- English translation
Once your aunt and mine tied us together, but the aunts have parted, and so have we.
- Literal wording
My maternal aunt and your maternal aunt used to be, and the maternal aunts went their separate ways.
- Meaning and lesson
The saying describes a connection between two people that once held them together but has since been severed. The shared maternal aunts stand for whatever link used to join the pair, and their parting marks the moment that link dissolved, leaving nothing between them. The kinship is an image for any former bond, not necessarily a literal family split.
In practice, a speaker uses it to declare a relationship finished and to turn down claims based on former closeness. It suggests that a bond grounded in circumstance or family can vanish once those circumstances change, so neither side owes the other anything anymore.
- When it is used
Use it when someone appeals to an old tie that no longer exists, such as a former partner, a lapsed friendship, or a broken alliance. It signals, often with dry resignation, that the past connection now carries no obligation.
- Register
- Colloquial
Cite or copy proverb
How this record reached us: Editorially sourced.
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