- English translation
Anyone who eats honey must put up with bee stings.
- Literal wording
Whoever eats honey must endure the bees' stings.
- Meaning and lesson
The image rests on a simple fact: honey comes from bees, and anyone who reaches for it risks being stung. The saying makes enduring that pain the natural condition for tasting the sweetness, not an unfair extra burden.
More broadly, it teaches that a desirable gain usually comes bound to some hardship. A person who wants or enjoys the reward should accept the accompanying trouble patiently rather than complain about it.
- When it is used
Suitable for reminding someone who enjoys an advantage but grumbles about its drawbacks that the two are inseparable, or for encouraging patience with difficulties that come with something worth having.
Cite or copy proverb
How this record reached us: Editorially sourced.
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