{"id":9936,"date":"2018-06-13T15:54:04","date_gmt":"2018-06-13T15:54:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/german\/?p=9936"},"modified":"2018-06-13T15:54:04","modified_gmt":"2018-06-13T15:54:04","slug":"german-similes-to-make-you-smile","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/german\/german-similes-to-make-you-smile\/","title":{"rendered":"German Similes To Make You Smile"},"content":{"rendered":"

Guten Tag! After what feels like a lot of grammar and vocabulary posts from me, it\u2019s time for something a little more light-hearted. Today I’d like to bring you a quirky German phrase. The phrase is: grinsen<\/strong> wie<\/b> ein Honigkuchenpferd. <\/b><\/p>\n

Grinsen wie ein Honigkuchenpferd<\/b><\/h3>\n

This phrase translates to \u2018To smile like a honey cake horse\u2019. It basically means that you have a massive grin on your face. The closest English equivalent is probably the phrase \u2018to grin like a Cheshire Cat\u2019, referencing the cat with the big smile from Alice in Wonderland. But that doesn\u2019t explain what a \u2018honey cake horse\u2019 is, so read on to find out.<\/p>\n

Das Honigkuchenpferd<\/b><\/h3>\n

Do you know the gingerbread hearts and shapes you often see at German Christmas markets? Those are called Lebkuchen<\/strong>. A Honigkuchenpferd is basically the predecessor to the Lebkuchen you see today. It is a gingerbread cake made with honey and other spices, and shaped and decorated like a horse.<\/p>\n

This type of cake is so old it was used by the ancient Greeks and Romans, who believed honey had magical, healing powers and could protect them against evil spirits. These cakes were often shaped like animals or other objects, depending on the occasion \u2013 hence the horse shape of the Honigkuchenpferd.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Honigkuchenpferd<\/a>
\nVon Frank C. M\u00fcller, CC BY-SA 4.0<\/a>, Link<\/a><\/p>\n

The question I cannot find an answer to, however, is why a person would grin like<\/i> a Honigkuchenpferd. Any ideas?<\/p>\n

But this is not the only, slightly baffling way to say someone is grinning a lot. Here are two more expressions with the same meaning:<\/p>\n

Wie ein Primeltopf grinsen<\/strong> \u2013 to smile like a plant pot full of primroses
\nWie ein frisch lackiertes Hutschpferd grinsen<\/strong> \u2013 to smile like a freshly painted rocking horse<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"\"

der Primeltopf – pot of primroses. Image via Pixabay.<\/p><\/div>\n

Maybe, in German, you can smile \u2018like\u2019 anything that\u2019s pleasant, even if the thing itself does not smile!<\/p>\n

\u2018Vor Freude grinst er wie ein Honigkuchenpferd\u2019
\n\u2018He is so happy he is grinning like a honey cake horse\u2019<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

If you have any comments or questions about this word (or can fill in any blanks!), please leave a comment! I hope you\u2019ve enjoyed this post and that it\u2019s made you smile wie ein Honigkuchenpferd<\/em>! \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n

Bis bald!<\/p>\n

Constanze<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"\"

Guten Tag! After what feels like a lot of grammar and vocabulary posts from me, it\u2019s time for something a little more light-hearted. Today I’d like to bring you a quirky German phrase. The phrase is: grinsen wie ein Honigkuchenpferd. Grinsen wie ein Honigkuchenpferd This phrase translates to \u2018To smile like a honey cake horse\u2019…<\/p>\n

Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":119,"featured_media":9938,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[503854,95131,457016,376023,376079,2391,8043,358422,489783,337679,257573,1401],"class_list":["post-9936","post","type-post","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-language","tag-curious-words","tag-german-language","tag-german-vocabulary","tag-language","tag-lebkuchen","tag-phrases","tag-sayings","tag-sayings-expressions","tag-simile","tag-untranslatable-german","tag-untranslatable-words","tag-words"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t