• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer
Zippy Facts Logo

Zippy Facts

Interesting Random Facts

  • Animals
  • Culture
  • Firsts
  • Food
  • Geography
  • Health
  • History
  • Inventions
  • Language
  • Mythology
  • Odds
  • People
  • Religion
  • Science
  • Space
  • Universe
  • World
You are here: Home / Language / Where does the expression “other fish to fry” come from and What does it mean?

Where does the expression “other fish to fry” come from and What does it mean?

July 28, 2020 by Karen Hill

The French idea is it a bien d’autres chiens a fouetter, literally, “he has many other dogs to whip.”

The Germans, with no frills, give the actual meaning, andere Dinge zu tun haben, “to have other things to do,” as do the Italians with altro pel capo.

The Spaniards are equally direct though your translated version of Don Quixote may give you a different idea.

Thus, in the Motteux translation (1712), part II, chapter XXXV, Merlin tells the noble Don that the only way by which “the peerless Dulcinea del Toboso” may be disenchanted is that Sancho:

“thy good Squire,
On his bare brawny buttocks should bestow
Three thousand Lashes, and eke three hundred more,
Each to afflict, and sting, and gall him sore.”

But Sancho, quite naturally, objects to being the recipient of such indignity; the disenchantment of the fair Duchess is of no immediate concern to him; hence, “‘I say, as I have said before,’ quoth Sancho; ‘as for the flogging, I pronounce it flat and plain. “Renounce, you mean,’ said the Duke. ‘Good your Lordship,’ quoth Sancho, ‘this is no Time for me to mind Niceties, and spelling of Letters: I have other Fish to fry.”

Cervantes actually wrote, otras cosas en que pensar, “other things on which to think,” but Motteux, anxious to show off his acquaintance with English idiom, adopted the phrase already well known.

Just how old the “fish” version may be is not known.

The first appearance in print that has yet been found is in the Memoirs (1660) of the prolific writer John Evelyn.

Undoubtedly, however, it had long been familiar to his readers.

Related Facts

  • Where does the expression "till the cows come home" come from and What does it mean?
  • Where does the expression "to come out flat footed" come from and What does it mean?
  • Where does the expression "to come out at the little end of the horn" come from and What does it mean?
  • Where does the expression "come off your perch" come from and What does it mean?
  • What does the expression "to get one's come uppance" mean and Where does it come from?
  • Where does the expression "to be ahead of the game" come from and What does to come out ahead mean?
  • What Does the Expression "Until the Cows Come Home" Mean and Where Did the Phrase Come From?
  • Where does the expression "Darby and Joan" come from and What does Darby and Joan mean?
  • Where does the phrase "to rain cats and dogs" come from and What does the expression mean?
  • Where does the expression "to blow hot and cold" come from and What does it mean?
  • Where does the expression "to steer between Scylla and Charybdis" come from and What does it mean?
  • Where does the expression "through thick and thin" come from and What does it mean?

Filed Under: Language

About Karen Hill

Karen Hill is a freelance writer, editor, and columnist. Born in New York, her work has appeared in the Examiner, Yahoo News, Buzzfeed, among others.

Previous Post: « Where does the phrase “to skate on thin ice” come from and What does “skate on thin ice” mean?
Next Post: Where does the phrase “willing to give one’s ears” come from and What does it mean? »

Footer

Follow

  • Facebook
  • Flickr
  • GitHub
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Medium
  • Pinterest
  • StumbleUpon
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Categories

Accomplishments Animals Culture Firsts Food Geography Health History Inventions Language Mythology Odds People Religion Science Space Universe World Your Body

About

Zippy Facts empowers the world by serving educational content that is accessible to everyone.

A tribute to growing up, zippyfacts.com showcases interesting and unusual facts about the world.

Our mission is to use technology to facilitate knowledge transfer and sharing.

Copyright © 2021 Zippy Facts

  • About Us
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy