не в коня корм

• НЕ В КОНЯ КОРМ coll

[Invar; indep. sent or subj-compl with быть; fixed WO]

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1. [subj: concr (a noun denoting food, drinks etc)]

⇒ sth. does not have the expected beneficial effect on s.o.:

- X не в коня корм{{}}≈ X doesn't (didn't etc) do person Y any good.

2. [subj: concr or abstr]

⇒ sth. is not or cannot be properly appreciated by s.o.:

- (X) не в коня корм{{}}≈ X is (it's) wasted (lost) on person Y;

- person Y can't appreciate X (it);

- you would be wasting X (it) on person Y;

- X (it) is a waste of time (energy etc).

     ♦ "Не могу больше, не полечу! Пусть суцят: больше вышки не дадут, дальше фронта не пошлют. Я не лягавый, я - лётчик-истребитель! Хватит!.."Но речь его теперь была - не в коня корм: каждого уже одолевала своя собственная болячка (Максимов 1). "I can't take it any more, I'm going to stop flying. Let them put me before a court-martial. They can't do more than shoot me. They can't send me further than the front. I'm not a cop-I'm a fighter-pilot. I've had enough!..." But by this time his speech was a waste of time. Each of them was overwhelmed by his own ills (1a).