- English translation
Only a bigger jinx can get the better of a jinx.
- Literal wording
The jinx has no one for him except one more jinxed than he is.
- Meaning and lesson
A person whose misfortune seems to rub off on everyone nearby cannot be held back by ordinary people. Only someone carrying an even heavier load of bad luck can stand up to such a figure and come out on top.
The same word for jinx also describes a hard-faced, quarrelsome person whom no scolding can touch. In that sense the saying holds that such a troublemaker gives way only to someone still more shameless and combative. Both readings remain possible unless context settles one.
- When it is used
Use it wryly when a pushy or troublesome person meets someone tougher or more brazen, or to argue a difficult opponent needs a match with more nerve. It is informal and teasing; aimed at a real person, it brands them a jinx or shameless troublemaker and can offend.
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- Colloquial Arabic
Cite or copy proverb
How this record reached us: Editorially sourced.
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