What is the meaning of the saying "They carry water on the offended"? Are you offended? Let's discover the meaning of the saying: they carry water on the offended. They carry the meaning of the saying on the offended.

It is not necessary to study the numerous pages on the Internet devoted to this saying for a long time to be convinced of the amazing variety of its interpretations, sometimes very contradictory. Many people, wondering, enter into an argument, seeking an explanation for the saying "They carry water for the offended."

Why exactly "offended"

Does the meaning of the saying “They carry water on the offended” expresses a hint that the “offended”, that is, people deprived of something, always get the hardest and most thankless work? By the way, in the case of such an understanding, the saying is taken for granted, as a banality. Or is it a kind of warning for these most "offended"? And why is it their destiny to carry water, and not, say, cut firewood or cut down forests?

And how does this correspond to the statement of the classic Explanatory Dictionary of S. I. Ozhegov, that the expression “to carry water on someone” means to abuse his complaisant, kind character, loading him with tedious and not prestigious work?

Proverb or saying

But before you begin to understand the meaning of the saying “They carry water for the offended,” it doesn’t hurt to clarify what it is about: a proverb or a saying?

Even on this point it is not so easy to achieve clarity. But these are different concepts.

To be precise, a proverb is a concise, rhythmically organized folk saying with an instructive meaning. And a proverb is a truncated or underdeveloped proverb, which, as a rule, does not constitute a complete sentence. Example: "In the middle of nowhere."

It is necessary to imagine that any walking expression, be it a proverb or a saying, exists (walks between people) as a kind of living formation. That is, it changes along with them and along with time, which is why it can acquire a new meaning, different from the original one.

Changing the lexicon in 150 years

“They carry water on the offended” - the meaning of the saying, and its lexical composition has changed since it was recorded in 1867 in the “Explanatory Dictionary” by V. I. Dahl “Proverbs and sayings of the Russian people”. “The angry people carry water on a stubborn horse” - this is how it sounded 150 years ago.

How did the “angry” become “offended” and how do they differ from them? It turned out that many of our contemporaries do not feel the difference here and perceive these words as synonyms.

Angry, angry, even angry - this is a person who is out of balance. (Compare: "Angry man does not ride with pots" or even "Angry man does not ride with pots"). Linguistic experts bring the word "angry" closer to the word "heart" - to get angry, to do something in the hearts, that is, rashly, thoughtlessly. And according to Christian ideas, the heart is a place of concentration of anger, one of

Angry or angry

The meaning of the proverb "They carry water on the offended" has another meaning. If you dig deeper into the root base of the “angry” and angry, it turns out that “anger” is related in its origin to the word “fire”. How to put out the fire? It is filled with water.

This is how the ancient and very deep explanation of the saying "They carry water on the offended" is revealed. And in everyday understanding, she expressed a warning, good advice to a person who is quick to anger - to change his behavior, to dampen his ardor. At the same time, the understanding that being a water carrier is a difficult and not the most honorable occupation has not been canceled.

water museum

And the explanation of the proverb “They carry water for the offended” in the exposition in St. Petersburg does not hold water at all. It boils down to a simple illustration of everyday circumstances: rude, impolite water carriers who offend people are punished by forcing them to work for free. One might think that it was the water carriers among all the urban workers who for some reason were particularly intolerant (and where is the written evidence of this?) and the police were forced to specially monitor and punish them.

The “legend” that unscrupulous water carriers replaced high-quality water scooped from the full-flowing and clean Neva with muddy water from the Fontanka or Moyka for the purpose of profit also gives off the same hasty writing, for which they were punished. It would not hurt the authors of such legends to take into account the idea that water was transported not only in St. Petersburg.

Word transformation

But how did the transformation of the angry into the offended happen? The fact is that the word "angry" is in the same synonymous row with the word "touchy". And logically, this is understandable: after all, a person who is unreasonably angry, angry, quick-tempered solely because of a bad character easily becomes touchy for no apparent reason.

And here again we have to talk about the linguistic hearing loss of our contemporaries, about inattention to the semantic nuances of the word form.

"Touchy" is a character trait of a person who is prone to be offended, regardless of whether there is a reason for this. "Offended" - this is the one who was obviously offended, humiliated. And why should this person, who has already suffered, be offended again - to carry water on him?

Not a man, but a horse

The meaning of the saying “They carry water on the offended” is sometimes transferred not to a person, but to a horse. Indeed, you can’t take water to the place on a hot horse, you will splash it along the way. For this work, meek, for the most part, or geldings, that is, “offended,” are suitable. In Russian literature, the phrase "water nag" was often used in the meaning: driven, exhausted by overwork.

