Contents -BIBLIOGRAPHIC RECORD

James Wood, comp. Dictionary of Quotations. 1899.

Proverb

A bad beginning has a bad, or makes a worse, ending.

A bad dog never sees the wolf.

A bad thing is dear at any price.

A barren sow was never good to pigs.

A beggar’s purse is always empty.

A big head and little wit.

A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.

A black hen will lay a white egg.

A blind man should not judge of colours.

A bon chat bon rat—A good rat to match a good cat. Tit for tat.

A burnt child dreads the fire.

A careless master makes a negligent servant.

A carper will cavil at anything.

A carrion kite will never make a good hawk.

A child may have too much of its mother’s blessing.

A clear conscience is a sure card.

A cold hand, a warm heart.

A crafty knave needs no broker.Quoted in Hen. VI.

A crown is no cure for the headache.

A danger foreseen is half avoided.

A drop of honey catches more flies than a hogshead of vinegar.

A drowning man will catch at a straw.

Ægroto, dum anima est, spes est—While a sick man has life, there is hope.

Æmulatio æmulationem parit—Emulation begets emulation.

A fair face may hide a foul heart.

A fault confessed is half redressed.

A fonte puro pura defluit aqua—From a pure spring pure water flows.

A fool and his money are soon parted.

A fool is wise in his own conceit.

A fool knows more in his own house than a wise man in another’s.

A fool may give a wise man counsel.

A fool may make money, but it takes a wise man to spend it.

A fool when he is silent is counted wise.

A fool’s bolt may sometimes hit the mark.

A friend in court makes the process short.

A friend is never known till needed.

A friend to everybody is a friend to nobody.

A fronte præcipitium, a tergo lupus—A precipice before, a wolf behind.

A full cup is hard to carry.

A gold key opens every door.

A good bargain is a pick-purse.

A good beginning makes a good ending.

A good friend is my nearest relation.

A good horse should be seldom spurred.

A good marksman may miss.

A good name is sooner lost than won.

A good presence is a letter of recommendation.

A good road and a wise traveller are two different things.

A good surgeon must have an eagle’s eye, a lion’s heart, and a lady’s hand.

A good wife and health are a man’s best wealth.

A green winter makes a fat churchyard.

A growing youth has a wolf in his belly.

A guilty conscience needs no accuser.

A hair of the dog that bit him.

A hedge between, keeps friendship green.

A hook’s well lost to catch a salmon.

A hundred years cannot repair a moment’s loss of honour.

A hungry belly has no ears.

A leaden sword in an ivory scabbard.

A liar should have a good memory.

A lie has no legs, but scandal has wings.

A light heart lives long.

A little body often harbours a great soul.

A little is better than none.

A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump.

A living dog is better than a dead lion.

A loan should come laughing home.

A man can do no more than he can.

A man at sixteen will prove a child at sixty.

A man cannot spin and reel at the same time.

A man cannot whistle and drink at the same time.

A man is a fool or his own physician at forty.

A man may do what he likes with his own.

A man must ask his wife’s leave to thrive.

A man’s best fortune or his worst is his wife.

A man’s gift makes room for him.

A man’s house is his castle.

A man’s walking is a succession of falls.

A miss is as good as a mile.

A new broom sweeps clean.

A peck of March dust is worth a king’s ransom.

A pet lamb makes a cross ram.

A place for everything, and everything in its place.

A plant often removed cannot thrive.

A pound of care won’t pay an ounce of debt.

A ragged colt may make a good horse.

A reconciled friend is a double enemy.

A rolling stone gathers no moss.

A saint abroad, a devil at home.

A silver key can open an iron lock.

A slow fire makes sweet malt.

A sorrow shared is but half a trouble, / But a joy that’s shared is a joy made double.

A spot is most seen on the finest cloth.

A spur in the head is worth two in the heels.

A stitch in time saves nine.

A tale never loses in the telling.

A tattler is worse than a thief.

A thief knows a thief, as a wolf knows a wolf.

A thing you don’t want is dear at any price.

A threatened blow is seldom given.

A travelled man has leave to lie.

A tree is known by its fruit.

A useful trade is a mine of gold.

A wilful man must have his way.

A willing mind makes a light foot.

A wise man is never less alone than when alone.

A wolf in sheep’s clothing.

A woman conceals what she does not know.

A word and a stone let go cannot be recalled.

Ab inopia ad virtutem obsepta est via—The way from poverty to virtue is an obstructed one.

Absens hæres non erit—The absent one will not be the heir.

Abusus non tollit usum—Abuse is no argument against use.

Accensa domo proximi, tua quoque periclitatur—When the house of your neighbour is on fire, your own is in danger.

Actions speak louder than words.

Adversus solem ne loquitor—Speak not against the sun, i.e., don’t argue against what is sun-clear.

Afflictions are blessings in disguise.

