- English translation
Like a sprouted bean, with the sleeve off and the arm bare to the armpit.
- Literal wording
Like the sprouted bean, stripped up to his armpit.
- Meaning and lesson
The saying likens a person to a fava bean soaked in water until a small shoot appears at its tip, and pictures that person with a sleeve pulled off so the arm is uncovered all the way to the armpit. Exactly which feature of the bean calls up the bared arm is left unstated.
It is said of someone who bares an arm in this way, either out of cheerful high spirits and liveliness or because they are getting set to work. Both motives fit the expression, and the surrounding situation shows which one is meant.
- When it is used
Apply it to someone whose sleeve is off and whose arm is bare up to the armpit, when they are brimming with playful energy or squaring up to a job that needs doing; the situation shows which motive applies.
- Register
- colloquial
Cite or copy proverb
How this record reached us: Editorially sourced.
Report an issue with this meaning: Like a sprouted bean, with the sleeve off and the arm bare to the armpit.