- English translation
Walk in without asking leave, and if the men don't laugh at you, the women will.
- Literal wording
O one who enters without consultation, if the man does not make a mockery of you, the woman will make a mockery of you.
- Meaning and lesson
Whoever steps into someone else's house without the occupants' consent, which is what مَشْوَرَه conveys here rather than mere advice, leaves himself open to humiliation. Ridicule is all but certain: should the men of the household let him pass unscathed, the women will make him a laughingstock.
The underlying lesson is that asking permission before entering keeps a visitor's dignity intact. Pairing men and women simply covers everyone in the house, not a claim about which sex mocks more readily. Skipping permission invites ridicule, and the embarrassment is presented as self-inflicted.
- When it is used
Fits a warning to someone about to walk into another person's house without being invited, or a wry remark after an unannounced entrant has been made to look foolish by the people inside.
Cite or copy proverb
How this record reached us: Editorially sourced.
Report an issue with this meaning: Walk in without asking leave, and if the men don't laugh at you, the women will.