Gdy kota nie ma, myszy harcują
Listen
What it means
When the cat is away, the mice will play. Used when authority or supervision is absent and people take liberties they otherwise wouldn’t.
Vocabulary
- kot — cat
- mysz — mouse
- harcować — to frolic, to run riot, to play freely
Grammar note
'Kota' is the genitive of 'kot', required after the negation 'nie ma'. 'Myszy' is the genitive plural of 'mysz'.
Cultural context
This proverb has exact equivalents across European languages (English: 'When the cat's away, the mice will play'). It reflects a universal observation about human behaviour under — and without — supervision.
Beginner
Noticed a typo, a wrong translation, or anything that doesn't look right? We'd love to fix it — just let us know via the contact page. Thank you!
More Polish proverbs
- "A stepmother, even if made of sugar, is always bitter." No matter how kind a stepmother tries to …
- "For a wise head, two words are enough." A clever person needs only a brief hint to understand; …
- "A Pole is wise after the damage is done." Poles (or people in general) tend to learn from mistakes …
- "The wise will accept advice; the fool will scorn it." Intelligent people are open to counsel, while …