101 Proverbs

OriginThis is an 18th-century proverb.ExplanationIt is used for saying that it is difficult to change a way of behaving that someone has had for many years. Also, existing habits are hard to change. People find it difficult to change their accustomed behaviour. When you become accustomed to having something or doing something, it becomes routine […]

OriginThis is a 15th century French proverb whose original form is: Soon acquired, soon spent. This was modified to the present form in 1832.ExplanationThis proverb is in context of money. If money is acquired or obtained very easily, the possessor can’t value it. He would have treasured it if he had acquired it through energy

OriginIt originated in 1796 in English, from French, on ne saurait faire d’omelette sans casser des œufs (1742 and earlier), attributed to François de Charette.ExplanationIn order to achieve something, it is inevitable and necessary that something should be destroyed. It is hard to achieve something important without causing unpleasant effects. It is often used in

OriginThe proverb comes from the famous song Home, Sweet Home, by John Howard Payne.ExplanationHome is the most satisfying place to be. Your home is a special place. Nothing can replace your own home. Home is the best of all places. For a place that is so familiar, home is peculiarly difficult to define and to

OriginThis famous idea comes to us from Meditation XVII by John Donne (1572-1631): “No man is an island, entire of itself…any man’s death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind; and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.”ExplanationNo one is self-sufficient; everyone relies on others.Any individual human

OriginThis saying is attributed both to Joseph P. Kennedy (1888-1969), father of the USA President John F. Kennedy, and to Norwegian-born American football player and coachKnute Rockne (1888-1931).ExplanationWhen things are difficult, strong people take action and do not despair. (Can be used for encouraging someone to take action). It is said to emphasize that when

OriginThe origin of this proverb is unknown, but its current form is attributed to American humorist Josh Billings who is said to have popularized it in his putative poem “The Kicker” (c. 1870).ExplanationThe person who complains or speaks up most loudly receives the redress or attention which he or she seeks. The loud complainer gets

OriginThis is a 16th-century proverb.ExplanationThis proverb advises to cut and stitch the coat according to the cloth available in hand; it also warns that the size of the coat should not exceed the piece of the cloth in hand. Or else the coat will be unfit to wear or the cloth will become wasted, being

OriginThis proverbial saying, first recorded in English in 1605 (in William Camden’s book of proverbs), is so familiar that it is often shortened to ‘early bird’, a term also used in the sense of “early riser”.ExplanationAn early bird gets the worm. The one who arrives first has the best chance for success. The person who

OriginThis form of the proverb first appeared in 1912.ExplanationA person tends to associate with the people who are like him or her.People are similar in character to their friends. The quote literally means that if someone hangs out with intelligent people, he is also assumed to be intelligent. Likewise, if someone is mostly seen with

OriginThe actual wording, comes from Thomas Gray’s poem, “Ode on a Distant Prospect of Eton College” (1742): “Where ignorance is bliss, ‘tis folly to be wise.”ExplanationIf knowing something makes you unhappy, it would be better not to know it. For example, a poor father knows that his son would no longer be alive, at the

OriginThe original form of this proverb used to be ‘got’ or ‘gained’ instead of ‘earned’. That is recorded as early as the 17th-century, in George Herbert’s Outlandish Proverbs, circa 1633.ExplanationIf someone tells you that a penny saved is a penny earned, then you’re being encouraged to become thrifty and to watch your budget. In other

OriginThis proverb was first stated in 1791.ExplanationPeople will remember the way you appear when you first meet them, so it is important to look and act your best when you meet someone for the first time. Sometimes, we might misunderstand a person. We can’t judge a person just by looking at him/her once. There are

OriginThe proverb “live by the sword, die by the sword” has a biblical origin. It comes from a conversation between Jesus and His disciple Peter just before Jesus was arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane.ExplanationThe saying “live by the sword, die by the sword” is an idiom that basically means “what goes around comes around.”

OriginThis metaphoric term dates from the 12th-century and was in John Heywood’s proverb collection of 1546. It first appeared in the Old English Homilies in 1175.ExplanationIt is used for emphasizing that you can make it easy for someone to do something, but you cannot force him to do it. In general usage, the meaning is