- English translation
A price already reckoned is a price you'll dare to pay.
- Literal wording
Kill the one whose blood money you know.
- Meaning and lesson
The proverb says that knowing a thing’s value or expected cost can make a bold or difficult action seem easier to undertake. Certainty about what is at stake lessens the hesitation created by uncertainty.
It is used when someone has reckoned the cost and is therefore readier to proceed. Its literal image of killing and blood money is severe, even where the saying is applied figuratively, and should not be taken as endorsing violence.
- When it is used
Use it when a known value or anticipated cost makes someone more willing to take a difficult step. The expression is forceful because of its literal image of killing and blood money, so consider whether that imagery suits the setting.
Cite or copy proverb
How this record reached us: Editorially sourced.
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