trust everybody, but cut the cards

Reportedly coined by Finley Peter Dunne (1867-1936) and expressed in dialect by his character "Mr. Dooley" in Mr. Dooley's Philosophy (1900), p. 260: "Thrust ivrybody—but cut th' ca-ards."

trust everybody, but cut the deck (alternative)
trust every man, but cut the cards (alternative)
trust your friends, but cut the cards (alternative)

A deep-dyed fatalist, sentimental yet cynical—"Trust everybody," he is fond of saying, "but cut the cards"—his running history of his Chicago tribe is a struggle of clan and family survival, with little help from outsiders.

1997, Donald L. Miller, City of the Century, →ISBN, page 526:

I was often reminded of Mr. Dooley's famous admonition to “Trust everybody, but cut the cards.” We did “cut the cards” by installing a fake camera high on one wall and pointed at the cash register.

2013, William C. Prentiss, One Man In His Time: A Memoir, →ISBN, page 413:

It's a version of President Ronald Reagen's famous statements “trust but verify” and “trust everybody, but cut the cards.” We the public are tired of being duped, and we are now ready to hold companies responsible and accountable.

2014, Robert C. Chandler, Business and Corporate Integrity, →ISBN, page xxiv:

Have general faith in the good intentions of others, but never neglect to take appropriate precautions against being deceived or cheated.


head

trust everybody, but always cut the cards

trust everybody, but cut the cards#English

Alternative form of trust everybody, but cut the cards.


en-proverb

trust everybody, but always cut the deck


head

Widely attributed to American author and social critic H. L. Mencken (1880–1956) but not found verbatim in his published works, so the source and original form of this expression are not known with certainty. Likely a nearly verbatim paraphrase of: "No one in this world, so far as I know ... has ever lost money by underestimating the intelligence of the great masses of the plain people."
One possible origin is the 1970 Nora Ephron essay originally titled, '"If You're a Little Mouseburger, Come With Me. I was a Mouseburger And I Will Help You."' In the essay, Ephron refers to "the old Mencken dictum that no one ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American public." The piece was reprinted in Ephron's 1970 collection Wallflower at the Orgy.

Ed Wood was a backwards genius, he set out to make horror movies and he didn’t know how to do it. . . . Mencken said, “Nobody ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American people.” Well, Ed Wood did go broke by underestimating their intelligence.

1988 April 23, “1988 OBIE Interview: Robert Anton Wilson”, in RAWilsonFans.org, retrieved 2015-09-13:

H. L. Mencken may have noted that no one ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American people, but not even he could have anticipated this. Like Bill and Ted, their principal rivals among screen duos who play dumb, Wayne and Garth do their best to elevate stupidity to an art form.

1992 Feb. 14, Janet Maslin, "Film: A Dim Duo In a Revel Of Stupidity" (review of Wayne's World), New York Times (retrieved 13 Sep 2015)

It's noteworthy, by the way, that a pleasure dome like Palm Beach should also be the home of a drama troupe that not only specializes in shows like "Copenhagen" and "The Chairs" but performs them with flair. We have it on the best of authority that nobody ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American people, but Palm Beach Dramaworks seems to be doing quite well for itself by operating on the opposite assumption.

2010 January 8, Terry Teachout, “Theater: Science Takes the Stag”, in Wall Street Journal, retrieved 2015-09-13:

Most advertising seems to be aimed at an extremely unintelligent audience, and yet seems effective in persuading most of us. But the software industry may, I suspect, provide a few exceptions to the old saying that “nobody ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American people.”

2014, Nathaniel S. Borenstein, Programming as If People Mattered, →ISBN, page 70:

Americans, as a group, are not especially intelligent and can be readily entertained or fooled to produce a financial benefit for someone.

nobody ever went broke underestimating the taste of the American people


nobody ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American public

nobody ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American people#English

Alternative form of nobody ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American people.


no one ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American public


nobody ever went broke underestimating the taste of the American people

Widely attributed to American author and social critic H. L. Mencken (1880–1956) but not found in his published works, so the source and original form of this expression are not known with certainty.

“I remembered that nobody ever went broke underestimating the taste of the American public, so I set out to write the worst novel it was humanly possible to write and still get published,” he said.

1982 June 13, Edwin McDowell, “About Books and Authors”, in New York Times, retrieved 2015-09-13:

Americans, as a group, do not have good taste or sophistication and can be easily amused or distracted to produce financial benefit for someone.


nobody ever went broke underestimating the taste of the American public

nobody ever went broke underestimating the taste of the American people#English

Alternative form of nobody ever went broke underestimating the taste of the American people.


no one ever went broke underestimating the taste of the American people


no one ever went broke underestimating the taste of the American public


ignore all rules

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-ignore all rules.wav

(chiefly Wikimedia jargon) It is acceptable to break rules in situations where it is beneficial not to follow them.


can't live with them and can't live without them

can't live with them, can't live without them#English

Alternative form of can't live with them, can't live without them.


beware of Greeks bearing gifts

Alludes to the ancient story of the Trojan horse, a gift for the Trojans which secretly contained Greeks. The prototype of the phrase is found in a Latin phrase in the Aeneid, book 2, lines 48–49: equō nē crēdite, Teucrī. / Quidquid id est, timeō Danaōs et dōna ferentēs. (“Do not trust the horse, Trojans. Whatever it is, I fear the Greeks, even bearing gifts.”)


sell in May, then go away

sell in May and go away
sell in May and go away#English

Alternative form of sell in May and go away.


nobody ever went broke underestimating the good taste of the American public


nobody ever went broke underestimating the good taste of the American people


what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas

Popularized as the tagline of a 2002 city marketing campaign.

what happens on tour stays on tour#English

Synonym of what happens on tour stays on tour.


no bucks, no Buck Rogers

Whether NASA under Trump will stay the course . . . an old adage attributed to its first human spaceflights of the 1960s is likely to define its fate: no bucks, no Buck Rogers.

2016 Nov. 30, Lee Billings, Trump’s First 100 Days: Space," Scientific American (retrieved 7 Oct 2017)

One must raise money to be able to achieve one's objectives, especially in the exploration of outer space.


money talks and bullshit walks

money talks, bullshit walks
money talks, bullshit walks#English

Alternative form of money talks, bullshit walks.


en-proverb

if you lie down with dogs, you get up with fleas

Spending time with undesirable individuals will cause one to acquire their undesirable traits.

近朱者赤，近墨者黑

(proverb) spending time with undesirable people will cause one to take on their undesirable traits

wer den Hund ins Bett lässt, steht mit Flöhen auf

с кем поведёшься, от того́ и наберёшься

s kem povedjóšʹsja, ot tovó i naberjóšʹsja

am fear a laigheas sa pholl, togaidh e an làthach

if you fly with the crows, you get shot with the crows

who keeps company with the wolf will learn to howl


what happens on the road stays on the road


old sins have long shadows

old sins cast long shadows (alternative)

"'Old sins have long shadows,'" he went on musingly. "And this shadow of Bou Smain may yet engulf you if I am not quick.

1929, Camilla Hope, Long Shadows, page 253:

“But if it doesn't exist how can it matter?” asked Nichol. “Old file, old company, old news.” “Old sins have long shadows,” said Gamache. “And this is an old sin.”

2013, Louise Penny, How The Light Gets In: A Chief Inspector Gamache Mystery, →ISBN:

Lucinda was happy and deeply in love, but ‘old sins have long shadows’, and on the very night of her engagement party the dark, dangerous shadow of her past confronted her.

Past misdeeds are liable to return to haunt a person.


old sins cast long shadows

old sins have long shadows
old sins have long shadows#English

Alternative form of old sins have long shadows.


dead men can tell no tales

dead men tell no tales
dead men tell no tales#English

Alternative form of dead men tell no tales.


head

They say it's an ill bird that fouls its own nest. My own feeling is that a well-behaved bird will neither foul its own nest nor another's, but that, finding it in any wise foul, it will openly say so, and clean it.

It's an ill bird that fouls his own nest, and we are all Scots folk and all Hieland.

The saying, “It's an ill bird that fouls its own nest” expresses the most universal of ethical norms, and is probably the source of all such norms.

2005, Richard Ostrofsky, Sharing Realities: Toward an Epistemology of Conversation, →ISBN, page 173:

He admitted then to having had, for two years, “documents in [his] possession sufficient to have destroyed [the Fenians operating in Montreal], but [he had] thought it was an ill bird that fouled its own nest.

2013, Charles Macnab, Understanding the Thomas D'Arcy McGee Assassination, →ISBN:

A condemnation of anyone who damages their own group, reputation or interests.


en-proverb

the devil you know is better than the devil you don't know

better the devil you know than the devil you don't know#English

Alternative form of better the devil you know than the devil you don't know.


you can take the monkey out of the jungle, but you can't take the jungle out of the monkey

(ethnic slur, offensive) Black people, in the view of racists, behave badly regardless of their whereabouts or socialization.

you can take X out of Y, but you can't take Y out of X


needs must when the devil drives

Needs (“of necessity, necessarily”, adverb) must (“one must”, impersonal) when the devil drives.

He needs must goe, the Devil drives.

1664, Charles Cotton, Scarronides; or, Virgile Travestie:

My poor body, madam, requires it: I am driven on by the flesh; and he must needs go that the devil drives.

1623, William Shakespeare, All's Well That Ends Well:

I doubt we can make it on foot, laden as we are. Dear me! I think we had better have a cab. An extravagance, of course, but needs must where the devil drives, eh?

1956, Gerald Durrell, “The Talking Flowers”, in My Family and Other Animals, Harmondsworth, Middlesex [London]: Penguin Books, published 1959 (1974 printing), →OCLC, page 221:

There is sometimes no choice but to do some specific thing.

hätä ei lue lakia

there is sometimes no choice but to do something

біда навчить коржі з маком їсти

коржі з салом, вареники


there are bad apples in every orchard

Every community and demographic has troublesome members.


For quotations using this term, see Citations:when you're up to your neck in alligators, it's hard to remember that your initial objective was to drain the swamp.

It is easy to lose sight of one's initial objective, becoming caught up in subtasks or in tasks only tangentially related to the original goal.

if you find yourself in a hole, the first thing to do is stop digging


a revolution is not a dinner party

Calque of Chinese 革命不是請客吃飯 /革命不是请客吃饭 (gémìng bùshì qǐngkè chīfàn, literally “revolution is not having guests to eat a meal”). An aphoristic political statement by Mao Zedong, defending violence as a means of imposing a different societal order; for more, see Wikipedia at revolution is not a dinner party.

calque

In order to achieve something, courtesy, long-held norms, and other such formalities must be dropped.


Caesar's wife must be above suspicion

Caesar's wife must be above reproach (alternative)
Caesar's wife should be above suspicion (alternative)
Caesar's wife should be above reproach (alternative)

In 62 BC Publius Clodius Pulcher sneaked into the festival of the Bona Dea, hosted by Julius Caesar’s wife, Pompeia, with the intention of seducing her, leading to Publius’s arrest and trial. After the trial, Caesar divorced Pompeia, and when questioned said “my wife ought not even to be under suspicion,” as Pompeia was under suspicion of illicit behavior.

