Idioms About Time and Getting Older
Non-literal Swedish for age, memory and years going by.
Birthday-speech Swedish: the idioms of time and age, arranged as a life — the prime years, time flying, the memory going (ur minnet, på tungan), the two ways to face a birthday (fast i sina rutiner or följa med sin tid), the time-management idioms every card needs — and the toast-ready closers: så gammal som man känner sig, aldrig för sent att börja.
- 1
vara i sina bästa år
to be in your prime
Tip: lit. 'be in one's best years'
- 2
livets bästa år
the best years of your life
Tip: lit. 'life's best years'
- 3
ha hela livet framför sig
to have your whole life ahead of you
Tip: lit. the same
- 4
livet börjar vid fyrtio
life begins at forty
Tip: lit. the same
- 5
ha passerat zenit
to be over the hill
Tip: lit. 'have passed the zenith'
- 6
vara urgammal
to be as old as the hills
Tip: lit. 'be ancient-old'
- 7
vara ung i sinnet
to be young at heart
Tip: lit. 'be young in the mind'
- 8
vara så gammal som man känner sig
to be as old as you feel
Tip: lit. the same
- 9
tiden flyger iväg
time flies
Tip: lit. 'the time flies away'
- 10
det känns som igår
it feels like yesterday
Tip: lit. the same
- 11
åren hinner ifatt en
the years catch up with you
Tip: lit. 'the years catch up with one'
- 12
känna det på morgnarna
to feel it in the mornings
Tip: lit. the same
- 13
känna av åren
to feel the years
Tip: lit. 'feel off the years'
- 14
se yngre ut än man är
to look younger than your age
Tip: lit. 'look younger than one is'
- 15
åldras med värdighet
to grow old gracefully
Tip: lit. 'age with dignity'
- 16
ett år i taget
one year at a time
Tip: lit. the same
- 17
ha ett minne som ett såll
to have a memory like a sieve
Tip: lit. 'have a memory like a sieve'
- 18
det gick mig ur minnet
it slipped my mind
Tip: lit. 'it went out of my memory'
- 19
ligga på tungan
to be on the tip of your tongue
Tip: lit. 'lie on the tongue'
- 20
vrida tillbaka klockan
to turn back the clock
Tip: lit. the same
- 21
ta igen förlorad tid
to make up for lost time
Tip: lit. the same
- 22
bättre sent än aldrig
better late than never
Tip: lit. the same
- 23
leva i nuet
to live in the moment
Tip: lit. 'live in the now'
- 24
vara ett barn av sin tid
to be a child of your time
Tip: lit. the same
- 25
vara före sin tid
to be ahead of your time
Tip: lit. the same
- 26
vara efter sin tid
to be behind the times
Tip: lit. the same
- 27
följa med sin tid
to move with the times
Tip: lit. 'follow along with one's time'
- 28
ha sett det förut
to have seen it all before
Tip: lit. 'have seen it before'
- 29
ha varit med förr
to have been around the block
Tip: lit. 'have been along before'
- 30
kunna det utan och innan
to know the ropes by now
Tip: lit. 'know it outside and inside'
- 31
gammal vana är svår att bryta
you can't teach an old dog new tricks
Tip: lit. 'an old habit is hard to break'
- 32
vara fast i sina rutiner
to be set in your ways
Tip: lit. 'be stuck in one's routines'
- 33
vara hugget i sten
to be set in stone
Tip: lit. 'be carved in stone'
- 34
höra till det förflutna
to be a thing of the past
Tip: lit. 'belong to the past'
- 35
vara sen i starten
to be a late bloomer
Tip: lit. 'be late in the start'
- 36
vara i sitt esse
to be in your element
Tip: lit. 'be in one's esse'
- 37
åldern har sin rätt
age before beauty
Tip: lit. 'age has its right'
- 38
ha tid över
to have time on your hands
Tip: lit. 'have time left over'
- 39
vara pressad på tid
to be pushed for time
Tip: lit. the same
- 40
köpa sig tid
to buy time
Tip: lit. the same
- 41
slösa bort tid
to waste time
Tip: lit. 'waste away time'
- 42
fördriva tiden
to kill time
Tip: lit. 'drive away the time'
- 43
tid är pengar
time is money
Tip: lit. the same
- 44
när tiden är mogen
in the fullness of time
Tip: lit. 'when the time is ripe'
- 45
ha sina bästa år framför sig
to have your best years ahead
Tip: lit. the same
- 46
aldrig för sent att börja
never too late to start
Tip: lit. the same