«قَحْطَانَهْ عَمَلِتْ وَحْمَانَهْ»

The saying ridicules a greedy person who disguises plain appetite as a legitimate need. Its image is a ravenous woman, her hunger likened to famine, who claims the cravings of pregnancy, since such cravings are customarily indulged, and so obtains whatever she wants.

More broadly, it describes anyone who adopts a pretext to reach a goal. The target is greed and the convenient cover story used to satisfy it, which makes the desire look excusable or even deserving, rather than any real person's hunger or pregnancy.

Aim it at someone who invents a sympathetic reason, such as illness or need, to get food or favours they simply want. Its gendered imagery mocks appetite and pregnancy, so it can offend; use it lightly among familiars and avoid aiming it at real women.