surt sa räven
Swedish
Alternative forms
- surt sa räven om rönnbären
- surt, sa räven
Etymology
From Aesop's fable The Fox and the Grapes.Literally, "'Sour', said the fox (about the rowan berries)".
Idiom
surt sa räven
- sour grapes
Usage notes
The idiom comes from a Swedish translation of the fable that opted for using rowan berries instead of grapes. Since rowan berries are actually sour, the point of the idiom is somewhat lost in Swedish.