uten mat og drikke duger helten ikke

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology

Literally, “without food and drink, the hero won't suffice”, from Danish uden mad og drikke duer helten ikke.

Proverb

uten mat og drikke duger helten ikke

1. an army marches on its stomach; functioning well requires the fulfillment of basic needs
   • 1914 September 19, [Agnes] Povlsen, “Paa „Trollstua“.”, in Krigsraabet, volume 27, number 38, page 3:

     Uten mat og drikke — duger helten ikke.

     Without food and drink — the hero won't be good enough.

   • 1955, Aksel Dreslov, En dag med Lille-Per, Oslo: Dreyers forlag, unnumbered page:

     Når han kommer inn i kantinen og ser Per sitte og spise, pleier han å si: »Det er riktig, Per, bare spis, for uten mat og drikke, duger helten ikke.«

     When he comes into the canteen and sees Per eating, he usually says: "That's right, Per, just you eat, because without food and drink, the hero won't shine."

   • 1999 March 24, Børge Berg-Olsen, “Re:Gi blod!”, in no.alt.motorsykler‎^[1] (Usenet), archived from the original on 5 October 2024:

     Nå var vi langt utenfor motorsykler gitt, hvis man ikke tar i betrakning at man må spise godt for å kunne være en god motorsyklist. "Uten mat og drikke duger helten ikke," ikke sant?

     Now we're well outside of motorcycles, unless you take into consideration that you have to eat well to be a good motorcyclist. "Without food and drink, the hero won't be good enough," right?

   • 2023 September 5, Arnt Georg Arntzen, “Spikkefestival for 40 interesserte 9-77 år”, in Lillesands-Posten, volume 154, number 69, page 29:

     MYE GODT: Uten mat og drikke duger helten ikke, sies det.

     A LOT TO LIKE: Without food and drink, the hero won't shine, it is said.