- English translation
He's like a mill: he only runs properly once he's been hammered from behind.
- Literal wording
Like the mills: it does not come right except by knocking from behind.
- Meaning and lesson
The saying describes a person who performs or behaves well only under firm pressure. Left alone or treated softly, such a person drifts, slacks off, or goes wrong; prodding, urging forward, scolding, and strict handling are what make them function properly and keep them working.
The image comes from mill machinery, whose parts must be struck and tapped into place during repair before they fit and turn smoothly. The person is likened to that mechanism: without forceful adjustment nothing lines up, so the saying treats leniency as harmful and sternness as the only fix.
- When it is used
Applied to someone, such as a worker, child, or subordinate, who ignores gentle requests and acts only when pushed or reprimanded. Its tone is critical and exasperated; because it justifies harsh treatment, it can sound demeaning when said about someone directly.
- Register
- colloquial
Cite or copy proverb
How this record reached us: Editorially sourced.
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