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butlh

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butlh
[ butā€‹É¬ ]
Noun

English: dirt under fingernails; symbolic equivalent of gall, an admirable trait to have

German: Nageldreck

Japanese: ēˆŖć®åž¢ć¤ć‚ć®ć‚ć‹, ē„”ä½œę³•ć®č±”å¾“ć¶ć•ć»ć†ć®ć—ć‚‡ć†ć”ć‚‡ć†

Source: TKD (81 KE, 129 EK)

KLCP Level: 2

See Also:
Notes

TKW p. 142. butlh ghajbogh nuv'e' yIHo' 'Admire the person with dit under hisfingernails.' "ā€¦ In this expression it means something like 'effrontery, impudence, brazenness.'"

Usage for butlh
butlh
butlh (n) dirt under fingernails; symbolic equivalent of gall, an admirable trait to have
DaHutlh.
Da- (vp) you-him/her/it/them
Hutlh (v) lack, be without, to not have

You lack dirt under your fingernails.

Type: proverb - Source: TKW
butlh
butlh (n) dirt under fingernails; symbolic equivalent of gall, an admirable trait to have
ghajbogh
ghaj (v) have, possess
-bogh (vs9) which
nuv'e'
nuv (n) person (humanoid)
-'e' (ns5) topic
yIHo'.
yI- (vp) you, you-him/her/it (imperative)
Ho' (v) admire

Admire the person with dirt under his fingernails.

Type: proverb - Source: TKW
latlh De'/Additional Information
The Klingon word "{butlh}" ("dirt under fingernails") can be taken literally, but in this expression it means something like "effrontery, impudence, brazenness." The origin of this usage of the term is obscure, but it may be connected to the notion that one not having "{butlh}" is leading a soft, com- fortable, not very Klingonlike life. To say to someone "{butlh DaHutlh.}" ("You lack dirt under your fingernails") is highly insulting. It means that the person is lacking in a certain kind of Klingon spirit. In Federation Standard, an approximate equivalent is gall. Indeed, Worf said to Kevin Uxbridge, "Your attempt to hold the away team at bay with a nonfunctioning weapon was an act of unmitigated gall... I admire gall." Had Worf said that Uxbridge's action was "an act of unmitigated dirt under the fingernails," he would have been misunderstood, at the very least. The Klingon way to say, "you lack gall" is "{HuH DaHutlh.}" This is literally "You lack bile," and a Klingon would probably only understand it biologically.
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Klingon
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