(proverb) Those in positions of authority should avoid even the implication of impropriety.

Caesars vrouw moet boven alle verdenking verheven zijn

la femme de César ne doit pas être soupçonnée

Cäsars Frau muss über jeden Verdacht erhaben sein


the fewer the better fare

Things are better when fewer people are involved.

More food and drink are available per person if fewer people are there to consume it.


en-proverb

if you find yourself in a hole, the first thing to do is stop digging

When finding oneself in a troubling situation, one should first make sure one is not making the situation worse by one's own actions before addressing all other causes.

when you are in a hole, the first thing to do is stop digging

when you find yourself in a hole, the first thing to do is stop digging


the dose makes the poison

(toxicology) The damage that a substance causes is determined more by its quantity than by its essence.


why buy the cow when you can get the milk for free?

The whole idea of why buy the cow when you can get the milk for free relates to offering only a very brief sample of your music online. I have intellectual property, and I treat that intellectual property very seriously as an artist.

2005, Steven Gordon, The Future of the Music Business:

In the past, women who wanted to move in with a boyfriend would get a strict talking-to about a common male mentality: “Why buy the cow when you can get the milk for free?”

I can get plenty of dames, so why buy the cow when you can get the milk for free...ya know what I mean?

2008, Inge Auerbacher, Highway To New York: A Lady Truck Driver Adventure, page 38:

Do not expect somebody to make a costly commitment if it will give them nothing they do not already have; used especially as a warning against having sexual intercourse before marriage (or conversely, as encouragement against getting married).

why buy a book when you can join a library


a little knowledge is a dangerous thing

A slight misquotation of Alexander Pope’s a little learning is a dangerous thing. The earliest use dates from a magazine published in 1774.

Of course anybody can saw off a limb; but here, as so often happens, a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, and a little more will often save a dear old friend of the family and the neighborhood.

1926, Francis Blake Atkinson, Hallam Hawksworth, A Year in the Wonderland of Trees, page 176:

A small amount of knowledge can mislead individuals into believing that they are more experienced and expert than what is actually the case.

zeal without knowledge is a runaway horse


when you find yourself in a hole, the first thing to do is stop digging

if you find yourself in a hole, the first thing to do is stop digging#English

Synonym of if you find yourself in a hole, the first thing to do is stop digging.


don't hate the player, hate the game

En-us-don't hate the player, hate the game.oga

Audio (US)

The frustrations with a system or activity should be blamed on its weaknesses, rather than on individuals who operate within it.


you can't be half pregnant

From the notion that someone is either pregnant or not.

Alex, you can't be half pregnant. If you keep doing other work that falls outside of your logo design process, you'll send mixed messages to all of your stakeholders.

2011, John Warrillow, Built to Sell: Creating a Business That Can Thrive Without You, Penguin, →ISBN, page 47:

(idiomatic) Said of an either-or situation; there are only two available choices.


when in Rome, do like the Romans do

when in Rome, do as the Romans do#English

(uncommon) Alternative form of when in Rome, do as the Romans do.


an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind

A policy of revenge will lead to counterretaliations rather than peaceful resolutions.


justice is blind

Justice is to be meted out impartially, without regard to the identity of the individual being tried.


set a beggar on horseback and he'll ride to the Devil

A person unaccustomed to wealth or luxury will easily be corrupted by it.

give someone enough rope and they'll hang themself


crime doesn't pay

If you commit a crime you will most likely be punished for it.

罪有應得 /罪有应得

if you a commit a crime you will most likely be punished for it

winie depcze po piętach kara (Latin: culpam poena premit comes)

if you can't do the time, don't do the crime


ready, fire, aim

Used as a reminder that prompt action is often better than thoroughly planned action, especially in business.

(often ironic) Used to emphasize the dangers of acting hastily.


good fences make good neighbours

good fences make good neighbors
good fences make good neighbors#English

British standard form of good fences make good neighbors.


LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-when you mess with the bull, you get the horns.wav

(informal) If you provoke someone dangerous, you can expect an aggressive reaction.

if you mess with the bull, you get the horns


if you mess with the bull, you get the horns

when you mess with the bull, you get the horns#English

Synonym of when you mess with the bull, you get the horns.


when all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail

if all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail#English

Synonym of if all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail.


the eyes are the window to the soul

One can tell much about a person's character or personality from their eyes.


as one door closes, another opens

when one door closes, another opens#English

Synonym of when one door closes, another opens.


it's the hit dog that howls

it is always the hit dog that howls (alternative)
it is the hit dog that howls (alternative)

(US) If somebody is ranting or complaining about something, they were probably hurt by it.

اللّي فيها حْلِيب تْصَيَّح

If someone is ranting about something, it means they were hurt by it


the customer is always right

Service staff should give high priority to customer satisfaction.

お客様は神様です (おきゃくさまはかみさまです, okyakusama wa kamisama desu, literally “the customer is God”)


perfect is the enemy of good

A variant of the older the best is the enemy of the good, popularized by Voltaire in French as le mieux est l'ennemi du bien, itself a translation of the Italian proverb il meglio è nemico del bene.

the perfect is the enemy of the good (alternative)

лучшее — враг хорошего (lučšeje — vrag xoroševo)

let the perfect be the enemy of the good

Insistence on perfection often precludes the opportunity for something worthwhile.

Insistence on perfection precludes gradual improvement through compromises.


there are no atheists in foxholes

In reference to the use of foxholes as a shelter in wartime.

In times of extreme stress or fear, even those who do not believe in a benevolent higher power will hope that one exists.


if you fly with the crows, you get shot with the crows

Somebody who spends time with undesirable people will be regarded as one of them.

if you lie down with dogs, you get up with fleas

who keeps company with the wolf will learn to howl


see Naples and die

Calque of Italian vedi Napoli e poi muori, popularized by a 3 March 1787 letter by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe published in his 1816–1817 Italienische Reise. Unknown further derivation, although probably originally in reference to its relative wealth and prosperity as the capital of the Kingdom of Naples in addition to its famous scenery. Compare the various Chinese idioms beginning 生在蘇州 /苏州 (Sūzhōu)... praising the surpassing beauty of Suzhou's residents, Hangzhou's scenery, Guangzhou's cuisine, and Liuzhou's coffins and tombs.

cal

I won't say another word about the beauties of the city and its situation, which have been described and praised so often. As they say here, "Vedi Napoli e poi muori!" "See Naples and die!"

1962, Wystan Hugh Auden & al. translating Johann Wolfgang von Goethe as Italian Journey, Pt. 2, letter of 3 March 1787 from Naples, p. 180

One can die at peace after having seen Naples, Italy, nothing else on Earth surpassing its beauty.

Italian Journey
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe


head

in the country of the blind, the one-eyed man is king

in the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king#English

Alternative form of in the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king.


in the valley of the blind, the one-eyed man is king


you can catch more flies with honey than vinegar

you can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar#English

Alternative form of you can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.


you catch more flies with honey than vinegar


you catch more flies with honey than with vinegar


en-proverb

From the poem A Heap o' Livin' (1916) by Edgar A. Guest.

We often hear the famous lines quoted that it takes a heap of living to make a house a home, but we have to recognize that the family cannot do it without a house in which to start.

1973, Government of Canada, House of Commons Debates, Official Report, Volume 3, p. 2476 (Google search result)

It may take a heap of living to make a house a home, as the old cross-stitched samplers used to urge, but a commission-collecting realtor cannot deposit a six percent cut of a seller's hearth sentiments in a bank account.

1989, Carlton T. Mitchell, Values in Teaching and Professional Ethics, →ISBN, page 123:

Just as "it takes a heap of living to make a house a home," and just as it takes character to turn an individual into a reliable person, so it takes sustained moral human interactions to make any institution viable.

1995, Max L. Stackhouse, On Moral Business, →ISBN, page 28:

(chiefly US) A house is simply a physical structure and does not count as a home until significant events in the inhabitants' lives have occurred there over a substantial period of time, and they have developed an emotional bond to the house and its immediate environs.


it takes a heap o' livin' to make a house a home

it takes a heap of living to make a house a home#English

Alternative form of it takes a heap of living to make a house a home.


it takes a lot of living to make a house a home


no harm, no fowl

no harm, no foul
no harm, no foul#English


necessity knows no law

"Necessity knows no law."

1919, Boris Sidis, The Source and Aim of Human Progress:

A person who is in great need of something will find a way to obtain it, and violate the law if needed.

a person who is in great need of something will find a way to get it, and break the law if needed

অকালে কী না খায় (okale ki na khaẏ, literally “one can eat anything in famine”)

desperate times call for desperate measures


give them an inch and they'll take a mile

Modified variant of give them an inch and they'll take an ell, to adjust for the ell's obsolescence due to the standardisation of the imperial system.

O the tyranny of aristocracy!—give it a furlong, and it will take a mile,—a veto stopped me once from going to Brussels: and now comes a Lettre de cachet ordering me to Paris.

1843, John Bowring, editor, The Works of Jeremy Bentham, volume 10, Edinburgh: William Tait, pages 279–280:

If you had a horse or a small article of property taken, you would recover it by law; not for the value of the article itself, but if you give an aggressor an inch, he will take a mile.

1846, George C. Clark, Means Vs. Anti-Means; or the Trial of the Baptist Church Case in the Rush Circuit Court, 2nd corrected edition, Rushville, Ind., published 1895, page 75:

Show them that those who have defended the nation with the sword can control it by the ballot-box. Give no cowardly scamp an inch, or he will take a mile.

1865, H. Clay Graham, Hialmer's Recollections of the Great Rebellion, Containing Sketches of a Campaign in Virginia, Kentucky and Tennessee, […], Indianapolis, IN: H. C. Chandler, page 77:

Buy for them beautiful pictures, and encourage them to decorate their rooms each in his or her own childish way. Give them an inch and they will take a mile. Allow them the privilege and they will make your home beautiful.

1869 February, “The Family Circle: The Love of the Beautiful”, in I. W. Wiley, editor, The Ladies' Repository: A Monthly Periodical, Devoted to Literature and Religion (new series; volume 3), volume 29, Cincinnati, OH: Hitchcock & Walden, page 153:

Undertake to make men of students by giving full immunities, and lawlessness, or perhaps we should say carelessness and indifference, results. "Give them an inch and they will take a mile," is the maxim that illustrates their course.

1870 March, “Editor's Table”, in The Yale Literary Magazine, volume 35, number 5, page 248:

Don't let us tempt the devil to tempt us. If we give Satan an inch, he will take a mile.

1881, Charles H. Spurgeon, John Ploughman's Pictures; or, More of His Plain Talk for Plain People, Springfield, OH: Farm and Fireside, page 64:

If Kirishima-san had known the proverb about giving some people an inch and they take a mile, she would have applied it to Jack. The moment she showed the least sign of relenting from the stiff, almost solemn attitude she usually assumed when trying to teach him, and gave him the smallest word of approbation, he immediately took advantage of it.

