«اِلشَّايِبْ لَمَّا يِدَّلَّعْ زَيِّ الْبَابْ لَمَّا يِتْخَلَّعْ»

The proverb mocks an elderly man who behaves coquettishly or acts spoiled, comparing his display to a door working loose at its joints. Instead of charm, his affected playfulness comes across as creaky, rattling and unsteady, a sign of wear rather than youth.

Its sting lies in the mismatch between age and manner. The Arabic pairs yidallaʿ (to act coy) with yitkhallaʿ (to come loose) in a rhyme, so the old man's preening and the door's wobbling seem to mirror each other, making affected youthfulness in the aged look absurd.

Used as a scornful jibe when an older man puts on kittenish airs, flirts, or demands to be fussed over like a youngster. It mocks the behavior as awkward and unseemly, and can wound if aimed at a real person, so it is far from gentle teasing.