«لَا بْإِيدُهْ وَلَا بِالْمَنْجَلْ»

The saying describes a person who is useless at work by every means. Hands are the most basic way of getting a job done, and the sickle stands for any tool or aid that should make up for lacking strength or skill, yet this person gets nothing done with either.

The proverb therefore joins idleness and clumsiness into a single judgment. It is not about farm work specifically: it portrays someone who neither does manual labor nor has mastered any trade or craft, so nobody can rely on them for any task.

Use it to dismiss someone who is useless at practical tasks, bare-handed or with any tool. It is disparaging and may offend if said directly, so it fits exasperated talk about a lazy, clumsy person, typically said about them rather than to them.