vara hugget som stucket

Swedish

Etymology

From vara (“be”) +‎ hugget (“cut (slashed)”) +‎ som (“as”) +‎ stucket (“stabbed”), developed from earlier "varken huggen eller stucken" ("neither cut nor stabbed" – neither one thing or the other; neither here nor there), from German weder gehauen noch gestochen, from fencing lingo.

Verb

vara hugget som stucket (present är hugget som stucket, preterite var hugget som stucket, supine varit hugget som stucket, imperative var hugget som stucket)

1. (idiomatic) to be equally good or bad (of two or more alternatives), to be six of one, half a dozen of the other

   Våra styrkor och svagheter jämnar ut sig mot båda lagen. Det är hugget som stucket vilka vi möter i finalen.

   Our strengths and weaknesses balance out against both teams. It's six of one, half a dozen of the other [doesn't matter] when it comes to who we meet in the finals.

See also

• gå på ett ut
• varken hackat eller malet

References

• hugga in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• hugga in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)