Walls have ears

[El escoces]

Further to the interesting thread from earlier today on the different words used in each language (except perhaps English) for different types of wall, I have a further question.

In English, we might say, "The walls have ears" (meaning Be careful, you never know who might be eavesdropping). You might tap the side of your nose, in a knowing manner, while saying it (such action would be stereotypically melodramatic).

Is there an equivalent idiom in other languages, or would one simply have to be more literal?

El escocés

 

[Angel.Aura]

In Italian we use the same expression (even if we don't tap the side of our nose )
"The walls have ears" = (Anche) I muri hanno orecchie

 

[Outsider]

In Portuguese, too: "As paredes têm ouvidos".

 

[El escoces]

Interesting, many thanks. Suspicious (or cautious) bunch, we Europeans.

 

[Trisia]

Romanians are pretty "cautious" as well:

Walls have ears = Pereţii au urechi.

 

[Christo Tamarin]

English: Walls have ears (as well).
Bulgarian: (И) Стените имат уши.
Russian: И у стен есть уши.
Greek: (Kαί) οι τοίχοι έχουν αυτιά.

 

[Tamar]

In Hebrew: אוזניים לכותל
[ozna'im la kotel]

 

[Miguel Antonio]

In Spain we say: las paredes tienen oídos

 

[Frank06]

Hi,

In Dutch: de muren hebben oren.

Groetjes,

Frank

 

[Kangy]

In Spain we say: las paredes tienen oídos

Do you really?
Over here we say "Las paredes escuchan" (walls hear)

 

[Topsie]

French: Les murs ont des oreilles !

 

[majlo]

In Polish we have the exact counterpart:
"Ściany mają uszy".

 

[Dr. Quizá]

Do you really?
Over here we say "Las paredes escuchan" (walls hear)

Here we say "las paredes oyen".

On the other hand, there's ironically "sordo como una tapia" ("deaf as a wall").

 

[PABLO DE SOTO]

Here we say "las paredes oyen".

On the other hand, there's ironically "sordo como una tapia" ("deaf as a wall").

Yo también estoy de acuerdo en que las paredes más que escuchar o tener oídos, oyen.
Aunque donde yo vivo es habitual la confusión entre escuchar y oír, en esta frase hecha, las paredes oyen

 

[בעל-חלומות]

In Hebrew: אוזניים לכותל

Which may be the source for this expression as it is from a book that was written in the sixth century (ויקרא רבה).

 

[elroy]

Arabic: للحيطان آذان (lil-HiiTaani aadhaanun)

 

[kusurija]

In Czech:
I stěny mají uši. ((also) walls have ears)

In Lithuanian:
Ir sienos girdi ((also) walls hears)
or ir sienos turi ausis ((also) walls have ears)

 

[valdo]

In Latvian:

Sienām ir ausis

 

[Flaminius]

In Japanese:

"Walls have ears" is a set phrase but it is actually a part of a well-known proverb:
壁に耳あり、障子に目あり。
Kabe-ni mimi ari, shōji-ni me ari.

Walls have ears, screen sliding doors have eyes.

 

[Outsider]

How curious that the saying should also exist that far away! I wonder if European languages got the expression from Japanese...

 

[Nizo]

In Esperanto, la muro havas orelojn (the wall has ears). This expression is documented from the earliest days of Esperanto.

 

[blue_jewel]

In Tagalog:

It's really an idiom, there's no literal meaning to us but we rather use

May pakpak ang balita or it's like the 'news have wings' in English which obviously means that news can easily or reach you faster as to have wings

and for 'walls have ears" literally it's 'may tenga ang dingding'.

 

[avok]

In Turkish, we have "Yerin kulağı vardır." which means "the ground has ears" (lit. an ear)

 

[kanya22]

En Mexico tambien decimos "las paredes oyen" o "hasta las paredes oyen"

 

[xisanibo]

In Chinese we have the idiom "隔墙有耳" , which means "the walls have ears" or literally "there is a ear/are ears on the other side of the wall ". So intereting we have the same expression
The origin of this Chinese idiom is the book "管子" (Guanzi) written in the the Spring and Autumn and the Warring States Period in Chinese history(770-221BC) . So does the Japanese saying:

牆（かき）に耳（みみ）あり (the walls have ears)

• 〔出典〕 『管子』君臣下 (Origin): Guanzi, Article: Junchenxia（literally means Lords and Ministers II）

 

[Encolpius]

very interesting it exists in many languages

Hungarian: A falnak is füle van. (even the wall has ears)

 

[piuet]

In Catalan we say Hi ha roba estesa, literally There are clothes hanging (to dry). The meaning is the same as Walls have ears, though.

