Old Sayings and Modern Counterparts

[KGarrad]

  My initial point was what is there to replace these 'dying' sayings.

And it was interesting that so few of us could come up with direct replacements for the dying sayings.

Off-topic again, but I like some of the French or Spanish equivalents of our familiar sayings.

Never sell the bearskin till you have shot the bear
Speak of a wolf, and his tail is seen
Speak of the Pope of Rome and he walks through the door

My favourite Spanish one, a version of "it never rains but it pours" is "Éramos muchos y parió la abuela"
Loosely translated -"There were lots of us already, and then granny gave birth"

Nice one Mike!

I quite like some Dutch ones:

Making elephants out of mosquitos - Mountains out of molehills!
Jump over the dyke into the sea - from the frying pan into the fire.
He's been hit on the head with the sail of a windmill! Meaning he's a but cuckoo, or crazy!

[eadaoin]

I still say he/she is "sixpence short of a bob" (or "tuppence short of a shilling") which few people seem to understand anymore but can't think of a modern equivalent

"a few cents short of a euro", surely!

and I've heard " a can short of a six-pack" from the younger generation!

[Roobarb]

Plus I only found out recently that LOL does not mean Lots of Love.

You're in good company auntykate, David Cameron made the same mistake. 

[DavidG02]

I still say he/she is "sixpence short of a bob" (or "tuppence short of a shilling") which few people seem to understand anymore but can't think of a modern equivalent unless it's "got a few slates missing" or 'a sandwich short of a picnic".

Some Aussie ones

A few kangaroos short in the top paddock

a bit of a galah ( more for that breed of yahoos who do silly things)

A snag short of a barbie

[jaybelnz]

Hissy fit .... Tantrum

Bob's your uncle.... She'll be right... All cool man!!  Ace!!

When people say to me "all good, Bob's your Uncle" I usually say "no he's not, he's my Dad, and my two grandfathers" -  I get some funny looks! 

Jeanne 😄

[eadaoin]

When people say to me "all good, Bob's your Uncle" I usually say "no he's not, he's my Dad, and my two grandfathers" -  I get some funny looks! 

I say "great-uncle, actually!

[Berlin-Bob]

Old:
give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime

New:
give a man a fish you'll feed him for a day; teach him to use the internet and he won't bother you again

[gaffy]

My late mother was born in County Down, Northern Ireland in the late 1920s.  Here are a couple of her sayings, redolent of a different era altogether...

At the end of large meal, when invited to have some more, a typical response would have been "Not for me thankyou, I've been fed like a fighting cock".

And in response to asking how her day had been, she would often have said "I've been working like a lamplighter all day".

[jaybelnz]

I've heard Work Like a Trojan, and another unprintable one!

Jeanne