One Cambodian idiom

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taabarang
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One Cambodian idiom

Post by taabarang »

I suspect many of you are aware of this idiom already which is "Kom ches !" It is literally a command construction which means Don't know! However with most idioms a literal translation misses the point. It's real meaning is " it's none of your business " or " mind your own business! ". It can be reasonably strong depending on circumstances. A parent can say it to a child but highly impolite for a child to talk that way with a parent. I also don't suggest using it with a stranger, say an armed policeman for example.
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jah steu
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Re: One Cambodian idiom

Post by jah steu »

I thought "che" was understand.
As in "ut che anglais", don't understand English.
It still makes sense as your idiom - telling someone to not understand or to mind their own business.


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taabarang
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Re: One Cambodian idiom

Post by taabarang »

Actually "Che's" is one of three verbs meaning to know. Without exploring the differences of scoal, deung, and ches in depth, the latter verb means to know in the sense of knowing how to do something. So while your understanding in your given example is about the same, it doesn't convey the inherent subtle meaning. Furthermore trying to lean on the literal meaning of words in an idiom is tenuous at best. Example:

I'm sure you catch my drift.
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Re: One Cambodian idiom

Post by Username Taken »

There is a difference between

ot che (I don't know)

and

gom che (you don't need to know)

Nonetheless, it's good to know.
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Re: One Cambodian idiom

Post by Jamie_Lambo »

jah steu wrote: I thought "che" was understand.
As in "ut che anglais", don't understand English.
It still makes sense as your idiom - telling someone to not understand or to mind their own business.
Username Taken wrote: Mon Jun 12, 2017 9:36 pm There is a difference between

ot che (I don't know)

and

gom che (you don't need to know)

Nonetheless, it's good to know.
yeah as UT says..

អត់ចេះ = Ot Jeh = (i) Not/Don't Know, speaking informally the word Khnom is often not spoken

កុំចេះ = Kom Jeh = Do Not Know (how), Kom is a command/demand to 'Not Do/Do Not Do' something and is usually spoken at the start of a sentence, when telling someone not to do something

the word for understand is... យល់ = Yol, Yol ot = understand?, (Khnom) Ot Yol = (i) don't understand

saying "Ot Jeh Anglais" is just an informal way of saying Khnom Ot Jeh Piasaa Anglais (i dont know the English Language)
example...
the informal way - Jeh Khmer Ot? = Know Khmer?
the formal way - Ter Bong Will Jeh Piasaa Khmer Men Te? = Will, do you know the Khmer language?

as for the Idiom, i can see where it comes from with this.. Kom Jeh! = Do not know! (its not yours to know!/none of your business!)

thanks again TaaBarang you know i love these :thumb:
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Re: One Cambodian idiom

Post by StroppyChops »

Jamie_Lambo wrote: Mon Jun 12, 2017 11:43 pm
jah steu wrote: I thought "che" was understand.
As in "ut che anglais", don't understand English.
It still makes sense as your idiom - telling someone to not understand or to mind their own business.
Username Taken wrote: Mon Jun 12, 2017 9:36 pm There is a difference between

ot che (I don't know)

and

gom che (you don't need to know)

Nonetheless, it's good to know.
yeah as UT says..

អត់ចេះ = Ot Jeh = (i) Not/Don't Know, speaking informally the word Khnom is often not spoken

កុំចេះ = Kom Jeh = Do Not Know (how), Kom is a command/demand to 'Not Do/Do Not Do' something and is usually spoken at the start of a sentence, when telling someone not to do something

the word for understand is... យល់ = Yol, Yol ot = understand?, (Khnom) Ot Yol = (i) don't understand

saying "Ot Jeh Anglais" is just an informal way of saying Khnom Ot Jeh Piasaa Anglais (i dont know the English Language)
example...
the informal way - Jeh Khmer Ot? = Know Khmer?
the formal way - Ter Bong Will Jeh Piasaa Khmer Men Te? = Will, do you know the Khmer language?

as for the Idiom, i can see where it comes from with this.. Kom Jeh! = Do not know! (its not yours to know!/none of your business!)

thanks again TaaBarang you know i love these :thumb:
Building on this and hijacking your post, what's the appropriate syntax for "don't be rude" and "don't be stupid"?
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Re: One Cambodian idiom

Post by taabarang »

I wrote a long explanation of this and dramatically related issues which disappeared into the point internet ether. So here is the short version.

In these commands in Khmer the verb for to be plays no role. Thus

stupid=pleu
rude= chhloeui

Simply add Kom +adjective.
Kom pleu! Don't be stupid!

That is how the commands are rendered into Khmer, at least in my village.

No hijacking involved bro.
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Re: One Cambodian idiom

Post by StroppyChops »

taabarang wrote: Tue Jun 13, 2017 1:59 pm I wrote a long explanation of this and dramatically related issues which disappeared into the point internet ether. So here is the short version.

In these commands in Khmer the verb for to be plays no role. Thus

stupid=pleu
rude= chhloeui

Simply add Kom +adjective.
Kom pleu! Don't be stupid!

That is how the commands are rendered into Khmer, at least in my village.

No hijacking involved bro.
Thanks taa

Help on pronouncing chhloeui please?
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Re: One Cambodian idiom

Post by Username Taken »

ឈ្លើយ = chhleuy = rude/impolite
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Re: One Cambodian idiom

Post by taabarang »

Well I just lost another fucking long post, but no matter just show UT's written Cambodian to any literate but patient Khmer for guidance.
It's one of those vowel sounds Anglophones make only when they are extremely ill.
As my old Cajun bait seller used to say, "I opes you luck.
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