 

[sakvaka]

Finnish: Seinilläkin on korvat. (even the walls have ears)

 

[mataripis]

I say it in Tagalog: Dinig man sa lupa/dingding.

 

[darush]

in Persian: wall has mouse and mouse has ear[s].

 

[djara]

In Tunisian Arabic: en-nhar bi-3weenaatu, w illeel bi-wdhiinaatu The day with its eyes (has eyes) and the night with its ears (has ears).

 

[darush]

In Tunisian Arabic: en-nhar bi-3weenaatu, w illeel bi-wdhiinaatu The day with its eyes (has eyes) and the night with its ears (has ears).

too nice! please write it down in Arabic script.

 

[ancalimon]

In Turkish apart from "yerin kulağı var : the ground has an ear" we also use "şeytan kulağına kurşun" meaning "a bullet the the ear of the devil" or maybe "lead (the chemical substance) to the ear of the devil" when we don't want something to happen we just said or heard.

 

[djara]

too nice! please write it down in Arabic script.

النهار بعويناتو والليل بوذيناتو
In Modern Standard Arabic it would be النهار بعينيه والليل باذنيه

 

[Perseas]

I have heard the expression "ears have walls" (I mean its translation in Greek) which in my view means the situation when someone wouldn't listen or accept other people's opinions. I don't think it has become a set phrase in Greek, but it's rather a word play with the known phrase "walls have ears". Does this phrase mean something in your language or not?

 

[darush]

... the situation when someone wouldn't listen or accept other people's opinions... Does this phrase mean something in your language or not?

yes, in Persian when we are talking to a person and we never see a reaction, then we say: (it seems) I'm talking to [a] wall.

 

[Fericire]

There is a Portuguese Proverb: «Montes vêem, paredes ouvem» (lit. Hills/Mountains/etc can see, walls can hear).

 

[jana.bo99]

Slovenian: Stene imajo ušesa

Croatian: Zidovi imajo uši

It means, we have to be careful what we are talking about, even in some empty room or house.

 

[OneStroke]

This looks interesting: http://everything2.com/title/The+Walls+have+Ears

 

[seitt]

Here's the Welsh equivalent: Mae llygaid gan y perthi a chlustiau gan y cloddiau.
Literally: “There are eyes with the hedges and ears with the embankments.”
I.e. “Hedges have eyes and embankments have ears.”

 

[mataripis]

Tagalog: May pakinig kahit ang dingding./May tenga ang dingding.

 

[ilocas2]

in Croatian also:

šuma ima uši, polje ima oči - forest has ears, field has eyes

 

[Dymn]

In Catalan we also say les parets tenen orelles, (literal translation) among other variations.

 

[merquiades]

In Spain to express this idea of being careful because there may well be eavesdropping I've heard much more frequently the expression: Hay moros en la costa. (There are moors on the coast).

 

[Sardokan1.0]

In Sardinian the phrase can be translated using 3 different verbs :

Sos muros han orìjas = The walls have ears
Sos muros tenen orìjas = The walls keep ears
Sos muros jùghen orìjas = The walls bring ears

 

[matiassko]

In Slovakia we have a similar phase as in English, we use an expression: Aj steny majú uši. It is exactly the same.

 

[bibax]

in Croatian also:

šuma ima uši, polje ima oči - forest has ears, field has eyes

< Campus habet oculos, silva aures.

 

[Marcio_Osorio]

There is a Portuguese Proverb: «Montes vêem, paredes ouvem» (lit. Hills/Mountains/etc can see, walls can hear).

To native speakers of (any variety of) English, fields have eyes and woods have ears.

In the last 2009 language shake-up, Portuguese vêem lost its circumflex accent. Now speakers of any variety of Portuguese write, "veem."

 

[ilocas2]

Croatian: Zidovi imaju uši

I don't want to correct native speakers, but this was an obvious thinko, so I correct it.

 

[Penyafort]

In Spanish, apart from the already mentioned above (Las paredes oyen 'Walls hear' and Hay moros en la costa 'There are Moors off the coast'), an equivalent to the Catalan Hi ha roba estesa also exists: Hay ropa tendida 'There are clothes hanging up (on the line)'.

The origin of this is likely to be from the fact that, when you wanted to talk to someone about something important, there was always, by "chance", a nosy neighbour hanging up clothes at that very moment, with very attentive ears. So people would say, Careful, there are clothes hanging up...