Criminal jargon

But closer to the truth are those researchers of modern speech who point to the widespread introduction of the dictionary of the criminal world into the spoken language in recent decades. In the jargon of criminals, a “offended” (or “lowered”) is a term for a homosexual prisoner of the lowest reputation.

The meaning of "They carry water on the offended" here is already approaching the saying "They carry water on fools" or "They carry water on the offended devils."

So, when we say “They carry water for angry people” (and this option has not yet completely fallen into disuse), we want to let someone know about his excessive “angry” - inappropriate pride, ambition. We seem to urge a person to be more modest in his own interests.

But the meaning of the saying “They carry water on the offended” will be different. He simply states that those who are bypassed by fate and the attention of people and who resigned themselves to this, get an unsweetened fate. Neighbors will not hesitate to take advantage of this. That is, it is closer to the interpretation given in the dictionary by S.I. Ozhegov, although the dictionary only cites the saying "carry water."

Try comparing these two options. The latter looks flatter, less interesting in terms of literature.

Modern semantic shades and historical heritage

Many other variants of the proverb can be cited, which are not so common: “they carry water” on “fools”, on “stubborn”, on “kind”, on “gullible”. Unlike the original, there are no negative values, there are also positive characters - “kind”, “trustful”.

It is curious that the expression "to carry water" as part of a proverb has turned into an independent phraseological unit, and it acquires various semantic shades. So, a hard-working, industrious, physically strong person is characterized by his ability to “carry water”. And sometimes this phrase sounds ironic: “Yes, you can carry water on it!”

A proverb (or saying), being a stable phrase, is not something unambiguous, given once and for all. It connects us with the historical origins of our culture, but remains alive and somewhat changeable.

We hear this expression quite often, and sometimes we ourselves repeat it, wanting to express disregard for the feelings of a person who, voluntarily or involuntarily, was insulted. What is the true meaning of the saying "They carry water on the offended"? After analyzing all the known options, we will try to generalize them and find the most acceptable answer.

A call to restrain negative emotions

As you know, anger and despondency are included in the list of seven deadly sins. The one who is often angry and offended harms his own mental health, depletes his spiritual strength, incurs the disgrace of God. Based on this Christian postulate, let's consider what meaning of the saying "They carry water on the offended" could be meant when someone tried to reason with an overly emotional interlocutor.

Firstly, it could sound like advice to moderate your ardor, calm down. After all, it is not for nothing that even now an upset, excited or overexcited person is offered to drink a glass of water.

Secondly, if we imagine that the saying arose among artisans involved in the transportation of various goods, a warning about the loss of profitable orders could be hidden here. Indeed, who would entrust a hot-tempered cab driver with the delivery of fragile dishes or some other valuable cargo? Offended by the whole wide world, an angry and unbalanced comrade, a direct road to water carriers. If he spills some water, it's not a big loss.

And finally, it could be a message calling not to succumb to the provocations of offenders, not to relax, to maintain firmness of spirit. Once you make concessions, allow yourself to be pushed around - they will carry water on you, put a collar around your neck, and there, you see, they will sit on horseback - that is, they will completely subordinate to their will, make you a slave.

Taming of the Recalcitrant Animals

At a time when horses were both a means of transportation, and draft, and arable power, special attention was paid to their character. A docile horse is a true friend and helper, and a stubborn and angry horse was sent to the backyard, used for various chores. It is possible that it is from here that the meaning of the saying “They carry water for the offended” follows. It is known that one of the continuations of the phrase sounds like this: "... and they ride good (that is, good, obedient horses) themselves."

Developing this version, we can assume that the case concerned thoroughbred horses that participated in races and exhibitions. The horses rejected for any reason met with an unenviable fate - they were harnessed to a plow, a plow or adapted to transport various goods.

Why did water crept into the proverb? Most of the work was seasonal in nature: the land was plowed in spring and autumn, firewood could be prepared in advance. But the craft of a water carrier required to be at his post every day, at any time of the year, to endure heat and cold. What is not a way to tame the obstinate character?

"I'll give the horse in good hands"

Adhering to the previous point of view, we can once again try to explain what the meaning of the saying “They carry water on the offended” means in relation to horses. Imagine that the horseman served faithfully to his masters, and when he grew old, he was given into the service of a water carrier. Here the epithet "offended" could mean "hackneyed", "tired".

It is in the Wild West that driven horses are shot, but in our country they are assigned to unskilled labor, where special speed and strength are not needed. Obviously, it was inexpedient and too wasteful to use young healthy horses for such work.

