Thread: One word - плечу

I got the following from a song by Viagra.

Тебе и небо по плечу
You and heaven . . .

What does "по плечу" mean?

Thanks

"по плечу (кому-либо)" (up to smb's shoulder) is an idiom and it means something like "it's reachable" or "it's possible".

Originally Posted by kwatts59

Тебе и небо по плечу
You and heaven . . .

The heaven (maybe "sky") is reachable for you.

I remember a cartoon where a boastful frog sang:
А мне любое море по колено!
А мне любое дело по плечу!

AFAIK it was "любые горы по плечу"

Originally Posted by Friendy

AFAIK it was "любые горы по плечу"

любые горы по плечo. Not higher than a sholder.

Milanya, Haven't we met somewhere else ???

I just got three million hits on любые горы по плечo vs. a couple hundred on плечу, so it's obvious that по plus accusative is correcter!!

Некоторые примеры переводов фраз, в которых употребляется выражение "по плечу":
всякому по плечу - anybody will do
такая работа мне не по плечу - I can't manage this work
это по плечу только мужчине - it is a man-sized job

I guess it's sort of like the english phrase "Reach for the sky" Meaning the same thing like "ts possible, or, try your heardest u can do whatever you want".

There is one more similar idiom:
море по колено
Which means basically the same but with some negative shade

There's also a saying "пьяному море по колено".

Originally Posted by chaika

Milanya, Haven't we met somewhere else ???

I just got three million hits on любые горы по плечo vs. a couple hundred on плечу, so it's obvious that по plus accusative is correcter!!

Indeed, we have.

любые горы по плечo and по плечу are both correct, but have different meanings.
Former means not higher than a sholder (piece of cake), latter, as it was mentioned previously, means it is doable, but not necessarily easy.
(мне это по плечу - I can handle this)

In this case it is по плечo, just because I saw this cartoon and remember this part. This frog bragged that he was so big and strong that seas were no deeper than up to his knees and mountains were no higher than his sholder.

BTW море по колено means that the person in question is reckless, foolhardy and does not care.
пьяному море по колено means that drunk person is reckless.

Originally Posted by Milanya

...BTW море по колено means that the person in question is reckless, foolhardy and does not care.
пьяному море по колено means that drunk person is reckless.

Not necessarily only reckless or foolhardy.

It can also mean something like "brave [to recklessness]":

http://www.mk.ru/numbers/1264/article38398.htm

http://dob.1september.ru/2001/09/11.htm - ничто не страшно

[quote="DenisM"]

Not necessarily only reckless or foolhardy.

It can also mean something like "brave [to recklessness]":


«Море по колено» – так говорят о человеке безрассудно смелом, бесстрашном, –(from one of the sites that you quoted). Here безрассудно is a key word.
Really brave people always calculate the risk involved.

Ок, согласен, не буду спорить

Originally Posted by Friendy

There's also a saying "пьяному море по колено".

Actually I can't remember when I heard another using of "море по колено". I think other uses are not very common or maybe are kinda old-fashioned.