nichts anbrennen lassen

German edit

Etymology edit

Literally, "not to allow anything to get burnt [in the pan]". Plausibly from the idea of a cook who is preparing several dishes at the same time, so they must keep an eye on all pots and pans and not restrict their attention to any single one of them. Also said to be from the stirring of a pot’s contents, which keeps everything in motion and prevents it from burning.

Pronunciation edit

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Verb edit

nichts anbrennen lassen (class 7 strong, third-person singular present lässt nichts anbrennen, past tense ließ nichts anbrennen, past participle nichts anbrennen lassen, auxiliary haben)

  1. (informal) to play the field; to have several romantic relations at the same time; to take every chance that presents itself

Conjugation edit