Idioms used to indicate that something is very easy to do.
| Language | Idiom |
|---|---|
| Belarusian | Як босаму разуцца (Jak bosamu razucca) simpler than a stewed turnip |
| Breton | n'eo ket gwall start - it's not very difficult |
| Bulgarian | Фасулска работа! Лесна работа! (Fasulska rabota!) - A bean job! Лесна работа! (Lesna rabota!) - An easy job! Като детска игра! (Kato detska igra!) - As a child's game! |
| Chinese (Mandarin) | 易如反掌 (yì rú fǎnzhǎng) - as easy as turning your hand over |
| Croatian | Mačji kašalj' a cat's cough Prosto k'o pekmez - simple as jam |
| Czech | jednoduché jako facka - as simple as a slap in the face snadné jak facka - as easy as a slap snadná věc, zívačka, brnkačka - easy thing, yawn, strum |
| Danish | Så nemt som at klø sig i nakken - as easy as scratching one's neck |
| Dutch | Kinderspel - Child's play Een kind kan de was doen - A child can do the laundry Het is een fluitje van een cent - It's a one-cent whistle Appeltje eitje - Piece of cake Een peulschilletje - A little pod Een koud kunstje - A cool trick Ik doe dat met mijn ogen dicht - I do that with my eyes closed Ik doe dat met twee handen op mijn rug - I do that with two hands behind my back Ik doe dat met twee vingers in mijn neus - I do that with two fingers in my nose |
| English | It's as easy as (apple) pie It's as easy as ABC It's as easy as 123 It's as easy as falling / rolling off a log It's as easy as shooting fish in a barrel It's as easy as taking candy from a baby It's as easy as breathing It's as easy as winking It's as easy as shelling peas It's a piece of cake It's a piece of piss It's a breeze It's a cinch It's a snap It's a walk / stroll in the park It's child's play It's like riding a bicycle It's no sweat It's not rocket science It's not brain surgery I could do it with my eyes shut I can do it in my sleep |
| French | comme un jeu d'enfant - like a child's game (faire qch) les doigts dans le nez - (as easy as sticking your) fingers in the nose ce n'est pas sorcier - it's not sorcery c'est facile comme bonjour - it's easy like hello |
| German | kinderleicht / ein Kinderspiel - child's play |
| Greek | Εἶναι παιχνιδάκι (Íne pehnidáki) - It's a toy |
| Hebrew | (Be'eynaaim kshurot) בעיניים
קשורות with eyes tied - blindfolded, as in "I can do it blindfolded" easy peasy - (Bekalley kalloot) בקלי קלות |
| Hungarian | gyerekjáték child's play pihekönnyű - featherlight |
| Indonesian | semudah membalikkan telapak tangan - as easy as turning your palm around |
| Irish (Gaelic) | chomh héasca lena bhfaca tú riamh - as easy as you've never seen |
| Italian | facile come bere un bicchiere d'acqua as easy as drinking a glass of water è un gioco da ragazzi - it's a kid's game |
| Japanese | 朝めし前 (asameshi mae) before breakfast - something that's so easy, you could finish it before breakfast. |
| Korean | 누워서 떡먹기 (nuwoseo tdeokmeokki) -
lying on one's back and eating rice cakes 식은죽 먹기 (sigeunjuk meokki) - eating cool rice gruel |
| Latvian | Viegli kā atņemt bērnam konfekti - as easy as taking a candy from a child Bērnu spēlīte - kids game Kā divi reiz divi - like two times two |
| Lithuanian | Paprasta kaip du kart du - it's as easy as two times two |
| Persian (Farsi) | easy to drink - (be asaniye ab khurdan) به آسانی آب خوردن |
| Polish | To jest jak dwa razy dwa - It's like two times two Małe piwo - Small beer Bułka z masłem - Bread and butter |
| Portuguese | É canja - it's chicken soup |
| Romanian | floare la ureche - flower at your ear |
| Russian | Ёжику понятно
(Ëžiku ponjatno) - A hedgehog understands Проще пареной репы (Prošče parenoj repy) - Easier than a steamed turnip Это как дважды два (Eto kak dvaždy dva) - It's as easy as two times two Проще простого (Prošče prostogo) - Simpler than simple |
| Scottish Gaelic | bheir e fead oirre - he whispers to her cho sìmplidh sin - as simple as that |
| Slovenian | mala malica - small meal |
| Spanish | tan fácil como 1-2-3 - as easy as 123 |
| Swedish | Lätt som en plätt - as easy as a plate |
| Turkish | Tereyağından kıl çeker gibi - as it pulls the hair from butter Çocuk oyuncağı - child's play Çantada keklik - partridge in the bag |
| Welsh | mor hawddd â thynnu llaw dros wyneb - as easy as pulling a hand across the face cyn hawsed â dim - as easy as anything mor hawdd ag anadlu - as easy as breathing |
Here's a little song I wrote based on some of these idioms:
Books of idioms, proverbs and sayings in many languages
People who have contributed to this section
If you would like to make any corrections or additions to this page, or if you can provide recordings, please contact me.
It's all Greek to me | It's raining cats and dogs | As easy as falling off a log | A sandwich short of a picnic | It's small world | When pigs fly | Out of sight, out of mind | Crystal-clear | Penny Pinching | Practice makes perfect | The grass is always greener | As Snug as a Bug in a Rug
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