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> Like seaweed at Kosiil, out with the tide and in with the tide. Kosiil is a location in the lagoon where the seaweed can be seen to bend in and out with the tide. The idiom is applied to a leader who is too flexible and unreliable. In the short form (Kora char ra Kosiil) it may simply mean, "I'll go along with what you decide." |
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> Like a fish in deep, clear water, eaten only with the eyes. Fish are not easily caught in clear water. The idiom applies to that which may be admired but not obtained, like an expensive item or another man's beautiful sweetheart. |
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> Like a man circumcised, insufficient skin. Circumcision seems to have been known in Palau prior to contact, perhaps through contact with the Philippines, but was not widely practiced. As in this context, it usually draws attention in the form of ridicule. The idiom applies to any circumstance in which there has been insufficient preparation or planning; a premature decision. |
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> You're like a stinkbug that burns itself in the fire. i.e., you get involved in things that may hurt you. |
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> He gets his law from the streets. Rael has the general meaning "way," applicable both to method and to a street. The implication is that if a child will not learn from his parents, he will learn the hard way from experience. It may be used in the positive sense of someone who is quick to learn from experience. |