1899 March, Onoto Watanna, “His Japanese Teacher”, in The Puritan, volume 5, number 2, page 212:

The North therefore felt herself often obliged to give way, which encouraged the South to take a mile the next time when we gave her an ell.

1902, Charles H. Fowler, Historical Romance of the American Negro, Baltimore: Thomas & Evans, page 222:

Let them know that even should they get the best of you now, that you will still be men and demand your rights as such. Never give an inch. If you do, the employer will take a mile.

1904 January, A. D. Clark, “Correspondence”, in The Bridgemen's Magazine, volume 3, number 6, page 30:

His language was not clear, but his intent was. To yield to his demands meant that he would take what money I had and perhaps do more mischief; give him an inch and he will take a mile.

1911, A. B. Snider, The Lone Traveler, Portland, OR, page 122:

The easy-going officers are perhaps our worst enemies. We all like them at the schools, and we all take a mile when they give us a foot.

1920 September, Harold E. Briggs, “Looking at the R. O. T. C.”, in Journal of the United States Artillery, volume 53, number 3, Fort Monroe, VA, page 250:

Hardly is a law on the statute books before someone proposes some way to improve it. People who distrust social security anyway are likely to complain about the entering wedge or to say, give an inch and they take a mile.

1945 August, A. J. Altmeyer, “The First Decade in Social Security”, in Social Security Bulletin, volume 8, number 8, page 6:

Give the aggressor an inch and he'll take a mile. Give him a country and he'll ask for a continent. Ten years ago, there were those who hoped to buy “peace in our time” from Hitler; Henry Wallace by the same course would have us today try to buy “peace in our time” from Stalin.

1948 April 8, Thomas E. Dewey, “America's No. 1 Problem—World Peace”, in Public Papers of Thomas E. Dewey Fifty-First Governor of the State of New York, State of New York, published 1948, (address at Dewey for President rally held in the University of Nebraska Coliseum, Lincoln, Nebraska), page 587:

Early in the trial respondent cautioned petitioner against “putting on a show” and added that “if you give him an inch, he'll take a mile. I might as well sit on him now.”

1974, “Taylor v. Hayes, Judge”, in United States Reports, volume 418, page 502:

However, now that you have given me the broad scope I will take advantage of it. When you give me an inch, I will take a mile!

1982 June 9, Scott Fennell, “Petroleum Incentives Program Act”, in House of Commons Debates, Official Report, First Session–Thirty-Second Parliament, 31 Elizabeth II, volume 16, Queen's Printer for Canada, page 18299, column 1:

Granting someone a limited concession will encourage them to take greater liberties.

jepja gishtin, të merr dorën

a limited concession will encourage someone to take greater liberties

فتحناله، دخل بحماره (fataḥnā-lo, daḵal bi-ḥmāro, literally “we opened [our door] to him and he came in with his donkey”)

得寸進尺 /得寸进尺 (décùnjìnchǐ, literally “to gain an inch and advance a foot”)

ræk nogen en lillefinger, og han tager hele armen

kun antaa pahalle pikkusormen, se vie koko käden

tendez-leur la main et ils vous prennent le bras

gib jemandem den kleinen Finger und er nimmt die ganze Hand

נותנים לו אצבע והוא רוצה את כל היד

he's given a finger and he wants the whole arm

notním lo étzba v'hu rotzé et kol hayyád

diberi sejengkal hendak sehasta, diberi sehasta hendak sedepa

ひさしを貸して母屋を取られる (ひさしをかしておもやをとられる, hisashi wo kashite omoya wo torareru, literally “lend an eave and the house is taken”)

jemú pálʹca v rot ne kladí - sapóg ne ostánetsja

ему́ па́льца в рот не клади́ - сапо́г не оста́нется

give one digit and he'll ask a span, give one a span and he'll ask a cubit

dibéré sabuku ménta sajeungkal, dibéré sajeungkal ménta sadeupa


sunlight is the best disinfectant

"Sunlight is the best disinfectant," said Puccio in explaining his decision to open the proceeding to reporters.

1989 January 5, Phil Berger, “Lawyers Slug It Out In Tyson-Cayton Case”, in New York Times, retrieved 2016-01-08:

The basic premise of a scoop is that you're bringing important facts to public attention. Your philosophical touchstone is Justice Louis Brandeis' bromide that sunlight is the best disinfectant.

1999 March 15, Michael Kinsley, “The Trouble with Scoops”, in Time, retrieved 2016-01-08:

"Sunlight is the best disinfectant," he said. "We must change our practices and our mindset, moving from a culture of secrecy to one of complete openness and accountability."

2009 June 21, Catherine Bennett, “No one gains from blowing the cover of this secret policeman”, in Guardian, UK, retrieved 2016-01-08:

So all that being said, we are taking a gamble that sunlight is the best disinfectant.

2025 April 11, Kevin Roose, Casey Newton, quoting Daniel Kokotajlo, “Big Tech’s Tariff Chaos + A.I. 2027 + Llama Drama”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:

(usually public policy or management) Transparency about the workings of an organization prevents corruption.

Other People's Money and How the Bankers Use It


it took Nixon to go to China

only Nixon could go to China
only Nixon could go to China#English

Alternative form of only Nixon could go to China.


head

en-us-if it looks like a duck, swims like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then it probably is a duck.ogg

A subject can be identified by observing its habitual characteristics.

ma nij ul loen evel un houad, ma labenn evel un houad, ma neuñv evel un houad, neuze e tle bezañ un houad

si ça ressemble à un canard, si ça nage comme un canard et si ça cancane comme un canard, c’est qu’il s’agit sans doute d’un canard

wenn es aussieht wie eine Ente, schwimmt wie eine Ente und quakt wie eine Ente, dann ist es wahrscheinlich eine Ente

se parece com um pato, nada como um pato e grasna como um pato, então provavelmente é um pato

when I see a bird that walks like a duck and swims like a duck and quacks like a duck, I call that bird a duck


en-proverb

one woman's trash is another woman's treasure

one man's trash is another man's treasure#English

(rare) Synonym of one man's trash is another man's treasure.


snitches get stitches

Formed because of the rhyme between snitch and stitch.

snitches get stitches and end up in ditches

snitches get stitches and wind up in ditches

(idiomatic) People who snitch or tattle will in return receive repercussions.

wie praat, die gaat

people who snitch or tattle will in return receive repercussions


snitches get stitches and wind up in ditches

snitches get stitches
snitches get stitches#English

(rare) Synonym of snitches get stitches.


he that mischief hatches, mischief catches

People who behave wickedly receive their just deserts.


tomorrow never comes

"I will take you tomorrow," he said.
"Tomorrow never comes," Archie replied with a laugh.

1885, G. A. Henty, chapter 4, in In Freedom's Cause:

Don't wait until tomorrow; tomorrow never comes. Don't wait for some one else to start; start it yourself.

1909, “Fall in Line”, in Seamen's Journal, volume 23, page 11:

Avoid procrastination like the plague. Some people make a habit of putting things off to tomorrow and then find that somehow tomorrow never comes.

2006, Mutea Rukwaru, Successful Time Management, →ISBN, page xv:

A goal or action which is postponed until a future day is often never accomplished; do not procrastinate.

We never go beyond the present. We reach that point but never pass it. Tomorrow never comes. Our existence is enclosed within the divine moment, the eternal now.

1884, Warren Felt Evans, The Divine Law of Cure, page 107:

"But tomorrow they give me to Bu-lot," she said sadly.
"May it be always tomorrow," replied Tarzan, "for tomorrow never comes."

1921, Edgar Rice Burroughs, chapter 13, in Tarzan the Terrible, A. C. McClurg:

I live among the creatures of the night / I haven't got the will to try and fight / Against a new tomorrow / So I guess I'll just believe it / That tomorrow never comes

1984, Giancarlo Bigazzi, Steve Piccolo, Raf, “Self Control”, performed by Laura Branigan:

You'll regret it tomorrow.
Tomorrow never comes!

1985 January 11, Jim Davis, Garfield Makes it Big (Garfield) (comic):

The truth is, tomorrow never comes! The minute you step into your tomorrow, it becomes your today.

2008, Jonathan Goodwin, We Support You […] , Xulon Press, →ISBN, page 88:

Tomorrow has no reality, since every day is experienced as today.


hydrate or diedrate

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-hydrate or diedrate.wav

From the similar sound in "hy" and "die". See more at diedrate.

(camping slang, humorous, rare) Dehydration can eventually lead to death; used to encourage children to drink adequate water when camping or doing other outdoor activities.


once a man, twice a child

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-once a man, twice a child.wav

King David being in his childhood, an old man in his ſecond childhood, for all old men are tvvice children, as the proverb is, An old man tvvice a child‡; it happened vvith him, as it doth oftentimes, vvhen vvicked men of a King's childhood take occaſion of evil. / Footnote ‡: Once a Man, tvvice a Child.

1549 March 25 (Gregorian calendar), Hugh Latimer, “Sermon VI. Being the Second Sermon Preached before King Edward VI. March the Fifteenth.”, in The Sermons of the Right Reverend Father in God, Master Hugh Latimer, Bishop of Worcester. […], volume I, London: […] J. Scott, […], published 1758, →OCLC, page 83:

In verification of the old saying, "Once a man, twice a child," Mr. Hood tells of "A School for Adults,"—and gives a picture of aged men, baldheaded and wigged, whose education had been neglected, studying their A, B, C.

1827, “The Progress of Art”, in William Hone, editor, The Table Book, London: […] [F]or William Hone, by Hunt and Clarke, […], →OCLC, page 745, column 2:

Again, it is a saying, ‘once a man twice a child,’ but, of cases without number, it may justly be said, once a man always a man; tens of thousands there are whom this second childhood toucheth not, whose inward vigour evidently increaseth as their outward strength decays, […]

1861, “a Wykehamist” [pseudonym; George Jennings Davies], “The Power of Proverbs to Impress”, in Papers on Preaching and Public Speaking. […], London: Bell and Daldy, […], →OCLC, page 104:

The time will come, dear children, when the mother becomes as a little child. Once a man, twice a child. This must happen to us all if we live to a great age. Bear then, dear ones, with a mother's infirmities, weaknesses, aye, even petulances; you may come to this yourselves.

1888 March, Eliza Allen, “Mother. A Few Words for the Young.”, in Charlotte M[ary] Yonge, editor, The Monthly Packet of Evening Readings for Members of the English Church, volume XV (Third Series), part LXXXVII, London: Walter Smith and Innes (late Mozley), […], →OCLC, page 279:

“I am an old man,” he said; “I avail myself of the privilege of an old man,—to be a child. ‘Once a man, twice a child.’[…]”

1889, Oscar F[itzalan] Safford, “Toward Evening”, in Hosea Ballou: a Marvellous Life-story, 3rd edition, Boston, Mass.: Universalist Publishing House, →OCLC, page 243:

dora: Look at all these games. Once a man, twice a child, my mother used to say. / ansell: What did she mean by that? / dora: She meant that a man grows from a boy, to a man, to a boy again.

