«اِللِّي عَلَى الْبَرِّ عَوَّامْ»

People can easily boast of abilities when they are protected from the test that would reveal whether those abilities are real. Safety and distance make confident claims inexpensive, without necessarily meaning that every untested person is dishonest.

The saying may also point to the difficulty of disproving an untested claim. Until someone must act under the relevant conditions, their supposed skill remains an assertion; it expresses skepticism rather than proof that the claim is false.

Use it about claims of competence made by someone who has not faced the practical challenge involved. It can be teasing or skeptical when calling for a demonstration rather than accepting self-praise, but may sound dismissive if directed personally.