After dinner rest awhile; after supper walk a mile.

After-wit is everybody’s wit.

Agree, for the law is costly.

Agues come on horseback and go away on foot.

Alia res sceptrum, alia plectrum—Ruling men is one thing, fiddling to them another.

Aliam excute quercum—Go, shake some other oak (of its fruit).

Aliena optimum frui insania—It is best to profit by the madness of other people.

Alienos agros irrigas tuis sitientibus—You water the fields of others, while your own are parched.

Aliis lætus, sapiens sibi—Cheerful for others, wise for himself.

All are not hunters that blow the horn.

All are not saints that go to church.

All are not soldiers that go to the wars.

All are not thieves that dogs bark at.

All cats are grey in the dark.

All feet tread not in one shoe.

All his geese are swans.

All is good that God sends us.

All is not gold that glitters.

All is not lost that’s in peril.

All the keys don’t hang at one man’s girdle.

All the wit in the world is not in one head.

All things are in perpetual flux and fleeting.

All truth is not to be told at all times.

All women are good, viz., for something or nothing.

All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.

All’s well that ends well.

Almsgiving never made any man poor.

Alter ipse amicus—A friend is a second self.

Altera manu fert lapidem, altera panem ostentat—He carries a stone in one hand, and shows bread in the other.

Altera manu scabunt, altera feriunt—They tickle with one hand and smite with the other.

Always have two strings to your bow.

Amicorum esse communia omnia—Friends’ goods are all common property.

Among the blind the one-eyed is a king.

An archer is known by his aim, not by his arrows.

An Argus at home, a mole abroad.

An empty purse fills the face with wrinkles.

An evening red and morning grey, is a sure sign of a fair day.

An idle brain is the devil’s workshop.

An ill wind that blows nobody good.

An ill workman quarrels with his tools.

An indifferent agreement is better than a good verdict.

An old bird is not to be caught with chaff.

An old knave is no babe.

An open confession is good for the soul.

An open door may tempt a saint.

An ounce of discretion is worth a pound of wit.

An ounce of practice is worth a pound of preaching.

Animo ægrotanti medicus est oratio—Kind words are as a physician to an afflicted spirit.

Anything for a quiet life.

Apothecaries would not sugar their pills unless they were bitter.

Arbore dejecta qui vult ligna colligit—When the tree is thrown down, any one that likes may gather the wood.

Arenæ mandas semina—You are sowing grain in the sand.

Ars varia vulpis, ast una echino maxima—The fox has many tricks; the hedgehog only one, and that greatest of all.

As a tree falls, so shall it lie.

As good be out of the world as out of the fashion.

As he who has health is young, so he who owes nothing is rich.

As long lives a merry heart as a sad.

As proud go behind as before.

As the fool thinks, the bell clinks.

As the good man saith, so say we: / As the good woman saith, so it must be.

As the old cock crows, the young one learns.

As you do to others, expect others to do to you.

As you make your bed you must lie on it.

As you sow you shall reap.

Asinum sub fræno currere docere—To teach an ass to obey the rein, i.e., to labour in vain.

Asinus asino, et sus sui pulcher—An ass is beautiful to an ass, and a pig to a pig.

Asinus inter simias—An ass among apes, i.e., a fool among people who make a fool of him.

Astutior coccyge—More crafty than the cuckoo (who deposits her eggs in another bird’s nest).

Audax ad omnia fœmina, quæ vel amat vel odit—A woman, when she either loves or hates, will dare anything.

Auro loquente nihil pollet quævis ratio—When gold speaks, no reason the least avails.

Aurora musis amica—Aurora is friendly to the Muses.

Aut regem aut fatuum nasci oportere—A man ought to be born either a king or a fool.In Seneca.

Avarus, nisi cum moritur, nil recte facit—A miser does nothing right except when he dies.

Bêtise—Folly; piece of folly.

Barbæ tenus sapientes—Wise as far as the beard goes.

Barking dogs seldom bite.

Be as you would seem to be.

Be just before you be generous.

Be swift to hear, slow to speak.

Bear wealth, poverty will bear itself.

Beati monoculi in regione cæcorum—Blessed are the one-eyed among those who are blind.

Beauty without grace is a violet without smell.

Before you trust a man, eat a peck of salt with him.

Beggars must not be choosers.

Begun is half done.

Benignus etiam dandi causam cogitat—The benevolent man even weighs the grounds of his liberality.

Best time is present time.

Better a fortune in a wife than with a wife.

Better a living dog than a dead lion.

Better an egg to-day than a hen to-morrow.

Better be poor than wicked.

Better bend than break.

Better buy than borrow.

Better deny at once than promise long.

Better go back than go wrong.

Better it is to be envied than pitied.

Better lose a jest than a friend.

Better never begin than never make an end.

Better one-eyed than stone-blind.

Better say nothing than nothing to the purpose.