1971, Plays and Players, volume 19, London: Hansom Books, →ISSN, →OCLC, scene iii, page 64, column 1:

Give them an inch, they take a yard / Give them a yard, they take a mile / Once a man and twice a child / And everything is just for a while

1980 June 10, Bob Marley, “Real Situation”, in Uprising, performed by Bob Marley and the Wailers, New York, N.Y.: Island Records, →OCLC:

The child in people sometimes comes out after one reaches a certain stage in life, which makes the saying, "Once a man twice a child" to be the truth.

2005, Camyl Sosa Belanger, Eva Gabor, an Amazing Woman: ‘Unscrupulous’, New York, N.Y.: iUniverse, →ISBN, page 201:

A man is born as a child, grows to adulthood, and consequently enters old age, when he deteriorates and reverts to a childlike state.

höperö vanhus on kuin lapsi

a man is born as a child, grows to adulthood, and consequently enters old age, when he deteriorates and reverts to a childlike state


once a woman, twice a child

(rare) A woman is born as a child, grows to adulthood, and consequently enters old age, when she deteriorates and reverts to a childlike state.


once a man, twice a boy

once a man, twice a child
once a man, twice a child#English


en-au-given enough eyeballs, all bugs are shallow.ogg

Coined by American programmer & open source advocate Eric S. Raymond in his 1999 essay and book The Cathedral and the Bazaar.

coin

software engineering
software engineering

(software engineering) Given a large enough beta tester and codeveloper base, almost every problem will be characterized quickly and the fix will be obvious to someone.

more beta testers means bug fixing becomes easier

kun on tarpeeksi silmiä, kaikki bugit häviävät


sticks in a bundle are unbreakable

Sticks in a bundle can’t be broken but sticks taken singly can be easily broken. Same applies to people.

2013, “The Father, His Sons, and The Bundle of Sticks”, in Fables of Aesop, retrieved 2017-05-21:

Sticks in a bundle are unbreakable. So says the inspirational Kenyan proverb extolling the power of Unity.

2014 August 17, Morgana West, “Sticks in a bundle are unbreakable”, in Glaston Centre, UK, retrieved 2017-05-13:

The children learn that there is a whole lot more that they can do together. . . . [W]hen you join together, like sticks in a bundle, you are much stronger.

2016 April 7, “Sticks In A Bundle Can't Be Broken: There is Strength in Numbers”, in SylRenner.com, retrieved 2017-05-13:

Scotty: My wee granny used to say, "Ya cannae break a stick in a bundle."

2016, Simon Pegg et al., Star Trek Beyond, approx 110 min.

A group of people who are cooperating can succeed in a situation where an individual person cannot.


a stick in a bundle is unbreakable

sticks in a bundle are unbreakable#English

Alternative form of sticks in a bundle are unbreakable.


sticks in a bundle can't be broken

Synonym of sticks in a bundle are unbreakable.


en-proverb

better to light one candle than to curse the darkness

better to light a single candle than to curse the darkness#English

Alternative form of better to light a single candle than to curse the darkness.


oil and water don't mix

I don't think you quite realise, Benneville, what it means to be married to a native woman. It will mean that you lose friends, home, and everything that is worth living for to an Englishman. You would not be likely to make friends with the other natives. Oil and water don't mix. . .

1974, K. Jamiluddin, The Tropic Sun: Rudyard Kipling & the Raj, page 29:

Less dramatic than open bigotry, but equally problematic, is the ignorance displayed by shop stewards and officials subscribing to what Barker (1981) has called the 'new racism' , the 'reasonable', and ' acceptable' racism of the 'I'm not racist but . . . oil and water don't mix' kind.

1989, Richard Jenkins, John Solomos, Racism and Equal Opportunity Policies in the 1980s, page 171:

She say that when nigger people step out o' they place and start for rub shoulders with Bacra, trouble just 'round the corner. She say oil and water don't mix, and she going beat me if I keep company with you.

2007, H. Nigel Thomas, Return to Arcadia, page 33:

(dated, derogatory, offensive, proscribed) Black people and white people should not form relationships; an admonition against interracial relationships.

And the Mennonite boys don't consider her suitable. As you know, oil and water don't mix.

2012, Larry Warkentin, Bloodline: of Peasants, Pilgrims and Poets, page 231:

(more generally) Some people, things, or characteristics do not go together.

Oil and water don't mix because oil is nonpolar and water is polar.

2015, Kathy Wollard, How Come?: Every Kid's Science Questions Explained, page 59:

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see oil, water, don't, mix.


like mother, like daughter

(idiomatic) A daughter takes after her mother.

anyja lánya

stating the similarity of a daughter to her mother

the apple does not fall far from the tree


yesterday is gone

Yesterday is gone indeed, and gone never to return.

1873, Francis Bourdillon, “The Odd Five Minutes; Or, Short Chapters on Serious Subjects”, in Google books, Religious Tract Society, page 108:

Yesterday is gone; yesterday has passed forever beyond our control. Gone with it are its mistakes and cares, its aches and pains, its faults and blunders.

1945, American Farm Youth, Volumes 11-12, page 28:

Today is the day when we can enjoy life, for yesterday is gone, and tomorrow never comes.

2010 April 25, Mark Vernon, “Ideas for modern living: Carpe diem”, in Guardian, UK, retrieved 2017-07-10:

I wake up every morning and tell myself, "There's nothing I can do about yesterday, yesterday is gone."

2017 March 31, John Meyer, “Seeking to bring hope to those with cancer, Littleton man heads to North Pole”, in Denver Post, retrieved 2017-07-10:

It is impossible to change or to relive what has already happened.


yesterday's gone

yesterday is gone
yesterday is gone#English


you don't look at the mantelpiece when you poke the fire

you don't look at the mantelpiece when you're poking the fire#English

Alternative form of you don't look at the mantelpiece when you're poking the fire.


you don't look at the mantelpiece when you're poking the fire

(humorous) A woman's facial attractiveness is irrelevant when considering her as a sexual partner.

ninguna mujer es fea si se la mira por donde mea


don't buy green bananas

Refers to the time that it takes green bananas to ripen and become edible.

I don't buy green bananas anymore. I only buy one yellow banana, for I may not be around tomorrow.

2010, Norman Molesko, Retiring and Senior Living...Experiencing the Second Half of Life:

"I'm so old, I don't buy green bananas!" "Don't say that, Granma! You're not so old..."

2010, Susan Lynn Meyer, Skating with the Statue of Liberty:

(humorous) One should not make long-term plans, as one may not live or survive long enough to accomplish them.


sometimes you eat the bear and sometimes the bear eats you

(US) Sometimes you win and sometimes you are defeated; everybody has successes and failures.


Application of the adage that "you cannot put the same shoe on every foot" produces no hardship whatsoever, since the terms of the trust may be made exactly to fit the business to be undertaken.

1921, John Harold Sears, Trust Estates as Business Companies, →ISBN, page 416:

What I tell these misinformed inmates is that you cannot put the same shoe on every foot.

2012, Jayson Williams, Humbled Letters from Prison, →ISBN, page 230:

Publilius Syrus said it a long time ago: You can't put the same shoe on every foot.

2014, James Gunn, Some Dreams Are Nightmares, →ISBN:

A method or technique that works in one situation does not necessarily work in all situations.


one nail drives out another

New people, things, or customs eventually supplant older ones.


As my old granny would have commented: "Zeal without knowledge is a runaway horse." The mosque was all frenzy, made so by factions inspired by Middle Easterners who discovered fertile ground in Brixton.

"And what are you, if I may ask?" Sol said, tapping his partner's knee. Alfred answered deliberately. He pointed to his eyes. "A realist. A pragmatist, after long and hard experience. Dreams are for fools and idiots, and zeal without knowledge is a runaway horse."

2014, August Franza, AMERICA ARRIBA!: Don Quijote and Sancho Panza in the 21st Century, →ISBN:

Proverbs 19:2 states that it is not good to have zeal without knowledge. A similar British proverb is “zeal without knowledge is a runaway horse." Zeal defines the earnestness and good intentions that remain essential to the church. However, the congregation's enthusiasm, coupled with inexperience in cross-cultural ministry, can result in an inability to listen and receive help from their host.

2014, David Wesley, A Common Mission, →ISBN:

They do not understand that “zeal without knowledge is a runaway horse” and that's why they are unproductive.

2016, Johnstone Kayandabila, Leadership's Big Idea: High-Potential Leaders in the Making, →ISBN:

Enthusiasm of an inexperienced person will cause harm.

set a beggar on horseback and he'll ride to the Devil


new brooms sweep clean

a new broom sweeps clean
a new broom sweeps clean#English

Alternative form of a new broom sweeps clean.


no rose without a thorn

(figurative) To enjoy a pleasant subject or thing, one must take trouble and hardship


a closed mouth catches no flies

Unknown. Equivalent expressions are found in several languages, so it is difficult to tell if it originated in English or a different language.

It's better to not say anything than to say something suspicious or troublesome.


It is said that a new broom sweeps clean, but an old broom knows the corners – this does not apply to Mbombela’s social scene.

28 May 2017, “Does the song “Amadlozi” by the late Brenda Fassie ring a bell?”, in Mpulanga News:

Chibnall, like Moffat, like Davies, like Capaldi, Tennant, and many others involved in the triumphant reboot, is a lifelong Doctor Who fan. His arrival should remind us of the full version of the old adage: a new broom sweeps clean but an old broom knows the corners. There are lives in the old Doctor yet.

It has been noted that the new broom sweeps clean, but the old broom knows the corners. Every now and then, the older broom must trust the young broom's judgment.

2011, Sylvia Bronner Walker, Little Nuggets for Life's Experiences, →ISBN:

(Commonwealth) New management imposes radical changes, but those with prior experience have more knowledge.


head

if at first you don't succeed, try try again

indicates the importance of persistence in the pursuit of success.


en-proverb

close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades

close only counts in horseshoes
close only counts in horseshoes#English

Alternative form of close only counts in horseshoes.


head

who keeps company with the wolf will learn to howl

Do not associate with a person who is malicious, selfish, or unkind As a proverb goes, “Who keeps company with the wolf, will learn to howl” (in other words, “If you touch vermillion, you will become of the same color”).

2012, Yukiko Inoue-Smith, A Shawl of Mist: Tanka, →ISBN:

Do not associate with a person who is malicious, selfish, or unkind As people say, “Who keeps company with the wolf will learn to howl."

2015, Yukiko Inoue-Smith, A Jungle Named Academia: Approaches to Self-Development and Growth, →ISBN:

Believe it or not but you one way or another have the same bad aspects in your personality. “Who keeps company with the wolf will learn to howl” is said for a reason.

A person tends to acquire the characteristics of those with whom they associate.

