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This puzzle originally appeared in our very first issue of An Gaeilgeoir, in November of 1998.
At the Irish Fest summer school in Milwaukee one August, Irish instructor Ray McManus amused students by wearing a T-shirt that said:
Níl aon tóin tinn mar do thóin tinn féin.
This was a play on a famous proverb, as are all of those listed below. Can you figure out the real proverb that each one is based on? (Note, these puzzling proverbs sound like the originals, so don't be distracted by the English translations.)
| Níl aon tóin tinn mar do thóin tinn féin. | "There's no sore backside like your own sore backside." |
| Fear gan reang, fear gan ainimh. | "A man without a wrinkle (or scar)is a man without a blemish." |
| Mallaíonn croí trom i bhfad. | "A heavy heart curses long." |
| Beireann gortú buairt. | "Hurt (or njury) gives birth to sorrow, vexation." |
| Mol an t-olc agus scaipfidh sé. | "Praise the evil and it will spread." |
| Is annamh duine saibhir fiúntach. | "It's rare that a rich person is worthy." |
| Is trumpa coileach ar maidin. | "A rooster is a trumpet in the morning." |
| Is annamh an tseanmóir fhada nach mbíonn codladh ann. | "It's rare to find a long sermon without sleeping." |