- English translation
Someone who has even plain bread to soften and eat has every reason to be content.
- Literal wording
Whoever has dry bread and can moisten it has all the joy.
- Meaning and lesson
The saying praises satisfaction with basic provisions. Even dry bread softened for eating can represent well-being when it relieves hunger and meets essential needs; it values sufficiency, not deprivation or the denial of hardship.
It encourages gratitude rather than measuring happiness by luxury. What matters is having sufficient sustenance, however simple, and accepting it without restless dissatisfaction.
- When it is used
Use it to comfort or advise someone disappointed by a lack of comforts, stressing that simple food and necessities can still be a genuine blessing, without dismissing real hardship.
Cite or copy proverb
How this record reached us: Editorially sourced.
Report an issue with this meaning: Someone who has even plain bread to soften and eat has every reason to be content.