朱に交われば赤くなる

しゅにまじわればあかくなる

if you lie down with dogs, you get up with fleas

if you fly with the crows, you get shot with the crows


every rose has its thorn

He is ſo good that there is no trouble in him, for that is the imperfection of all earthly good things, as there is a drop of honey, ſo there is a drop of gall; Every Roſe hath its thorn;

1656, Anthony Burges, “Sermon XI: Treateth of Eternall Life in the Nature and Properties of it”, in CXLV Expoſitory Sermons Upon the whole 17th Chapter of the Gospel According to St. John, […], London: […] Abraham Miller for Thomas Underhill, page 57:

The Tryals you have had of thoſe things which the World dotes upon hath taught you to deſpiſe them, and you have found by experience that neither the endowments of Nature, nor the advantages of Fortune, are ſufficient for happineſs: that every Roſe hath its thorn,and there may be a Worm at the root of the faireſt Gourd, ſome ſecret and undiſcerned grief which may make a perſon deſerve the pity of thoſe who perhaps do admire or envy their ſuppoſed felicity:

1677, Henry Scougal, The Life of God in the Soul of Man: or, The Nature and Excellency of the Chriſtian Religion, London: […] Charles Smith; William Jacob, pages 96-97:

Bill—just remember every rose has it's ^([sic]) thorn and you have Lee King.

2011, Lee King, Bill Christian Private Investigator in: The Yadkin River Werewolf Case, →ISBN:

But every rose has its thorn, and the sharpest was yet to jab us.

2014, Sophia Loren, Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow: My Life, →ISBN, page 32:

However, every rose has its thorn, and alopecia universalisis no different.

2014, Turney Hall, An Eagle Soars: One Man's Journey to Baldness, →ISBN:

Every good situation happens with misfortune or adversity.


every rose has a thorn

He pricked a finger. Every rose has a thorn. Isabella is a rose. Her father is a thorn.

2007 -, Mary Louise McCaffrey, A Handful of Sand, →ISBN:

I then See it a rose with a thorn on it the last One there and I grab it and tell the guy I will take it with a card saying to my True love let this rose be a gift to you Even though every rose has a thorn But my heart will always be yours.

2010, Cordan Stough, A World of Fantasy and Disaster, →ISBN, page 103:

However, every rose has a thorn.

2012, John Ajvide Lindqvist, Little Star: A Novel, →ISBN, page 45:

Perhaps, like every rose has a thorn, every latent-variable SEM model begins with a contirmatory Factor analysis (CFA) model.

2013, Todd D. Little, Longitudinal Structural Equation Modeling, →ISBN, page 71:

every rose has its thorn
every rose has its thorn#English

Alternative form of every rose has its thorn.


IAR

Ignore all rules
ignore all rules#English

(initialism, Wikimedia jargon) Ignore all rules.


a contented mind is a perpetual feast

From a quiet heart is a continual feast, the translation of Proverbs 15, 15 in the Miles Coverdale Bible from 1535:
:All the dayes of the poore are miserable, but a quyete herte is as a cotynuall feast.

a contented mind is a continual feast (alternative)

It has been observed that "a contented mind is a perpetual feast", and has been remarked, that persons of destitute of ambition and avarice, are peculiarly likely to enjoy long life.

1826, The House Book, or Family Chronicle of Useful Knowledge, and Cottage Physician: Combining Medicine, Cookery, Diet, General Economy, Health, Sea-bathing, Gardening, Manufactures, Arts, etc., ... Including Upwards of a Thousand Select Recipes and Prescriptions:

If they are content with this sort of locomotion, happy are they — "a contented mind is a perpetual feast."

1846, Harry Hieover, Stable Talk and Table Talk: Or, Spectacles for Young Sportsmen, page 131:

True enjoyment is entirely independent of outward circumstances. It depends upon the proper and harmonious development and action of the mind, and upon a conscious harmony with the will of God ; and those who perhaps seek enjoyment least have it most abundantly. "A contented mind is a perpetual feast."

1866, E.O. Haven, THE PILLARS OF TRUTH: A Series of SERMONS ON THE DECALOGUE, pages 233–234:

Of course, a contented mind is a perpetual feast, and many argue that it is better to live with a bad situation than move to an even worse one.

2012, Giovanni Boniolo, The Art of Deliberating, →ISBN:

In addition, it includes ecological-friendly concept of consumption which values thrift and moderate development such as “a contented mind is a perpetual feast” and “restraint of desire”.

2016, Qingzhou Xu, Materials Engineering and Environmental Science, →ISBN:

知足常樂 /知足常乐

contentment derives from attitude more than circumstances


the tongue wounds more than a lance

sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me

Insults and offensive speech hurt more than physical injuries.


little strokes fell great oaks

“Little strokes fell great oaks,” says the steady worker. “One stroke fells not an oak,” makes a piece of advice to the impetuous. In danger the insignificant may console themselves with the reflection that “Oaks may fall and reeds brave the storm.

1873, The Dublin University Magazine: A Literary and Political Journal, page 685:

(idiomatic) Small but persistent efforts can lead to big results.


no gain without pain

And on a programme of works of this magnitude, passengers will need to be mindful of the age-old maxim of 'no gain without pain'.

2020 September 23, Paul Stephen, “East Coast upgrade: changes to schedule... but on schedule”, in Rail, page 31:

no pain, no gain
no pain, no gain#English


en-proverb

"It is best to come clean," Mr Kendall said. "But an ounce of prevention is better than an ounce of cure."

2015 July 2, Tim Binsted, “Australians don't trust government or telcos to protect their data: survey”, in Sydney Morning Herald:

Let us clean up beautiful Jamaica. Clean up the issues before the problems gets worse and get out of control. Government, I call on you to save Jamaica now, because an ounce of prevention is better than an ounce of cure.

2016 January 16, “Clear Bush From Vacant Lots”, in The Gleaner:

“It’s very rewarding because you can make an impact at a population level,” Dr. Gaglani said. “An ounce of prevention is better than an ounce of cure.”

2017 March 1, Stephen Adams, “Central Texas doctor conducts life-saving flu vaccine research”, in KCEN-TV:

an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure#English

(rare) Alternative form of an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure.


an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure

It is better to prevent a disease than to have to cure it.

It has been said, that the wisdom of a nation is seen in the spirit of their common sayings and proverbs; ours has one in point to the present purpose, that the ounce of prevention is more worth than the pound of cure.

1786, J. Z. Holwell, A new experiment for the prevention of crimes:

(idiomatic, by extension) Precaution and prevention of an undesirable thing is preferable to dealing with its potential consequences.


head

the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry

From a Scots poem by Robert Burns, To a Mouse. In the original Scots, the lines are, “The best-laid schemes o’ mice an’ men / Gang aft agley”.

But mouse, you are not alone,
In proving foresight may be vain;
The best laid schemes of mice and men go often askew
And leave us nothing but grief and pain,
For promised joy!

Knowing her supremely perfect being was completely mine […] I could conceive of no obstacle to my satisfaction, well, “the best laid plans of mice & men go astray” and my nemesis was her sister, the bitch.

1971, Neal Cassady, “Letter to Jack Kerouac, March 7, 1947”, in The First Third, City Lights, page 125:

No matter how well a project is planned, accidents or misfortune can still occur.

accidents will happen in the best regulated families


a spoonful of sugar makes the medicine go down

a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down#English

Alternative form of a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down.


there are two sides to every story

there are two sides to every question#English

Synonym of there are two sides to every question.


great haste makes great waste

Doing things too quickly results in mistakes.


en-proverb

January 17, 2017 CommunityNews Australia
Labor should beware, though, of aligning itself with the dreadlocks and thumb-locks brigade – he who sups with the devil should have a long spoon.

One must be careful when dealing with bad people.


who keeps company with wolves, will learn to howl

The prosecutors who reviewed the Peabody case in 1988 described his behaviour as “infantilism.” In other words, he who keeps company with wolves will learn to howl.

1992, New Times International - Issues 1-13, page 37:

After hearing this proverb, Chadwick went out to see if it was true. "I thoroughly tested it," he said, "and though it may apply to people, it doesn't pertain to cats." Who keeps company with wolves learns to howl warns us that if we associate with bad company we, too, will become bad.

2005, John Smithback, Fun with Proverbs, →ISBN, page 246:

A well known proverb says that 'who keeps company with wolves will learn to howl'. The biggest influence on my personality had these people with whom I spent the most of the time.

2016, Dawid Piątkowski, Impossible, →ISBN:

who keeps company with the wolf will learn to howl#English

Alternative form of who keeps company with the wolf will learn to howl.


it is better to light a candle than to curse the darkness

better to light a single candle than to curse the darkness#English

Alternative form of better to light a single candle than to curse the darkness.


to err is human; to forgive, divine

An extended form of earlier to err is human (a calque of Latin errāre hūmānum est) from the poem An Essay on Criticism (written in 1709, published in 1711) by Alexander Pope; see quotation.

Now thoſe that reach Parnaſſus’ lofty Crown, / Employ their Pains to ſpurn ſome others down; / And while Self-Love each jealous Writer rules, / Contending Wits become the Sport of Fools: / But ſtill the Worſt with moſt Regret commend, / And each Ill Author is as bad a Friend. / To what baſe Ends, and by what abject Ways, / Are Mortals urg’d by Sacred Luſt of Praiſe? / Ah ne’er ſo dire a Thirſt of Glory boaſt, / Nor in the Critick let the Man be loſt! / Good-Nature and Good-Senſe muſt ever join; / To Err is Humane; to Forgive, Divine.

1711 May, [Alexander Pope], An Essay on Criticism, London: […] W[illiam] Lewis […]; and sold by W[illiam] Taylor […], T[homas] Osborn[e] […], and J[ohn] Graves […], →OCLC, page 30:


finders, keepers; losers, weepers

en-au-finders, keepers; losers, weepers.ogg

finders, keepers
finders, keepers#English


in wine, there is truth

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-in wine, there is truth.wav

in wine there is truth (alternative)
there is truth in wine (alternative)
the truth is in the wine (alternative)

It is a saying, that “wine inspires wit;' and that in wine “there is truth.” These sayings are the apologies of drinkers.

1823, Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine - Volume 14, page 321:

In wine there is truth. People who love wine and have a lot of it still like to get a great wine as a present.

1998 December, Ron Loutherback, “Beyond the Label”, in Orange Coast Magazine, page 174:

In wine there is truth, or so they say, and this just may be the way to heaven, then again we began this time just fine, with a bottle of red wine, parked on an incline just you and I, not far from my safe haven, inhabited by ravens sex laden, with a maiden which is you,

2003, Kanaan, Delicate Torture: (Living Poetically), →ISBN, page 79:

“My grandfather never understood the point of a mission statement. But whenever anybody asked him about making wine, he always said this,” and Mr. Main pointed at a sign that read: In wine, there is truth. In good wine, there is hard work.

2011, Donald L. Anderson, Cases and Exercises in Organization Development & Change, →ISBN, page 35:

In wine there is truth, and although I was able to contain my excesses, and fell short of protesting my undying amour, our conversation had touched on most remarkably personal matters.

2014, Christopher Priest, The Space Machine, →ISBN:

Statements made or expressed under the influence of alcohol reveal true beliefs that are not expressed when sober.

