English Language & Usage Asked by Grand Torini on March 29, 2021
Picture yourself, the best driver within your group of friends and with a passion for cars, driving in a small Toyota along a narrow windy road at 60km/h. Suddenly after a bend you find yourself behind a Ferrari that is cruising at 35km/h.
You shake your head while waiting for an opportunity to take over and tell your friend in the passenger seat "chi ha il pane non ha i denti".
This, in Italian, means that who owns a certain (usually valuable) commodity because he/she could simply afford it, might not have the skills to make the appropriate use of it, whereas who has the skills can’t afford it. It directly translates to "who has the bread, doesn’t have teeth", implying that who has the teeth, doesn’t have the bread (this would usually be the person who is making use of the sentence).
Is there any idiomatic way to express this in English?
The best equivalent is To have the means but not the know-how.
See this link with Italian sayings about food.
Who's lacking in brawn makes up for it in brains also comes close to it.
Correct answer by fev on March 29, 2021
A poser
"If you can't keep up with the big dogs, stay under the porch"
Those with poor driving skills are generally met with "learn to drive will ya?" or possibly "Does your Daddy know you're driving his car?"
Answered by Iam Theman on March 29, 2021
The closest colloquialism I can think of to describe those who squander their money on expensive things they don't have the need or wherewithal to use in a manner that justifies the cost, is the punny expression:
He/she has more dollars than sense.
This idiom plays on the acoustic similarity of the words "cents" and "sense", and fact that having more dollars than cents in any applicable currency is literally impossible.
As an aside, while the author of the linked blog post mentions that:
The average human has approximately 100 billion brain cells, so those with over $100 billion literally have “more dollars than sense”,
it should be noted that this is only true if one neglects to include the non-neuronal brain cells in the count.
Also, a person doesn't necessarily have to be financially rich to exhibit the manner of daftness that would qualify them as having more dollars than sense... The term can be applied to anyone who spends their money unwisely.
Answered by bracho monacho on March 29, 2021
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