తినేవి తిప్పకాయలు, వెళ్ళగ్రక్కేవి వెలగకాయలు

tinevi tippakayalu, vellagrakkevi velagakayalu

Translation

The ones eaten are small bitter fruits, but the ones vomited out are large wood apples.

Meaning

This proverb is used to describe a situation where someone puts in very little effort or investment but expects or claims to have achieved massive results. It highlights the exaggeration of outcomes or the irony of someone who consumes something of low value but boasts about producing something of high value.

Related Phrases

Like wood apples in a winnowing tray.

This expression describes a situation where things or people are scattered, unorganized, and constantly rolling or moving about without stability. It is often used to refer to a lack of unity or a group where members are not cooperating and are heading in different directions.

Like a ghee-ridge gourd

This expression is used to describe something that is empty, deceptive, or lacks the quality its name suggests. Just as a ghee-ridge gourd (Nethi Beerakaya) contains no actual ghee, this phrase refers to people, objects, or promises that sound valuable but are practically useless or hollow.

While bargaining for tamarinds, asking why they are crooked.

This proverb is used to describe someone who finds fault in the natural or inherent characteristics of an object or situation just to get a lower price or to criticize for the sake of it. Since tamarinds are naturally crooked, complaining about their shape while trying to buy them is illogical and hypocritical.

The lady who had never seen tamarinds asked if they were sickles upon seeing them.

This proverb describes someone who is completely ignorant of common, everyday things but tries to act sophisticated or superior. It is used to mock people who lack practical knowledge or those who make ridiculous assumptions about simple matters due to their lack of exposure.

He gives himself the airs of a great man, but begs for alms, and is angry if he gets none.

This proverb is used to describe a person who puts on grand airs or acts superior while actually depending on others' charity, and further exhibits entitlement by getting angry when their demands are not met. It highlights the irony of having a big ego despite being in a position of dependency.

A wood apple is very small in an elephant's throat. A very easy matter.

This proverb is used to describe a situation where a resource or quantity is completely inadequate for someone's huge appetite or vast requirements. Just as a small wood apple is insignificantly small for a giant elephant, it refers to something being 'like a drop in the ocean' or vanishing instantly without satisfying the need.

What came with him are coriander seeds; she who refused to come is a courtesan.

This proverb is used to describe a situation where someone experiences a loss or a failed expectation but tries to hide their disappointment or pride by making excuses or belittling the value of what they lost. It highlights the tendency to rationalize a failure by claiming that what was obtained is sufficient or that what was lost wasn't worth having anyway.

When a woman who sells tamarind gets prosperity, she asks what those crooked fruits are.

This proverb is used to describe a person who, upon achieving sudden wealth or a higher status, pretends to be unfamiliar with their humble origins or the very things that once formed their livelihood. It highlights hypocrisy, false pride, and the tendency to look down upon one's past.

Like an unripe wood apple sticking in one's throat. Distress caused by continual worrying.

This expression is used to describe a very uncomfortable, awkward, or distressing situation that one can neither swallow nor spit out. It refers to a state of being stuck in a dilemma or a painful predicament where no immediate solution is visible.

Wearing saffron robes, but entering the huts of vagabonds.

This expression describes hypocrisy, specifically regarding moral or spiritual character. It refers to someone who maintains an outward appearance of holiness or high status (symbolized by saffron robes) while secretly engaging in low, immoral, or contradictory activities (symbolized by entering huts of ill-repute). It is used to call out double standards or fake piety.