too many cooks spoil the broth

English

Alternative forms

• too many cooks spoils the broth
• too many chefs spoil the broth, too many cooks spoil the soup, too many cooks spoil the stew

Proverb

too many cooks spoil the broth

1. If too many people participate in a task, especially in a leading role, the task will not be done very well.

Antonyms

• many hands make light work
• the more the merrier

Translations

with too many people a task won't be done very well

• Arabic:

  Libyan Arabic: المركب اللي ليها ريسين تغرق

  South Levantine Arabic: إذا كترو طباخين بتنحرق الطبخة (ʔiza kitru ṭ-ṭabbāḵīn btinḥreʔ iṭ-ṭabḵa)

• Burmese: ဆရာများ သားသေ (hca.ra-mya: sa:se)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 人多添亂／人多添乱 (rén duō tiān luàn), 人多誤事／人多误事 (rén duō wù shì), 人多手腳亂／人多手脚乱 (rén duō shǒujiǎo luàn)

• Czech: příliš mnoho kuchařů přesolí polévku
• Danish: for mange kokke fordærver maden
• Dutch: veel koks bederven de brij, veel koks verzouten de brij
• Esperanto: tro da kuiristoj kaĉon difektas
• Finnish: mitä useampi kokki, sitä huonompi soppa
• French: autant de têtes, autant d’avis; deux patrons font chavirer la barque
• German: (zu) viele Köche verderben den Brei (de)
• Greek: όπου λαλούν πολλοί κοκόροι αργεί να ξημερώσει (ópou laloún polloí kokóroi argeí na ximerósei)
• Hebrew: בְּרֹב חוֹבְלִים תְּטְבַּעְנָה הַסְּפִינוֹת (beróv ẖovlím titbá'na hasfinót) (with many naval officers the ships will drown)
• Hindi: जितने मुँह उतनी बातें (jitne mũh utnī bātẽ, literally “As many opinions/talks as there are people”)
• Hungarian: túl sok szakács elsózza a levest (hu)
• Italian: troppi galli nel pollaio
• Japanese: 船頭多くして船山に登る (ja) (せんどうおおくしてふねやまにのぼる, sendō ōkushite fune yama-ni noboru)
• Korean: 사공이 많으면 배가 산으로 간다 (sagong'i maneumyeon baega saneuro ganda)
• Lithuanian: devynios auklės, vaikas be galvos
• Norwegian: jo flere kokker, jo mer søl
• Polish: gdzie kucharek sześć, tam nie ma co jeść (pl)
• Portuguese: quem não ajuda não atrapalha, muita cera queima a igreja, a cera sobeja queima a igreja
• Romanian: copilul cu mai multe moașe rămâne cu buricul netăiat
• Russian: у семи́ ня́нек дитя́ без гла́за (ru) (u semí njánek ditjá bez gláza) (seven nannies leave a child without care)
• Spanish: muchas manos en un plato causan arrebato
• Swedish: ju fler kockar, desto sämre soppa
• Vietnamese: lắm thầy nhiều ma (too many shamans, too many ghosts)

See also

• a camel is a horse designed by a committee
• too many chiefs and not enough Indians