ölme eşeğim ölme

Turkish

Alternative forms

• ölme eşeğim ölme yaza yonca bitecek
• ölme eşeğim ölme çayır çimen bitecek

Etymology

Shortened version of ölme eşeğim ölme yaza yonca bitecek (literally, “don't die, my donkey, don't die, clover will sprout in summer”), of similar meaning to the Greek ζήσε Μάη μου να φας τριφύλλι (zíse Mái mou na fas trifýlli), both recorded by Levinus Warner already in the mid-17^th c.

Phrase

ölme eşeğim ölme

1. (idiomatic) Said in disbelief that a hopeless situation is to improve until a very long time in the future or ever

References

• “ölme eşeğim ölme (yaza yonca bitecek)”, in Turkish dictionaries, Türk Dil Kurumu