- English translation
The craftsman shaped him, then dropped dead, so there will never be another like him.
- Literal wording
The lathe-turner turned him, then rolled over and died.
- Meaning and lesson
On the surface, the saying praises a unique creation. The craftsman who turned it on his lathe finished the work, then tumbled over (a colloquial verb for rolling) and died. It is the turner, not his creation, who dies, so the pattern was lost and no second piece can be made. The person stands unmatched.
In practice, the praise is mock praise. It ridicules a vain person who is dazzled by their own looks or charm and imagines that whoever shaped them has died, leaving them unmatched among people. The speaker deflates self-admiration by repeating the conceited person's fantasy back at them.
- When it is used
Say it with a raised eyebrow about someone who preens, overrates their looks, or acts as though nobody could equal them. It works as a teasing aside among people who know the target, not as a compliment to their face.
- Register
- Colloquial; sarcastic
Cite or copy proverb
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