English proverbs

The saying warns that hurrying a task tends to cost more than it saves. Rushed work invites mistakes, and mistakes have to be paid for in spoiled material, wasted effort, extra expense or work that must be done again. It is stated as a general rule about what haste does, and its lesson is that taking enough care at the start is usually cheaper than repairing the results of a rush.

• Compare: Someone is tempted to rush a task where a mistake would cost more than the time saved.

The person who can wait obtains the goal.

Here ‘stay’ means wait. The saying holds that the person who is able to wait is the one who eventually gets what they are after, while those who give up or settle early go without. By saying ‘can stay’, it treats patience as a capacity that not everyone has, and presents that capacity as a real advantage in reaching a goal.

• Compare: Someone wants a result that will not come at once and is tempted to press for it rather than hold on.

The more you hurry, the slower the overall result.

The saying states a paradox: the harder a person hurries, the slower the overall result can be. Hurry produces slips, false starts and forgotten steps, and each one has to be put right before the work or journey can go on. ‘Worse speed’ is the overall result, how soon the thing is actually done, and the lesson is that a steady pace may be the faster way to finish.

• Compare: Someone is hurrying a task or journey whose finish they do not fully control.

The saying takes Rome as its image of a great undertaking and notes the obvious: a city like that took far longer than a day to build. From that it draws the lesson that any large undertaking needs time and sustained effort, and that it is unreasonable to expect it finished quickly. It invites the listener to judge progress by what has been built so far rather than by how much remains.

A gentle fire makes sweet malt.

The saying uses an image from making malt: malt made over a gentle fire turns out sweet, while the implied alternative, a fierce fire, would spoil it. From that it draws a general lesson that steady, moderate handling often gives a better result than forcing a process to go faster. It can apply to cooking, craft and learning, and also to dealing with people, where pressure may harden resistance rather than overcome it.

Pause for a while so that we can finish sooner.

In this saying ‘stay’ means pause. It proposes stopping for a short while so that a task can be finished sooner, on the reasoning that a pause to think, plan or correct a mistake saves more time than it takes. Because it is phrased with ‘we’, it reads as a shared suggestion among people working together rather than an instruction to one person.

Time and straw make medlars ready to eat.

Medlars are a fruit that is not ready to eat when first gathered, and the saying says that time and straw together make them ready. The lesson is that something unready now may become good with time and the right conditions. Because it names two things, the patience it recommends is waiting while providing what the process needs, not simply waiting.

Time and tide wait for nobody.

The saying pairs time with tide and says that neither waits for anyone: both move on whether or not a person is ready. It uses that to warn against delay: an opportunity has its moment, and the person who hesitates or puts things off may find it has passed. Its lesson is to act while the chance is still there rather than wait for a more convenient time.

• Compare: Someone is deciding whether a delay is something to endure or something that will cost them the chance to act.

A pot on the fire does boil in the end, but anyone who stands over it waiting seems to wait forever. The saying uses that exaggeration to make a point about attention: watching something that needs time does not hurry it, and it makes the wait feel longer. Its advice is to stop checking and turn to something else while the process runs its course.

A life is measured not merely by its number of years, but by the goodness, wisdom, or worth of the way it is lived. One who lives rightly has, in a moral sense, made full and lasting use of life.

Money is the practical force that gets things moving. Payment, profit, or financial backing can motivate people to act when goodwill or abstract promises alone do not produce results.

Death ultimately places every person in the same condition, regardless of rank, wealth, achievement, or worldly distinction. The saying stresses the leveling power of mortality.

Family connections may be plentiful, yet genuine friendship remains rare. The saying separates kinship, which can arise through birth or marriage, from the trust, affection, and mutual choice associated with a true friend.

Plenty can weaken restraint: when crops are abundant and food or income seems secure, people may spend freely, waste resources, or neglect preparations for leaner times. In its older wording, “men” is used generically for people, not only males.

Wealth acquired through theft, fraud, or other wrongful conduct is unlikely to bring lasting benefit. The saying links dishonest acquisition with eventual loss, trouble, or failure rather than secure success.

Material wealth by itself does not constitute genuine prosperity. Money can contribute to a flourishing life or society, but it is not the only requirement and cannot automatically supply every condition for well-being.

Acting too quickly can cause avoidable loss. That loss may create need, and need may then place damaging pressure on a household relationship.

A hurtful or insulting remark tends to call forth a reply in the same spirit. Here “asketh” means prompts or invites, not literally requests or asks a question; the saying warns that hostile speech can turn a small disagreement into mutual abuse.

The saying advises against throwing possessions away too quickly. Something that seems useless today may later be needed, so patience and thrift can make keeping it worthwhile. Its “seven years” is a traditional, emphatic span, not a precise storage rule.