Dishonest St. Petersburg water merchants

In some literary sources, an explanation that is logical at first glance is given, interpreting the meaning of the saying "They carry water on the offended." Allegedly, under Peter I, street vendors who were seen inflating prices or selling industrial water instead of drinking water were forced to pick up shafts and deliver water without the help of draft animals. Exactly the same punishment awaited home-grown merchants who treated their customers impolitely or mistreated their horses.

It is absolutely not clear how this historical fact influenced the meaning of the saying "They carry water for the offended." Why are rude people and swindlers suddenly called offended? Linguists explain that a transformation of concepts could occur: angry - angry - puffed up - offended.

Violent disposition boyars and nobles

Continuing our research, let's go back to the times of Peter the Great. They say that the tsar-transformer did not like very much when someone publicly expressed his anger, flaunted insults. Such unrestrained subjects were supposed to run several times from the nearest reservoir to an empty barrel with a rocker in order to fill the container with icy water and cool their ardor.

The meaning of the saying “They carry water on the offended” in this case becomes more transparent, if, of course, such events really took place, and were not invented by modern jokers.

Variation on the theme of the afterlife

Reflected in some religious and mythological writings, the people still have an idea about the structure of hell and paradise. As you know, sinners are destined to burn forever in hellfire. It is quite possible that various details of this process were thought out. For example, it was assumed that people who endure insults and humiliation in earthly life, if they do not go to heaven, will be thrown into less “hot areas” of purgatory. Someone must prepare firewood for the devil's fire or douse the souls of pardoned sinners with water.

Based on this version, one can also reveal such a rather interesting meaning of the saying "They carry water for the offended." Let's call it vindictive-comforting. The offended person meekly endured humiliation, but wished his offender punishment in the next world: “Remember me when you roast on hot coals. I won't bring you water!

Echoes of Slavic mythology

In the works of Dmitry Konstantinovich Zelenin, a well-known researcher of folklore in the last century, there are arguments that vaguely resemble the previous version. What is the meaning of the saying “They carry water for the offended” according to Zelenin?

According to the beliefs that existed in some Russian provinces, suicides, as well as those who died from drunkenness or drowned due to negligence, acted in the service of evil spirits. And the devils did whatever they wanted with the “offended” - they could harness them to a cart, and force them to carry water, and ride them. In the old days it was believed: if a person died not by his own death, it means that he was offended by life.

Condemnation of cruelty and heartlessness

And let's try to pronounce these words without any subtext, just as a narrative-affirmative sentence: "They carry water for the offended." The meaning of the saying could well be completely different, even the opposite of what we are used to. Somehow I can’t believe that our ancestors could be ironic about the “offended” (read: orphans, wretched, deprived).

It is possible that the derogatory sound of the phrase became such relatively recently. We will try arbitrarily, without claiming to be the ultimate truth, to recreate the full text of the proverb: “For them, nothing is sacred: they carry water for the offended, they ride for the good, they will sell their mother for a penny.”

It is possible that the original message was condemning, describing the actions of evil, unprincipled, cruel people. By “offended” here one should understand not those who constantly blow their lips, but widows, orphans, cripples, and so on.

Look at the faces of the children depicted in Perov's painting Troika. Do you seriously believe that children pulling a heavy barrel of water are punished for being too touchy?

You can also remember that in the old days, the word “resentment” meant not feelings of moral torment, but quite specific physical actions. In the first lines of A. S. Pushkin's fairy tale "About the Golden Cockerel" we read:

“Once upon a time there was a glorious king Dadon.

From his youth he was formidable,

And the neighbors every now and then

Inflicted grievances boldly.

There is a high probability that the “offended” are defeated, oppressed peoples. And with the captives, as you know, they didn’t stand on ceremony.

There are three versions of the origin of this expression.

One of them finds its origin in the nineteenth century. At that time, many used the services of water carriers, who delivered clean drinking water in barrels on carts. Water was sold for an inexpensive, one might say symbolic fee.

However, some water carriers inflated the price, which caused fair indignation among buyers. As a punishment, greedy water carriers were harnessed to a cart instead of a horse, forcing them to carry water themselves.

The second version is also associated with water carriers. It is worth noting that in those days, along with drinking water, technical water was also transported, which was used for household needs, for example, washing something or watering, and was correspondingly cheaper. The barrels in which water was transported were of different colors depending on the quality of the water. Drinking water was carried in whites, and technical water in blue and yellow. So rogue water carriers sometimes passed off technical water as drinking water. When the forgery was revealed, the well-deserved "people's punishment" overtook the "hero" in the form of the punishment described above.