الْحَقِيقَة فِي النَّبِيذ

one tells the truth under the influence of alcohol

af børn og fulde folk skal man høre sandheden

kinderen en dronken mensen spreken altijd de waarheid

οἶνος ἐστίν ἀληθής (oînos estín alēthḗs, literally “wine is truthful”)

ובכעסו.

bish'loshá d'varím 'adám nikkár: b'khosó, b'khisó, uv'kha`asó.

مەستی و ڕاستی (mestî û rastî, literally “drunkness and truth”)

что у тре́звого на уме́, то у пья́ного на языке́ (što u trézvovo na umé, to u pʹjánovo na jazyké, literally “what a sober man has on his mind, a drunk man has on his tongue”)


The whole thing is to keep working and pretty soon they'll think you're good. Genius is one percent inspiration, ninety-nine percent perspiration.

2003, Lagoon Books, How to Be a Huge Success, →ISBN:

In the adage that says “genius is one percent inspiration, ninety-nine percent perspiration,” this is the all important one percent.

2006, John Kundert-Gibbs, Peter Lee, Dariush Derakhshani, Maya 5 Savvy, →ISBN, page 34:

His life mirrored his words: “Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration.”

2015, Christine A. Hult, The Handy English Grammar Answer Book, →ISBN:

Certainly he has shown himself to be one step cleverer than inventor Thomas Edison with the simple philosophy he has brought to Stamford Bridge, very much in line with the famous quote, “Genius is one percent inspiration, ninety-nine percent perspiration.”

26 December 2016, Matthew Dun, “Chelsea stars shed light on Antonio Conte's genius as they bid to continue winning streak”, in Daily Express (UK):

Thomas Edison famously said that “Genius is one percent inspiration, ninety-nine percent perspiration.” What that means is “inspired” ideas may come and go, but to make them function is a lot of hard work

March 2, 2017, John Wright, “Column: The Power of Persistence”, in Parker Life:

A genius depends more on hard work than imagination.


the truth is in the wine

in wine, there is truth
in wine, there is truth#English

Alternative form of in wine, there is truth.


appearances are deceptive

It is not possible to judge a person's character from their outward appearance.

المظاهر خداعة

Appearance is not enough to judge anything or anyone

外見で自分の性格を判断することはできません

gaiken de jibun no seikaku o handan suru koto wa dekimasen


head

never put off until tomorrow what you can do today

Near-synonyms: he who hesitates is lost, procrastination is the thief of time, there's no time like the present

Do not procrastinate whatever that can be done today until tomorrow.

kdo zaváhá, nežere

do not procrastinate whatever can be done today until tomorrow

was du heute kannst besorgen, das verschiebe nicht auf morgen

nie odkładaj na jutro tego, co możesz zrobić dzisiaj

nikóly ne vidkladáj na závtra te, ščo móžeš zrobýty sʹohódni

ніко́ли не відклада́й на за́втра те, що мо́жеш зроби́ти сього́дні


a danger foreseen is half avoided

It is necessary to foresee danger as it helps you to avoid it.


en-proverb

“The jug goes to the well until it breaks” – this may not be so terrible involving a jug – translated to the failure of a scaffolding assembly, it may, however, involve loss of life.

2009, Franz Knoll, Thomas Vogel, Design for Robustness, →ISBN, page 78:

It was not the mother herself, but good neighbor women who uncovered the danger. And as always in such cases: the jug goes to the well until it breaks! The court sentenced the man to two years in a penitentiary, five years loss of civic right, and expulsion from this country for ten years, although he had not previously been sentenced.

2013, Hubert Kennedy -, The Ideal Gay Man: The Story of Der Kreis, →ISBN, page 197:

“The jug goes to the well until it breaks,” said Xandi. Brigitte frequently quoted the saying when confronted by her boys' obstinacy.

2015, Hermann Kauders, And God Created Bedbugs Too, →ISBN:

Even though something can be used well at the moment, it will eventually break down as everything does.

tak dlouho se chodí se džbánem pro vodu, až se ucho utrhne

tant va la cruche à l'eau qu'à la fin elle se casse

der Krug geht so lange zum Brunnen, bis er bricht

póty dzban wodę nosi, póki się ucho nie urwie

povádilsja kuvšín pó vodu xodítʹ, tut jemú i gólovu slomítʹ

пова́дился кувши́н по́ воду ходи́ть, тут ему́ и го́лову сломи́ть

skólʹko verjóvočke ni vítʹsja, a koncú bytʹ

ско́лько верёвочке ни ви́ться, а концу́ быть

the pitcher goes so often to the well that it is broken at last


no one is born a master

Cleverness and education can be gained only by effort.

es ist noch kein Meister vom Himmel gefallen


head

if the mountain won't come to Muhammad, then Muhammad must go to the mountain

But for a recent work trip from his home base of Milan to the small town of Corridonia in the country’s Marche region, Zanini did something out of the ordinary: He brought along a Polaroid camera, and captured what he saw over three days of meetings, fittings and factory visits exclusively with T. (He even took a break for some chocolate.)
“To extensively travel between workshops and factories is my way of doing my job: As a designer I always seek direct contact and one-to-one exchange of ideas with artisans, pattern-makers and seamstresses,” he says. “In my opinion, fashion is about teamwork, and I believe that the designer shouldn’t live aloof in his or her ivory tower... I always prefer to be on the front line!”[…]
Ancona, 11:30 a.m., Nov. 8: “More travel. It’s an ‘If the mountain won’t come to Muhammad, then Muhammad must go to the mountain’ kind of thing ...”

2017 November 30, Isabel Wilkinson, “Marco Zanini Captures His Italian Trip — in Polaroids”, in The New York Times, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2017-12-02, Fashion & Beauty:

if the mountain won't come to Muhammad#English

Alternative form of if the mountain won't come to Muhammad.


en-proverb

he who digs a pit for others falls in himself

Someone that plans harm or misfortune for others may also inadvertently be the recipient of that same misfortune.

he who digs a pit for others, falls in himself

man ḥafara ḥufratan liʔaḵīhi waqaʕa fīhā

مَنْ حَفَرَ حُفْرَةً لِأَخِيهِ وَقَعَ فِيهَا

den, der graver en grav for andre, falder selv i den

den, der graver en grav for andre, falder tit selv i den

joka toiselle kuoppaa kaivaa, hän itse siihen lankeaa

wer andern eine Grube gräbt, fällt selbst hinein

ópoios skávei to lákko tou allounoú, péftei o ídios mésa

όποιος σκάβει το λάκκο του αλλουνού, πέφτει ο ίδιος μέσα

chi scava la fossa agli altri, vi cade dentro egli stesso

incidit in foveam qui primus fecerat illam

kto pod kim dołki kopie, sam w nie wpada

den som gräver en grop åt andra, faller ofta själv däri

den som gräver en grop åt andra faller ofta själv däri


head

you never miss the water until the well runs dry

you never miss the water till the well runs dry#English

Alternative form of you never miss the water till the well runs dry.


en-proverb

you pays your money and you takes your chances

Probably from you pays your money and you takes your choice.

There is no guarantee that you will get the result you want.


the devil makes work for idle hands

idle hands are the devil's workshop#English

Synonym of idle hands are the devil's workshop.


head

those who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones

people who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones#English

Alternative form of people who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones.


those who live in glass houses should not throw stones


people that live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones


people that live in glass houses should not throw stones


people who live in glass houses should not throw stones


judge not, that you be not judged

judge not, that ye be not judged#English

Alternative form of judge not, that ye be not judged.


care killed the cat

curiosity killed the cat
curiosity killed the cat#English

(archaic) Synonym of curiosity killed the cat.


a problem shared is a problem halved

If a problem is shared with others, its solution becomes easier.


a smooth sea never made a skilled sailor

A smooth sea never made a skilled sailor and the same concept applies to a relationship. If you have a relationship where there is never tough times to work through together, there will never be an opportunity to gain strength within the relationship. Accept the good with the bad because it all happens for a reason, and will teach you something.

L.K. Elliott (2015 March 23) Confessions of an Ex Hot Mess: 10 Steps to Beat Stress and Feel Your Best, FriesenPress, page 53

Challenging experiences are the most educational and thus, ultimately, the most beneficial.


a drowning man will clutch at a straw

a drowning man will grab at a straw (alternative)
a drowning man will grasp at a straw (alternative)
a drowning man will grab at straws (alternative)
a drowning man will grasp at straws (alternative)

A person in desperate need of help will grab hold of some help, even if it is insignificant.

溺れる者は藁をも掴む

おぼれるものはわらをもつかむ


en-proverb

a foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds

A quotation from Self-Reliance, an essay by Ralph Waldo Emerson, published in 1841.

Consistency may not be the key to success; changes, even minor ones, must be introduced.


the apples on the other side of the wall are the sweetest

the grass is always greener on the other side#English

Synonym of the grass is always greener on the other side.


you cannot please everyone

It is not possible to act in a manner that will please everyone


you can't catch old birds with chaff

Referencing a quotation of Miguel de Cervantes: "You must not think, sir, to catch old birds with chaff."

The wisest and the most experienced cannot be easily deceived.


a burnt child dreads the fire

the burnt child dreads the fire (alternative)
the burnt child fears the fire (alternative)

The Continental insurance company has instructed its agents not to use Rubber Stamps to affix their signatures to policies, renewals, etc., because “Rubber Stamps are easily duplicated, at small expense, even in the case of fac-similes of signatures, and forgery and fraud are facilitated by their use.” […] A burnt child dreads the fire and the Continental has had a painful experience.

1886 December 23, “The Week”, in The Chronicle: A Weekly Insurance Journal, volume 38, number 26, page 309:

A.—They struck. A combination of the Knights of Labor caused them to strike. / […] / Q.—Did you refuse to give them work again? A.—I did. / Q.—What was the reason? A.—Because a “burnt child dreads the fire,” and we did not want them again.

1888 May 4, Sam Heakes, Joseph Gray, “[Questioning]”, in Report of the Royal Commmission on the Relations of Capital and Labor in Canada: Evidence—Ontario, published 1889, page 1092:

I didn’t mean to interfere, dear. I never will again. You can rely on me. A burnt child dreads the fire. Once bitten—

1923, George S. Kaufman, Marc Connelly, Dulcy: A Comedy in Three Acts, page 126:

[…] I doubt very much whether such funds will soon be placed in the channels of trade, because “a burnt child dreads the fire.” These depositors will not entrust their earnings any time soon to another banking institution unless they have some assurance or guarantee that such deposits will be protected.

1932 January 14, Butler B. Hare, “Reconstruction Finance Corporation”, in Proceedings and Debates of the First Session of the Seventy-Second Congress of the United States of America, volume 75, part 2, published 1932, page 1968:

They are the living antithesis of the saying, “A burnt child dreads the fire,” since they repeat the same fiascos time and again in an impressively self-destructive fashion.

1945 April 26, Phyllis Greenacre, Conscience in the Psychopath; republished as J. Reid Meloy, editor, The Mark of Cain: Psychoanalytic Insight and the Psychopath, 2001, →ISBN:

(dated) A person harmed by something becomes more cautious about it.

