- English translation
Like a grazing camel, its jaws in one patch of greenery and its eyes already on the next.
- Literal wording
Like the camels: its mouth in a clump of plants and its eye on a clump of plants.
- Meaning and lesson
The saying pictures a grazing camel, any single one from the herd, still chewing one dense clump of plants while its gaze has already settled on another nearby clump. It mocks a restless greed that never lets a person enjoy or finish what they already hold.
Applied to people, it describes someone whose wanting runs ahead of their having. Their hands are full, yet their attention is already on the next thing to grab. The tone is gently scornful of insatiable, roving desire.
- When it is used
Use this teasingly or critically about someone who already has something in hand, such as food, money or an opportunity, yet keeps eyeing the next prize before finishing what they have. It suits remarks about appetite, ambition or acquisitiveness.
Cite or copy proverb
How this record reached us: Editorially sourced.
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