కథకు కాళ్ళు, ముంతకు చెవులు కల్పించినట్లు

kathaku kallu, muntaku chevulu kalpinchinatlu

Translation

Like giving legs to a story and ears to a pot.

Meaning

This expression describes the act of exaggerating a story or fabricating unnecessary details to make a simple event sound more dramatic or believable. It is used when someone adds 'spices' or false information to a basic fact, making the narrative unrealistic or distorted.

Related Phrases

Not a small pot to wash feet, but a polished vessel for palm wine.

This proverb describes a person who lacks basic necessities but spends lavishly on vices or luxuries. It is used to criticize those who do not prioritize their essential needs and instead waste resources on unproductive habits.

Like making a monkey drink toddy (palm wine)

This expression is used to describe a situation where a naturally mischievous or restless person becomes even more uncontrollable, chaotic, or hyperactive due to external factors. It is used when someone's existing negative traits are amplified by bad influence or circumstances.

When an ox grazes the field, cutting off the ears of a donkey.

This proverb describes a situation where one person commits a mistake or crime, but an innocent person is punished for it. It highlights unfairness and the misdirection of justice.

Like mixing filth in sandalwood paste

This expression is used to describe a situation where something pure, auspicious, or beautiful is ruined by the addition of something foul, inferior, or inappropriate. It is often used when a great piece of work or a positive atmosphere is spoiled by a single bad element or a rude remark.

The goldsmith pierced my ears too

This expression is used sarcastically to indicate that the speaker is not a fool and cannot be easily deceived. By saying 'the same goldsmith pierced my ears too', the speaker implies they have as much experience, wisdom, or sharpness as the person trying to trick them.

The man who tears [the ornaments out of] his mother's ears, will not care a rush for the ears of his great-grand- mother.

This proverb is used to describe a person who is so hardened or wicked that they have already committed a grave sin or major crime, making a smaller offense seem insignificant to them. It implies that once someone has crossed a major moral boundary (like harming their own mother), they will not hesitate to commit further, even smaller, wrongs against others.

To a person who has torn off his own mother's ears, his aunt's ears are like ridge gourd flowers.

This proverb describes a person who is so cruel or heartless that they have harmed their own closest kin. For such a person, harming others (like an aunt or distant relative) is a trivial matter. It is used to warn others about a person's character; if someone doesn't spare their own family, they certainly won't spare you.

The spinning wheel has two ears, and I have two ears.

This proverb is used to describe a situation where someone claims equality with another person or object based on a very superficial or irrelevant similarity, while ignoring the vast difference in status, function, or utility. It highlights a false or absurd comparison.

Like teaching a grandfather how to cough.

This proverb is used to describe a situation where someone tries to give advice or teach a skill to a person who is already far more experienced or an expert in that specific area. It highlights the irony or absurdity of a novice attempting to educate a master.

No legs to the tale, no ears to the pot. Said of a story that one cannot make head or tail of. A story without a head. (Greek.)

This proverb is used to describe a story, explanation, or excuse that lacks logic, consistency, or a proper foundation. It refers to something that is nonsensical or a 'cock and bull story' where the details don't add up or have no basis in reality.