The third version refers to the times of Peter the Great, according to whose decree a person who will publicly show his resentment and anger must be forced to run with a yoke and two buckets filled with ice water until the irritation passes.

In general, resentment is not worth your emotional experiences, because they manifest themselves in you yourself, and not in the one to whom the resentment is directed.

On whom only water is not carried!

They take water to the offended - to be offended, if the situation deserves it, it is necessary. One should not show resentment to others, because, firstly, it is a balm for the soul of the offender, and secondly, the desire to answer, take revenge, somehow react makes the offended figure that does not belong to oneself, dependent, puppet, puppet, object of manipulation

“They carry water” means they use it in their own interests, exploit

« I have repeatedly mentioned ridicule, mockery ... Sometimes, having taken a sip of tea, I spat there was someone poured salt or a half-pound piece of my own sugar was thrown into a tea mug. When washing the deck, which was rubbed with brushes, I was subjected, as it were, to accidental dousing with a hose and constant squabbling remarks that I was slowly sweeping the deck or weakly rubbing it with a brush ... I was serious, touchy not only to abuse or hostility, but also to jokes, of course, rough, which delighted my tormentors"(A. Green" Autobiographical story ")

Synonyms of the saying "they carry water to the offended"

• Angry with pots don't ride
• A cruel word raises wrath
• Anger is a bad advisor
• Evil resentment is worse than wormwood
• Master of your anger is master of everything
• I don't quarrel with anyone and I'm not afraid of anyone
• Resin is not water, abuse is not hello
• Hold your tongue and squeeze your heart in your fist

The use of phraseology in literature

— « Look, she hasn't even lost her appetite - she eats for two ... - They carry water for angry people. Grandma did not hear these words"(M. Zoshchenko" Lelya and Minka ")
— « Having hit the bottom, he put a damask. “They carry water on fools,” he said. Boldly sat down"(A. N. Tolstoy" Peter the Great ")
— « And don't be angry. They say they bring water to angry people ... Let's go"(Nikolai Dubov" Boy by the Sea ")
— « How many times to say, Tumanov, foremen serve in the police, and they carry water on the offended"(Oleg Seledtsov" Study ")
— « Well, come on, come on, take offense! They carry water on the offended! Come on, come on!"(Nikolai Kolyada" Slingshot ")

0 You need to understand that no one really likes touchy and suspicious citizens. After all, if you are depressed because of a simple joke addressed to you, then what kind of friend are you then. As a result, several proverbs were born on this occasion, and we will analyze one of the most popular of them, this They carry water on the offended, you will learn the meaning a little lower .. You ask why? Yes, because we expect a lot of informative information for all tastes and preferences.
However, before you continue, I would like to advise you some interesting news on the topic of phraseological units. For example, what does it mean to splurge; what does it mean to get away with your head; the meaning of the expression Hurry to do good; meaning If you cannot change the situation, change your attitude towards it, etc.
So let's continue what does it mean They carry water on the offended? There are several versions of the origin of this expression, we will touch on only the most popular of them.

They carry water on the offended- means that a person should be able to forgive, and if he constantly walks offended and downcast, then it looks not only funny, but also stupid

First version. In the 19th century, not all citizens had running water, and therefore, at that time, water carriers were actively used to deliver water to its destination. Therefore, it was often possible to see carts with a huge wooden barrel on the streets of cities, and a sad horse harnessed to them. This refreshing nectar of the gods could be purchased for a small amount.

True, having discovered the absence of competitors, some especially stubborn entrepreneurs decided to greatly inflate the price of their products. The buyers were furious, and harnessed this shameless man instead of a filly, forcing him to drag this heavy cart all day in the heat.

Second version. It turns out that water is different to water, and some merchants delivered not very clean water, the intake of which was made in a river or pond. It was usually used for watering or washing the premises. These unfortunate entrepreneurs were obliged to pour water of different quality into barrels with different colors. For spring and well water, the barrel had to be white, and for technical, yellow or blue. However, cunning merchants, in order to earn more, deceived buyers by pouring water collected from reservoirs into white barrels. When the forgery was discovered, the retribution followed exactly the same as described above.

Third version. In the time of Peter the Great, a person who was strongly indignant or offended by something was forced to take a yoke, put buckets of cold water on it, and run until the anger passed.

Be that as it may, no offense will bring you relief, all your negative emotions will accumulate inside you, disrupting the work of the heart and other organs, which will eventually lead to various diseases.

By reading this short article, you have learned They carry water on the offended, meaning