A1 Idiom Neutral

دست روی دست گذاشتن

dast ruye dast gozashtan

To do nothing/be idle

Bedeutung

To remain inactive or refrain from taking action.

🌍

Kultureller Hintergrund

In Iranian households, if a guest tries to help with dishes and the host says 'No, please sit,' the guest might feel they are 'putting hand on hand' (being useless). They often insist on helping to avoid this feeling. Classical poets like Saadi use the concept of 'sitting idle' to warn against wasting one's life. The hand is seen as the tool of the soul; to keep it still is to stifle the soul. In Iranian offices, 'Dast ruy-e dast gozâshtan' is a serious accusation of negligence that can lead to losing one's job.

🎯

Use the Negative

It is most powerful as 'Dast ruy-e dast nagozâr!' to sound like a native motivator.

⚠️

Don't use for Romance

If you want to say 'holding hands' with a partner, never use this idiom. It sounds like you are both being lazy together.

Bedeutung

To remain inactive or refrain from taking action.

🎯

Use the Negative

It is most powerful as 'Dast ruy-e dast nagozâr!' to sound like a native motivator.

⚠️

Don't use for Romance

If you want to say 'holding hands' with a partner, never use this idiom. It sounds like you are both being lazy together.

Teste dich selbst

Complete the sentence with the correct verb form.

چرا نشستی؟ دست روی دست _______! (Don't put!)

✓ Richtig! ✗ Nicht ganz. Richtige Antwort: نگذار

The negative imperative of 'gozâshtan' is 'nagozâr' (informal) or 'nagozârid'.

In which situation is this idiom appropriate?

Your brother is watching TV while the house is messy and guests are coming in 10 minutes.

✓ Richtig! ✗ Nicht ganz. Richtige Antwort: دست روی دست گذاشتن

He is being idle when action is required.

Which sentence uses the idiom correctly?

Which one implies 'doing nothing'?

✓ Richtig! ✗ Nicht ganz. Richtige Antwort: او دست روی دست گذاشت و فقط نگاه کرد.

The idiom implies inaction, so 'just watching' is the logical follow-up.

Fill in the missing part of the dialogue.

سارا: وقت نداریم! علی: می‌دونم، نباید _________.

✓ Richtig! ✗ Nicht ganz. Richtige Antwort: دست روی دست بگذاریم

The context of 'no time' requires the idiom for 'not being idle'.

🎉 Ergebnis: /4

Visuelle Lernhilfen

When to say it

💼

Work

  • Missed deadlines
  • Lazy coworkers
  • Slow progress
🏠

Home

  • Unfinished chores
  • Procrastinating kids

Aufgabensammlung

4 Aufgaben
Complete the sentence with the correct verb form. Fill Blank A1

چرا نشستی؟ دست روی دست _______! (Don't put!)

✓ Richtig! ✗ Nicht ganz. Richtige Antwort: نگذار

The negative imperative of 'gozâshtan' is 'nagozâr' (informal) or 'nagozârid'.

In which situation is this idiom appropriate? situation_matching A2

Your brother is watching TV while the house is messy and guests are coming in 10 minutes.

✓ Richtig! ✗ Nicht ganz. Richtige Antwort: دست روی دست گذاشتن

He is being idle when action is required.

Which sentence uses the idiom correctly? Choose A2

Which one implies 'doing nothing'?

✓ Richtig! ✗ Nicht ganz. Richtige Antwort: او دست روی دست گذاشت و فقط نگاه کرد.

The idiom implies inaction, so 'just watching' is the logical follow-up.

Fill in the missing part of the dialogue. dialogue_completion B1

سارا: وقت نداریم! علی: می‌دونم، نباید _________.

✓ Richtig! ✗ Nicht ganz. Richtige Antwort: دست روی دست بگذاریم

The context of 'no time' requires the idiom for 'not being idle'.

🎉 Ergebnis: /4

Häufig gestellte Fragen

3 Fragen

It can be. If you say it to a superior, it's very rude. If you say it to a friend who is procrastinating, it's helpful advice.

Yes! 'Man dast ruy-e dast gozâshtam' (I did nothing/I wasted time) is a common way to admit a mistake.

The opposite is 'Dast be kâr shodan' (To get to work) or 'Astin bâlâ zadan' (To roll up sleeves).

Verwandte Redewendungen

🔄

بیکار نشستن

synonym

To sit idle/jobless.

🔗

وقت‌کشی کردن

similar

To kill time.

🔗

آستین بالا زدن

contrast

To roll up one's sleeves.

War das hilfreich?
Noch keine Kommentare. Sei der Erste, der seine Gedanken teilt!