The 34 Very Best German Sayings…EVER!
20. in den Sand setzen
If you are putting something in the sand, you are literally screwing something up at least in German. So whenever that happens, you could use the German saying “in den Sand setzen” to express just that.
Now, what does this all have to do with sand? Why would you mess something up by putting something in the sand? While it is pretty easy to track the (possible) origins of some German sayings, there does not seem to be a lot of consensus about the origins of “in den Sand setzen.”
However, if you are just trying to think about what actually happens when you put something in the sand, then a possible explanation might just be that an object that has been put in the sand is simply stuck there and can, therefore, no longer be moved.
This standstill could then be metaphorically linked to what happens when you mess something up. Well, nothing happens (anymore), hence everything comes to a standstill.
Example:
Ben kann einfach nicht mit Geld umgehen. Der hat sich letztes Jahr wieder für ne Million Euro Aktien gekauft und hat wieder mal alles in den Sand gesetzt!
Translation:
Ben simply cannot handle money. Last year, he bought himself a million euros worth of shares and once again ruined everything!
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