ঘর পোড়া গরু সিঁদুরে মেঘ দেখে ডরায়

a person harmed by something becomes more cautious about it — see also once bitten, twice shy

十年怕井绳

yī zhāo bèi shé yǎo, shí nián pà jǐng shéng

ópoios kaeí sto chyló fysáei kai to giaoúrti

όποιος καεί στο χυλό φυσάει και το γιαούρτι

kto raz się sparzył, ten na zimne dmucha


it takes two to make a quarrel

En-au-it takes two to make a quarrel.ogg

(ethics, idiomatic) It takes two or more people to cause a quarrel; one cannot blame an argument entirely on the other side.

one volunteer is equal to two pressed men


unity makes strength

unity is strength
unity is strength#English


unity is strength

unity makes strength (alternative)
union makes strength (alternative)
union is strength (alternative)

mabigat man ang kalap at tulong ang mag-anak, magaan ang pagbuhat

một cây làm chẳng nên non, ba cây chụm lại nên hòn núi cao


no rest for the weary

(humorous) Even people who are tired must still work.


no peace for the weary

no rest for the weary
no rest for the weary#English

Alternative form of no rest for the weary.


judge not, that ye be not judged

From the King James Bible of Matthew 7:1-3.

judge not, lest ye be judged (alternative)
judge not, that you be not judged (alternative)

Judge me not lest ye be judged thineself

2001, J. G. Thirlwell, “Heuldoch 7B”, in Flow, performed by Foetus:

One should not criticize others if one is not prepared to be criticized in return.


uneasy lies the head that wears a crown

heavy lies the crown (alternative)
heavy is the head that wears the crown (alternative)

Such terrors as these were unguessed by me in the days of my obscurity. Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown, uneasy also, lies the wife of that head, and the best friend of the wife. I dismissed my stenographer, and spent ten or fifteen restless minutes until Sylvia appeared.

1914, Upton Sinclair, Sylvia's Marriage:

A person of high rank or status has more problems than those of lower rank.

the bigger they are, the harder they fall

the highest branch is not the safest roost


there is strength in numbers

There is more strength in groups than individuals.


why keep a dog and bark yourself

En-au-why keep a dog and bark yourself.ogg

(rhetorical question, colloquial) One should not do something that one has hired someone else to do.


opportunity seldom knocks twice

lightning never strikes twice in the same place


head

cross my heart and hope to die, stick a needle in my eye

cross my heart and hope to die
cross my heart and hope to die#English

Synonym of cross my heart and hope to die.


bad news travels fast

After all, reorganizations, personnel changes, new policies on subjects such as travel and expense reports, are everyday occurrences, but the rumor that the Vice President of Sales has a son at college who was arrested for possession of a controlled substance, aha! That is another matter. That is news! Once put out on the grapevine, it will travel with blinding speed around the circuit. Bad news travels fast.

1992, Robert L. Genua, Managing Your Mouth: An Owner's Manual for Your Most Important Business Asset, →ISBN:

Bad news travels fast, especially when it travels by satellite. I had picked up the receiver with a sense of dread. I expected to hear on the other end an obscene caller, a local news person looking for fresh dirt, a concerned but nosy friend.

In small towns, as the saying goes, bad news travels fast. St. Charles, Idaho was no exception. Recent going's on eventually makes their way to people one might not expect.

2012, J.W. James III, North Beach Road, →ISBN, page 66:

Bad news circulates quickly because people often circulate it everywhere.

schlechte Nachrichten verbreiten sich schnell


render unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's

From Matthew 22:23 of the (King James Bible):.

One must give something (especially taxes) owed to the relevant authority.


there is a time and place for everything

there's a time and place for everything (alternative)
there's a place and time for everything (alternative)

Certain things are appropriate at a certain time and place.


it is darkest before the dawn (alternative)
it is darkest just before the dawn (alternative)

/ðə ˈdɑː(ɹ)kɪst ˈaʊ̯əɹ ɪz ˈd͡ʒʌst bɪˈfɔː(ɹ)ðə ˈdɔːn/

While I'm far away from you my baby / Whisper a little prayer for me my baby / Because it's hard for me my baby / And the darkest hour is just before dawn

1967, Ralph Bass, “Dedicated to the One I Love”, in The Mamas & The Papas Deliver:

“Sometimes the darkest hour is just before the dawn,” he said.

2017 September 13, “Dispute over casino funds casts pall over falls”, in Niagara Gazette:

“‘The darkest hour is just before dawn.’ I indulged myself in total chaos, ordering it made me get clearance again,” Sevdaliza said via email. Her debut album is set for 2017.

2016 December 16, “A$AP Ferg Adds Intensity to Sevdaliza’s “That Damaged Girl””, in XXL Mag:

The New Day's downfall was a combination of bad storytelling and an ill-advised gimmick in a cynical era. But the overly positive group will be the first to tell you that the darkest hour is just before the dawn.

2015 April 4, Alfred Conua, “Examining Why New Day Failed as a Babyface Stable”, in Bleacher Report:

The worst situation comes before a good one.


en-proverb

you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink

“Hush! hush! there is Angel on the piazza. I don’t see,” sinking into a chair, for she had been standing, “how this has come about. I thought Allen—” / “He never cared a straw for me—in that way. You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink. Not that I would leave any stone unturned to get Allen, but it’s of no use, with that Cecile Fay’s beautiful eyes and magnificent hair under his nose every day!”

1874 October, Esther Serle Kenneth, “By a Hair’s Breadth”, in Ballou’s Monthly Magazine, volume XL (238 total), number 4 (238 overall), Boston, Mass.: Thomes & Talbot, […], page 356, column 2:

Let the Legislature pass a law compelling the State to furnish every man with work, and what good would that do? It has been proved within the last six months that there is employment in Chicago, at fair wages, for all who want work. The State could not make them work. You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink. Unless the State is endowed with the power of working miracles it cannot convert the lazy Socialistic loafer into an industrious citizen.

1879 January 2, “Socialistic Stupidity”, in The Cleveland Leader, number 2, Cleveland, Oh.: […] Leader Printing Company […], page 4, column 4:

Whenever we’re asked, we give them some [contraceptive] pills. We bring it up, as a matter of fact. But, of course, we’ve got no way of knowing if they use them or not. Nothing I can do about that. You know, you can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink.

1968, the editors of Look, “[Overheard in Suburbia] Abortionist”, in Suburbia: The Good Life in Our Exploding Utopia, New York, N.Y.: Cowles Education Corporation, →LCCN, page 97:

you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink#English

Alternative form of you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink.


it takes two to quarrel

it takes two to make a quarrel
it takes two to make a quarrel#English

Alternative form of it takes two to make a quarrel.


charity begins at home

Charity begins at home, is the voyce of the world, yet is every man his greatest enemy, and as it were, his owne executioner.

1643, Sir Thomas Browne, Religio Medici:

One should help the people closest to oneself before thinking of helping others.

الأقربون اولى بالمعروف

one should help the people closest to oneself before helping others

博愛始於家門；施捨先及親友 /博爱始于家门；施舍先及亲友

bó'ài shǐyú jiāmén; shīshě xiān jí qīnyǒu

charité bien ordonnée commence par soi-même


fair exchange is no robbery

"You can get anything you need here," Shamlack explained. "Longheads will adapt to whatever trade is needed at any given time and they have an excellent eye and mind for business. They are always honest, but don't ever expect to get anything for nothing -- you get what you ask for and nothing more or less than that." "Well, you know, fair exchange is no robbery," one of the Longheads chipped in, overhearing them.

2006 -, Michele Baxter, The Chronicles of Serendipus: The Tale of the Secret Keeper, →ISBN, pages 118–119:

When you add all the other elements (risk, security, deposit, currency, condition, title, mortgage interest, planning consents, inhibitions, tenants' titles, access, utilities, damage, landscaping and so on) of the sale or purchase of the building, the 'equal' movement fantasy is exposed as meaningless in detail. 'Fair exchange is no robbery' is true but it says nothing about a fair exchange being equal in some way. In fact, no exchange is an equal transaction.

2012, Gavin Kennedy, Everything is Negotiable, →ISBN:

The current maxim that a fair exchange is no robbery—so confidently urged— cannot apply to the profit system, for if the exchange is fair there is no profit, and if there is no profit there will be no exchange

2013, Vernon Louis Parrington, The Beginnings of Critical Realism in America, →ISBN:

An old saying has it that “fair exchange is no robbery,” and in fact, exchange, per se, is a form of interdependence that can make both sides better off.

2014, Roger A McCain, Reframing Economics: Economic Action as Imperfect Cooperation, →ISBN:

Swapping two things or subjects of equal value is considered an honest deal.


a bad tree does not yield good apples

the apple does not fall far from the tree


least said, soonest mended

Hurt feelings are most quickly healed by not discussing (revisiting) the event giving rise to the hurt; keeping silent about something can avoid the problems that could be caused by mentioning it.


the voice of the people, the voice of God

Calque of Latin vōx populī, vōx Deī (“the voice of the people [is] the voice of God”).

cal

the voice of the people 􂀿is􂁀 the voice of God

The voice of the people should be heard.


money is the root of all evil

A misquotation of 1 Timothy 6:10 in the King James Bible, which actually reads "For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows."

The desire for money is the root cause of all evil.


what's done cannot be undone

what's done is done
what's done is done#English


he who pays the piper calls the tune

who pays the piper calls the tune#English

Alternative form of who pays the piper calls the tune.


something is better than nothing

It is better to be contented over something than to have nothing at all.

a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush


the nut does not fall far from the tree

the apple does not fall far from the tree#English

Synonym of the apple does not fall far from the tree.


lookers-on see most of the game

Those who do not participate in an event observe or experience it more of it than the participants.

當局者迷，旁觀者清 /当局者迷，旁观者清

those who do not participate in an event see more of it than the participants


neither a borrower nor a lender be

It is not good to borrow money from anybody, lest you will lose their trust and friendship.


en-proverb

First attested in the early 19th century. Popularised by Charles Dickens' novel The Personal History of David Copperfield (1850).

In spite of all precautions, accidents will happen in the best regulated families, and wolves steal in, in the fleeces of Merinos.

1837 June, “Spanish Theatre”, in The London Quarterly Review, number 117, page 50:

1842, Life in the West: Back-wood Leaves and Prairie Flowers, Saunders and Otley (publ.), page 65.
“Why, for my own part, I never like to alarm people—I hate that; but, when accidents will happen in the best regulated families, why not in this very irregular?”

1843 February, Charles Starr, Jr., "Inversion of the womb, or the casting of the withers" (letter to the editor), American Agriculturalist, page 22.
It is an old saying, that "accidents will happen in the best-regulated families;" and as it is important for every farmer to know how to repair the damages to which he is liable, I send you an account of an accident which occurred in my experience last months, and the remedy which was successfully applied.

We do not claim to be infallible; as the proverb says, “accidents will happen in the best regulated families;” but so far as integrity and the exercise of the utmost care and circumspection on the part of the Proprietors, and the employment by them of experienced and careful hands, will ensure correctness, purchasers may rely upon every variety sent proving true to name.

