neither fish nor fowl en · ADJ
Pronunciation
- /ˌnaɪðɚ ˈfɪʃ nɔɹ ˈfaʊl/ (General-American)
- /ˌni-/ (General-American)
- /ˌnaɪðə ˈfɪʃ nɔː ˈfaʊl/ (Received-Pronunciation)
- (Australia) audio
- /ˌniː-/ (Received-Pronunciation)
Etymology
Possibly a variant of neither fish, flesh, nor fowl, itself a variant of neither fish, flesh, nor good red herring which is attested from the 16th century. According to Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1895), the latter term referred to three types of food generally consumed by the different classes in society: fish by the clergy, flesh by the common people, and red herring by the poor. Thus if something was neither fish, flesh, nor red herring, it was good for no one.
Meanings
-
(idiomatic, not-comparable) Not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; also, not having the advantages of the various options.
My hump was due, I made no doubt, first, to my precarious position in the wilderness, but more than that to my anomalous social position, for it seemed to me now that I was neither fish nor fowl. I was no longer a gentleman's man—the familiar boundaries of that office had been swept away; on the other hand, I was most emphatically not the gentleman I had set myself up to be, and I was weary of the pretence.
1915, Harry Leon Wilson, chapter 11, in Ruggles of Red Gap, Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, Page & Company, →OCLC, page 188:"Docudrama" is by its nature a confusing genre—neither fish nor fowl, and thus lacking either taste or substance. (Maybe tofu is a better analogy.)
2008 December 30, Bob Sommer, “The Education of David Frost”, in CounterPunch, archived from the original on 07 Dec 2022:"To tell you the truth," he confided, "I am a little tired of my job. Neither fish nor fowl, don't you know. I took an observation course at Scotland Yard, but I suppose I am too slow-witted for what they call secret-service work over here."
1919, E[dward] Phillips Oppenheim, chapter VII, in The Box with Broken Seals, Toronto, Ont.: McClelland & Stewart, →OCLC, page 68:Ms. [Etta] James, who has been a blues, rhythm-and-blues, funk and soul singer, said she no longer had to worry about being "neither fish nor fowl." "I know what I am now," she declared. "I'm rock-and-roll."
1993 January 14, Jon Pareles, “Arts: Playing in reunion, Cream is the finale of rock ceremonies”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 27 Dec 2022, section C, page 15:The trouble, Kenneth, is in you. You are neither fish nor fowl. You are a country lout—fit only to associate with pigs.
1934, Lew Levenson, chapter V, in Butterfly Man, New York, N.Y.: Castle Books, →OCLC, page 53:Besides, I know I should hate being there without you; I'm a great old thing, as Jasper says, neither fish nor fowl, you know, not come out, and not a little girl in the schoolroom, and it would be very horrid going to a grand place like that on one's own account.
1885, Charlotte M[ary] Yonge, “Mysie and Dolores”, in The Two Sides of the Shield, London: Macmillan and Co., →OCLC, page 347:
Relateds
Synonyms
neither fish, flesh, nor fowl · neither fish nor flesh, nor good red herring · neither fish, flesh, nor good red herring · neither fish nor flesh
Translations (35)
he לא בשר ולא חלב (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · nl vlees noch vis (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · fr ni chair ni poisson (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · cmn 童牛角馬 /童牛角马 (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · de weder Fisch noch Fleisch (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · ro nici cal nici măgar (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · ja 海の物とも山の物ともつかない (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · sh ni riba ni meso (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · es ni chicha ni limonada (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · ca no ésser ni carn ni peix (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · is hvorki fugl né fiskur (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · bg ни рак, ни риба (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · ar لا السمك ولا الطيور (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · da hverken fugl eller fisk (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · fi ei lintu eikä kala (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · pl ni pies, ni wydra (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · is viðrinislegur (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · fi outolintu (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · ca ni carn ni peix (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · it né carne né pesce (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · nl mossel noch vis (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · cmn 非驢非馬 /非驴非马 (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · ga níl sé ina ghruth ná ina mheadhg (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · pt nem carne nem peixe (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · cmn 不倫不類 /不伦不类 (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · nb hverken fugl eller fisk (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · es ni de aquí ni de allá (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · cs ani ryba ani rak (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · sk ani ryba, ani rak (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · fr mi-figue mi-raisin (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · sv varken fågel eller fisk (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · fo hvørki fuglur ella fiskur (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · sh ni pirka ni kanjac (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · la homō nūllīus colōris (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options) · gl nin arre nin xo (not easily categorized; not rightly belonging or fitting well in a given group or situation; not having the advantages of the various options)