Руки потрудятся - и зубам будет работа.

English translation: Get your hands to work so your teeth will have something to do.

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)
Russian term or phrase:Руки потрудятся - и зубам будет работа.
English translation:Get your hands to work so your teeth will have something to do.
Entered by: Dorene Cornwell

05:37 May 21, 2005
Russian to English translations [PRO]
Art/Literary - Folklore / proverb
Russian term or phrase: Руки потрудятся - и зубам будет работа.
Please don't laugh! Or is it just me who finds it so enterntaining? I would appreciate your help. Thank you!
Larissa Dinsley
United Kingdom
Local time: 11:16
Get your hands to work so your teeth will have something to do.
Explanation:
Get your hands to work so your teeth will have something to do.

Pretty literal but blunt like my mother would say.
Selected response from:

Dorene Cornwell
Local time: 04:16
Grading comment
Thank you so much everybody; all answers has been very helpful and good fun. I have chosen Dorene's answer because it does sounds like the original proverb and is perfect here (thank you Dorene!). My problem is that 30 out of 40 proverbs convey the same meaning: "work hard and you will be rewarded" in different words; so I tried to keep to the original as much as possible.
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
4 +4Get your hands to work so your teeth will have something to do.
Dorene Cornwell
4 +2Idle hands make a man poor; busy hands grow rich.
Alexander Demyanov
3 +2Work for hands gives food for teeth
Anneta Vysotskaya
3 +1he who labors - will have plenty
Andrey Belousov (X)
3Working hands make working teeth
tanyazst
3Have a hand in the work to get your teeth into the food
Andrew Vdovin


Discussion entries: 8





  

Answers


4 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +2
Руки потрудятся - и зубам будет работа.
Work for hands gives food for teeth


Explanation:
:-)

Anneta Vysotskaya
Local time: 00:16
Native speaker of: Native in RussianRussian

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Alexander Delaver
5 hrs
  -> thank you, Alexander!

agree  Tatiana Nero (X)
1 day 6 hrs
  -> thank you, Tatiana!
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6 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +1
Руки потрудятся - и зубам будет работа.
he who labors - will have plenty


Explanation:
Made-up

Andrey Belousov (X)
United States
Local time: 07:16
Native speaker of: Russian

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Alexander Delaver
3 hrs
  -> Thanks!
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10 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +2
Руки потрудятся - и зубам будет работа.
Idle hands make a man poor; busy hands grow rich.


Explanation:
http://www.rci.rutgers.edu/~lcrew/joyanyway/joy84.html

Alexander Demyanov
Local time: 07:16
Native speaker of: Native in RussianRussian

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Larissa Boutrimova: Есть такая пословица "Busy hands make happy hearts". С учетом контекста предлагаю изменить на "Busy hands make happy stomachs" :)
29 mins
  -> Спасибо! И Ваш вариант вполне милый.

agree  Robert Donahue (X)
11 hrs
  -> Thank you!
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12 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
Руки потрудятся - и зубам будет работа.
Working hands make working teeth


Explanation:
:)

tanyazst
Belarus
Local time: 14:16
Native speaker of: Native in RussianRussian
PRO pts in category: 4
Login to enter a peer comment (or grade)

18 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +4
Руки потрудятся - и зубам будет работа.
Get your hands to work so your teeth will have something to do.


Explanation:
Get your hands to work so your teeth will have something to do.

Pretty literal but blunt like my mother would say.

Dorene Cornwell
Local time: 04:16
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 12
Grading comment
Thank you so much everybody; all answers has been very helpful and good fun. I have chosen Dorene's answer because it does sounds like the original proverb and is perfect here (thank you Dorene!). My problem is that 30 out of 40 proverbs convey the same meaning: "work hard and you will be rewarded" in different words; so I tried to keep to the original as much as possible.

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Larissa Boutrimova: nice
2 hrs
  -> Thank you!

agree  Robert Donahue (X)
3 hrs
  -> Thank you.

agree  Seger Bonebakker (X): Comes closest in flavour as well as in meaning IMO
5 hrs
  -> Thank you.

agree  Blithe
19 hrs
  -> Thank you.
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1 day 1 hr   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
Руки потрудятся - и зубам будет работа.
Have a hand in the work to get your teeth into the food


Explanation:
A rather clumsy one:

Have a hand in the work to get your teeth into the food.


Andrew Vdovin
Local time: 18:16
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in RussianRussian
PRO pts in category: 8
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