The 34 Very Best German Sayings…EVER!
17. die Katze im Sack kaufen
But what if I told you that this is just the German way of saying “to buy a pig in a poke?” Well, that’s exactly what it is. The story behind the German saying “die Katze im Sack kaufen” is actually the same as ‘to buy a pig in a poke.’
So what is that story, then? The origin of the expression “die Katze im Sack kaufen” dates back to around the 16th century when merchants would sell pigs, rabbits and other valuable animals in pokes.
When an unsuspecting buyer got his poke home and was about to open it, he would sometimes see another animal like a goose or duck or a cat come out of the poke instead. The poor buyer obviously got CHEATED.
And this is where the piece of advice, ‘don’t buy anything until you have seen it,’ the actual semantic meaning of “die Katze aus dem Sack lassen,” came into being.
Funnily enough, in English, in the saying ‘to buy a pig in a poke,’ the pig rather than the cat is in the center of attention.
But the story behind it, as we know now, is basically the same.
Example:
Daniel: Hey alter, du hast doch neulich diese Playstation Second-Hand übers Internet gekauft. Funktioniert die überhaupt?
Marc: Nein. Der Typ hat mir doch tatsächlich eine kaputte Playstation geschickt. Und in der Beschreibung stand “nigelnagelneu”. Was für eine Frechheit!
Daniel: Ich hab dir doch gesagt, du sollst nicht die Katze im Sack kaufen!
Translation:
Daniel: Hey dude, you recently bought this Playstation second-hand over the internet, right? Does it work at all?
Marc: No. The guy actually sent me a broken Playstation. And the description said ‘brand new.’
Daniel: Man, Daniel! I told you not to buy a pig in a poke!
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