A person with obvious weaknesses, faults, or vulnerabilities should avoid attacking others for similar shortcomings. The figurative image presents a glass house as exposure to harm and stone-throwing as provoking criticism or retaliation.

The saying links hunger with anger, observing that an unmet basic need can make a person short-tempered, impatient, or more likely to react sharply than usual.

Someone who knows they have done wrong may reveal their own guilt through anxiety, defensiveness, or self-reproach, even before anyone else makes an accusation.

Wisdom is not confined to technical craftsmanship. A person can show sound judgment even without the specialized skill needed to construct a complex object.

An unpromising young animal may grow into a fine one. Early appearance or condition is not a reliable measure of later quality.

Check dimensions, facts, or plans before taking an action that cannot easily be undone. A little preparation can prevent costly mistakes, wasted materials, and repairs later.

Harmful tendencies, bad habits, or troublesome people may spread and strengthen quickly when nothing checks them. The image contrasts the vigor of unwanted weeds with the effort usually needed to cultivate desirable growth.

A person has the closest knowledge of their own thoughts, motives, feelings, and private conduct. Others may observe actions, but cannot fully see the reasons and experiences behind them.

Extreme need can drive people past barriers that would ordinarily seem unyielding. The image presents hunger as a force powerful enough to overcome physical obstacles, emphasizing the pressure created by deprivation.

What is genuinely attractive or admirable does not require cosmetic enhancement to make its value apparent. The saying praises unadorned beauty and, by extension, qualities that speak for themselves, while reflecting conventional beauty ideals that may now seem dated or exclusionary.

People may make plans and pursue them with care, but the final course of events is not wholly theirs to command. The proverb frames unforeseen outcomes as subject to divine will rather than human intention.

The saying condemns misplaced moral scrutiny: someone objects intensely to a tiny fault while accepting a far greater wrong. Its image contrasts filtering out something minute with consuming something enormous.

The saying ranks personal integrity above material prosperity. It maintains that poverty is preferable to wealth acquired, kept, or displayed at the cost of disgrace.

The saying condemns foolish behavior that persists into old age. It implies that long experience ought to have brought better judgment, making continued folly seem especially blameworthy.

A child’s apparent intelligence or good sense does not reliably predict how he will behave later. Early promise should not be treated as a permanent measure of character or judgment.

Peaceful living is not secured by one person alone. Because neighbours—broadly, those nearby or with connected interests—affect one another’s comfort, a person should consult them and take their concerns seriously.

A person who appears to offer moral advice may be pursuing the very interest that would harm those listening. Fine language and virtuous poses should not automatically be taken as proof of goodwill.

Hope can make a person feel more vulnerable than hopelessness does, because it keeps a desired outcome emotionally alive. Waiting for what one deeply wants may expose dependence, uncertainty, and the limits of personal control.

Sound advice remains valuable even when it arrives after a decision, mistake, or difficult development has already begun. It may still help someone correct course, limit harm, or understand what to do next.

Taking the initiative can secure a major advantage before a contest has fully developed. The violent wording is usually metaphorical: an early, decisive move may unsettle an opponent, shape circumstances, and make the remaining effort easier.

The saying observes that favorable chance can sometimes matter more to an outcome than intelligence, judgment, or careful planning. It highlights the limits of wisdom when events do not unfold as expected.

Strong affection may seem to reveal itself despite attempts at concealment, through expression, attention, or altered behavior. Like a cough, it is portrayed as breaking through restraint and becoming noticeable to others.

Courtesy, tact, and socially considerate conduct can create opportunities that ability alone may not secure. The saying treats good manners as a practical advantage, helping a person gain trust, favor, and support.

The saying advises reconsidering an initial judgment or plan before acting, because reflection may reveal a better choice.

Unintended results often arise alongside what people deliberately create. A plan, household, workplace, or relationship can produce consequences that no one meant to introduce, just as unseeded plants appear in a tended garden.

The saying treats fairness and honesty as inseparable virtues. Here, “just” means fair or righteous, not “only” or “recently.” A judgment cannot truly be just if it relies on deceit, concealment, or bad faith; likewise, honest conduct must respect what is fair to others.

Make use of the time available to you while you still have it. The saying urges timely action because a chance to do something can pass before you use it.

People may disparage something only after discovering that they cannot obtain it. Calling the unavailable thing undesirable protects pride by turning frustration into apparent indifference.

Lavish spending on food and household pleasures can consume resources that might otherwise remain in an estate. The contrast warns that indulgent living may leave little to pass on after death.

When a task is declared to belong to everyone, no particular person may feel obliged to take charge. Shared responsibility can therefore result in the task being neglected or left unfinished.

At its most immediate, the saying presents a kiss as something bestowed where there is liking. Affection is not distributed automatically; it follows the goodwill or preference of the person who gives it.