- English translation
“Come, have some coffee; the agha will pay for it.”
- Literal wording
“In God’s name—coffee from the agha’s pocket.”
- Meaning and lesson
It is said of a person who invites others to food or drink while leaving someone else to meet the expense. The phrase points to a show of generosity that costs the inviter nothing, since the payment is expected from another person.
More broadly, it reproves someone who is lavish with resources that belong to somebody else. The joke lies in offering hospitality freely while treating another person’s money as the available fund for the invitation.
- When it is used
Apply it to someone who invites others to eat or drink, or spends lavishly, while the cost falls on another person. It works as a pointed rebuke of generosity paid for with money that does not belong to the host.
Cite or copy proverb
How this record reached us: Editorially sourced.
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