|
> You're like the old man of Ngerechelong who uses a cloud to mark the location of his fishtrap. i.e. you depend too much on people who are unreliable. |
|
> Like the Bilimbi tree which, if not shaken, will not bear fruit. Applied to a person who does not fulfill their obligations without constant prodding or nagging. |
|
> He's like a good (lit. fast) top that steadies itself soon after touching the ground. i.e. he understands or learns quickly. In Palau the top is spun in the air and dropped to the ground where it usually wobbles for a spell before it becomes "planted" or stable. The better the top, the less the wobble. A statement that is right to the point, or a decisive and good decision, is like a good top. The idiom may be applied to a person who is quick to get the point or learn a new skill. |
|
> Like coconut syrup. A general reference to incestuous relations. That this is a recent idiom, probably first used during the period of Japanese administration, is suggested by the Japanese word "ameyu," used in Palau to mean coconut syrup. The incident from which the idiom derives is said to be one in which a Palauan coconut-syrup maker had relations with his wife's sister. |
|
> Like the chelechelui [fish]. The chelechelui fish reputedly resists rotting when cooked, remaining firm long after other fish would be soft and rotten. The saying implies mature persistence. |
