a0follow this link. Der\u00a0Geist ist willig, aber das Fleisch ist schwach Literally: The spirit…<\/p>\n

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