1845, Descriptive Catalogue of fruit and ornamental trees, shrubs, vines, plants, etc., Winter & Co., page 6:

“Accidents will happen in the best regulated families,” and the best regulated steam-ships may not enjoy perfect immunity from them; but as some children are eternally in mischief, and some persons never walk out of their own houses without meeting with adventures out of the common way, so there are steam-vessels, and the Virago seems to be one of them, which never put to sea without an accident.

1846 April 2, Allens Indian Mail, page 248:

"My dear friend Copperfield," said Mr. Micawber, "accidents will occur in the best regulated families; and in families not regulated by that pervading influence which sanctifies while it enhances the —a— I would say, in short, by the influence of Woman, […]"

1850, Charles Dickens, chapter 28, in The Personal History of David Copperfield, page 291:

With home and family defined as the private sphere, its members were reminded that Accidents will happen in the best regulated families and they should not wash dirty linen in public.

1987, Cambridge University, The Social History of Language, page 54:

Occasionally there is a hiatus; for instance, our sweet potatoes, turnips and cabbages arrived late this morning but "accidents will happen in the best regulated families.

1995, Louis P. Masur, The Real War Will Never Get in the Books: Selections from Writers During the Civil War, pages 88–89:

Accidents will always happen, even where there is an expectation of success.

the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry


the best things in life are free

The most valuable things in life (e.g. friendship, courtesy) cost nothing.

contentement passe richesse

the most valuable things in life (e.g. friendship, courtesy) cost nothing


slow but sure wins the race

slow and steady wins the race
slow and steady wins the race#English

Alternative form of slow and steady wins the race.


you are never too old to learn

you're never too old to learn
you're never too old to learn#English

Alternative form of you're never too old to learn.


manners maketh man

(idiomatic) A person may be judged according to his behaviour towards other people


art is long, life is short

life is short, art is long (alternative)
life is temporary, art is forever (alternative)
life is short (alternative)

In the side of a storage structure, I note a surely-not-officially sanctioned graffiti slogan, "Art is Long, Life is Short".

August 24, 2017, Passport Magazine, Hong Kong:

Remembrance of Things Past Marc Lida's Proust Watercolors Jonathan Weinberg "Art is long, life is short," or so we are told.

2002, Edmund White, Loss Within Loss: Artists in the Age of AIDS:

Alas! art is long and life is short! My friends would comfort me with the idea of a name, they say I shall leave behind me; and they tell me I have lived long enough to nature and to glory .

2011, Benjamin Franklin with John Bigelow, The Life of Benjamin Franklin, Written by Himself:

Art is more enduring than an individual's lifetime.


eat to live, not live to eat

Often attributed to Socrates and Benjamin Franklin.

live not to eat, but eat to live (alternative)

Balance can be used to heighten matched pairs of ideas, as in the maxim "one should eat to live, not live to eat."

2013, Carl H. Klaus, A Self Made of Words: Crafting a Distinctive Persona in Nonfiction Writing, →ISBN:

(medicine, imperative) It is best not to be gluttonous; eating shouldn't be one's favorite activity, but one should eat only to supply health.


the pitcher goes so often to the well that it is broken at last

On these last two points the Chancellor could have given way. He was adamant because he and Hebert wanted to demonstrate their power. The pitcher goes so often to the well, that it is broken at last.

1957, Norman Rich, M.H. Fisher, The Holstein Papers, volume 2, page 317:

She couldn't have expected her luck to last forever: The pitcher goes so often to the well, that it is broken at last, wasn't that what they said?

2006, Nigel McCrery, Still Waters, Book 1, page 267:

Madame knew her hour was fixed and she would not live a minute beyond it; nor did she want to, for, as she said, "The pitcher goes so often to the well that it is broken at last." They bled her when she was too weak to resist, as doctors always do what they like when the patient is feeble.

2005, Julie Baumgold, The Diamond: A Novel, page 116:

When something is used enough times, it will eventually break down.

When you use a thing too much, it ultimately breaks

tak dlouho se chodí se džbánem pro vodu, až se ucho utrhne

tant va la cruche à l'eau qu'à la fin elle se casse

der Krug geht so lange zum Brunnen, bis er bricht

póty dzban wodę nosi, póki się ucho nie urwie

tantas vezes vai o cântaro à fonte, que um dia lá deixa a asa

пова́дился кувши́н по́ воду ходи́ть — там ему́ и го́лову сломи́ть (povádilsja kuvšín pó vodu xodítʹ — tam jemú i gólovu slomítʹ)

tanto va el cántaro a la fuente que al final se rompe

the jug goes to the well until it breaks


bad things come in threes

Rooted in human predispositions for such cognitive biases as pareidolia and superstition.

If one unfortunate event has already occurred, a second and third are likely to occur; if two, a third should be expected.

لا تأتى المصائب فرادى

several unfortunate events usually occur together


a buck's a buck

a buck is a buck (alternative)
a buck is a buck is a buck (alternative)

“When you play for money,” said Mrs. Prudence Reynolds of Short Hills. N.J., “the temperament changes. A trophy is a trophy, but a buck's a buck.”

1977, Steve Cady, “Warm Weather Is Most Upsetting Factor To Platform Tennis Players at Forest Hills”, in New York Times, retrieved 2017-10-02:

It shouldn't matter whether a murderer tips you or a businessman. A buck's a buck. There's no morality attached to money.

2000, Adam Berlin, Headlock, →ISBN, page 110:

Anything that involves money is business to me. Granted, this is only pocket change to you, but a buck's a buck.

2011, Linda Turner, chapter 5, in Christmas Lone-Star Style, →ISBN:

And if many of the lawyers I work for are jerks, well, a buck's a buck.

2012, David Housewright, chapter 2, in The Holland Taylor Mysteries: Penance, →ISBN:

(chiefly US) Every dollar of income counts toward one's financial well-being; money is a strong motivator, even in unpleasant situations.


one man's fish is another man's poison

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-one man's fish is another man's poison.wav

one man's meat is another man's poison#English

(uncommon) Alternative form of one man's meat is another man's poison.


one man's fish is another man's poisson

Pun on one man's fish is another man's poison, replacing poison with the French word poisson (“fish”).

(uncommon, humorous) Alternative form of one man's meat is another man's poison.


all roads lead to Mecca

all roads lead to Rome
all roads lead to Rome#English


if we had some ham we could have some ham and eggs, if we had some eggs

In some minds, optical computing was "wishful thinking on the order of: if we had some ham we could have some ham and eggs—if we had some eggs."

1992, Ernest Sternberg, Photonic Technology and Industrial Policy, →ISBN, page 195:

Despite the closures of Castles, the drop in profits, and the trend of overall decline, Billy Ingram joked in the General Letter of April, "If we had some ham we could have some ham and eggs if we had some eggs. If we had enough help we could do a good business if we had something to sell."

1999, David G. Hogan, Selling 'em by the Sack: White Castle and the Creation of American Food, →ISBN:

At this point, one is reminded of the saying, "If we had some ham, we could have some ham and eggs— if we had some eggs." It does little good to know what quality professional development might look like if schools and school systems are incapable of supporting it.

2009, Catherine Miles Grant, Valerie L. Mills, Mary Bouck, Ellen Davidson, Secondary Lenses on Learning Participant Book, →ISBN, page 323:

if we had ham we could have ham and eggs, if we had eggs#English

Alternative form of if we had ham we could have ham and eggs, if we had eggs.


if we had ham we could have ham and eggs, if we had eggs

The situation reminds me of the statement that "if we had ham, we could have ham and eggs — if we had eggs" — but in a world in which there are no hens. In theory, truly secure systems are impossible.

1997, United States Congress Senate Committee on the Judiciary, Encryption, Key Recovery, and Privacy Protection in the Information Age, →ISBN, page 110:

"And if we had ham, we could have ham and eggs, if we had eggs," Esbeth grumped.

2005, Russ Hall, No Murder Before Its Time, →ISBN, page 117:

This is the, 'If we had ham, we could have ham and eggs, if we had eggs' philosophy. . . . Delivering our cash to dictatorial and silly governments was bad, but even worse was delivering our big ideas about centralization, economic planning, and social justice to a country that had 120 university graduates at the time of independence.

2006, Tracey J. Kinney, Conflict and Cooperation: Documents on Modern Global History:

This is the "if we had ham, we could have ham and eggs, if we had eggs" philosophy. Or as Nzezele put it as I was leaving Dar after having given him a large and not very well-earned tip, "When you get back to America, if you find that you have any extra money, could you send me a wristwatch?"

2015, P.J. O'Rourke, Thrown Under the Omnibus, →ISBN:

Draws attention to the futility of a plan or strategy in the absence of the resources necessary for it to work.


1850, speech of Thomas W. Gibson, in H. Fowler, Report of the Debates and Proceedings of the Convention for the Revision of the Constitution of the State of Indiana, Indianapolis, page 448.
I did not expect, Mr. President, to hear such a doctrine as this from the gentleman who, this morning, so eloquently denounced alt attempts at disunion. That gentleman should remember the old Spanish proverb—“Curses, like chickens, come home to roost.”

1860, Timothy Shay Arthur, "Worse Enemies than Lions and Tigers", in Shadows and Sunbeams, J.W. Bradley, page 19.
Have you ever heard the old Spanish proverb, “Curses, like chickens, come home to roost?” If so, it were well for you to ponder its meaning.

“Peace, old mother,” he said in Spanish. “Remember that curses, like chickens, come home to roost. Put another on my head and I'll blow your beads down your throat.”

1907 April 12, “The Bradys and "Kid Joaquin"; or, The Greasers of Robbers Canyon.”, in Secret Service: Old and Young King Brady, Detectives, number 429, page 1:

the chickens come home to roost
the chickens come home to roost#English

Alternative form of the chickens come home to roost.


love the sinner, hate the sin

hate the sin but love the sinner (alternative)
love the sinner but hate the sin (alternative)

(chiefly Christianity) Do not treat people badly because of their faults, but do not go so far as to accept or approve the faults themselves.


what you gain on the swings you lose on the roundabouts

what you lose on the swings you gain on the roundabouts#English

Alternative form of what you lose on the swings you gain on the roundabouts.


what you lose on the swings you gain on the roundabouts

you win some, you lose some
you win some, you lose some

(UK) There are both gains and losses in life; you win some, you lose some.


first catch your hare

Supposedly from an error in The Art of Cookery by Hannah Glasse, where "catch" should have read "case" (i.e. remove the skin); however, this is apocryphal.

Make sure you have a thing before you decide what to do with it.


head

the devil you know is better than the devil you don't

better the devil you know than the devil you don't know#English

Alternative form of better the devil you know than the devil you don't know.


the devil we know is better than the devil we don't


the devil we know is better than the devil we don't know


a hit dog will holler

a hit dog hollers (alternative)
the hit dog hollers (alternative)

(US) An offended or defensive response to a statement suggests that the statement applies to the person complaining.

potrefená husa nejvíc kejhá

an offended or defensive response to a statement suggests that the statement applies to the person complaining

se koira älähtää, johon kalikka kalahtaa

excusatio non petita, accusatio manifesta