Better ten guilty escape than one innocent man suffer.

Better to ask than go astray.

Better to say “Here it is” than “Here it was.”

Better untaught than ill taught.

Between saying and doing there’s a long road.

Beware of “Had I wist.”

Beware of a silent dog and still water.

Beware of a silent man and a dog that does not bark.

Birds of a feather flock together.

Birth is much, but breeding is more.

Bis peccare in bello non licet—It is not permitted to blunder in war a second time.

Blessed be nothing.

Blood is thicker than water.

Bos alienus subinde prospectat foras—A strange ox every now and then turns its eyes wistfully to the door.

Bos in lingua—He has an ox on his tongue, i.e., a bribe to keep silent, certain coins in Athens being stamped with an ox.

Bos lassus fortius figit pedem—The tired ox plants his foot more firmly.

Bought wit is best—i.e., bought by experience.

Brag is a good dog, but Holdfast is better.

Bread at pleasure, / Drink by measure.

Brevis voluptas mox doloris est parens—Short-lived pleasure is the parent of pain.

Bullies are generally cowards.

By bravely enduring it, an evil which cannot be avoided is overcome.

By doing nothing we learn to do ill.

By others’ faults wise men correct their own.

Cæsar non supra grammaticos—Cæsar has no authority over the grammarians.

Camelus desiderans cornua etiam aures perdidit—The camel begging for horns was deprived of his ears as well.

Capiat, qui capere possit—Let him take who can.

Caput artis est, decere quod facias—The chief thing in any art you may practise is that you do only the one you are fit for.

Car tel est votre plaisir—For such is our pleasure.

Care killed the cat.

Carte blanche—Unlimited power to act (lit. blank paper).

Catch not at the shadow and lose the substance.

Catus amat pisces, sed non vult tingere plantas—Puss likes fish, but does not care to wet her feet.

Caution is the parent of safety.

Cave ab homine unius libri—Beware of a man of one book.

Charity begins at home.

Charta non erubescit—A document does not blush.

Chastity is like an icicle; if it once melts, that’s the last of it.

Cheapest is the dearest.

Chi si affoga, s’attaccherebbe a’ rasoj—A drowning man would catch at razors.

Children and chickens are always a-picking.

Children and drunk people speak the truth.

Children and fools speak the truth.

Children suck the mother when they are young, and the father when they are old.

Christmas comes but once a year.

Cleanliness is near of kin to godliness.

Close sits my shirt, but closer sits my skin.

Cold hand, warm heart.

Cold pudding settles one’s love.

Common fame is seldom to blame.

Commune naufragium omnibus est consolatio—A shipwreck (disaster) that is common is a consolation to all.

Compagnon de voyage—A fellow-traveller.

Confess you were wrong yesterday; it will show you are wise to-day.

Confine your tongue, lest it confine you.

Conscientia mille testes—Conscience is equal to a thousand witnesses.

Content is better than riches.

Content is the true philosopher’s stone.

Contre fortune bon cœur—Against change of fortune set a bold heart.

Courage against misfortune, and reason against passion.

Courage is the wisdom of manhood; foolhardiness, the folly of youth.

Courtesy costs nothing.

Cover yourself with honey and the flies will fasten on you.

Covetousness bursts the bag.

Cras credemus, hodie nihil—To-morrow we will believe, but not to-day.

Creditors have better memories than debtors.

Crimina qui cernunt aliorum, non sua cernunt, / Hi sapiunt aliis, desipiuntque sibi—Those who see the faults of others, but not their own, are wise for others and fools for themselves.

Crosses are ladders that lead to heaven.

Crows do not pick out crows’ eyes.

Cucullus non facit monachum—The cowl does not make the monk.

Cui placet, obliviscitur; cui dolet, meminit—Acts of kindness are soon forgotten, but the memory of an offence remains.

Cuilibet in arte sua perito credendum est—Every man is to be trusted in his own art.

Cuique suum—His own to every one.

Cura facit canos—Care brings grey hairs.

Curses are like chickens; they always return home.

Custom is the plague of wise men and the idol of fools.

Cut your coat according to your cloth.

Dames quêteuses—Ladies who collect for the poor.

Damnum appellandum est cum mala fama lucrum—Gain at the expense of credit must be set down as loss.

Danger past, God forgotten.

Dare pondus idonea fumo—Fit only to give importance to trifles (lit. give weight to smoke).

Dat Deus immiti cornua curta bovi—God gives the vicious ox short horns.

Daub yourself with honey, and you’ll be covered with flies.

De fumo in flammam—Out of the frying-pan into the fire.

De pilo, or de filo, pendet—It hangs by a hair.

Death pays all debts.

Debt is the worst kind of poverty.

Deliberat Roma, perit Saguntum—While Rome deliberates, Saguntum perishes.

Desperate diseases need desperate remedies.

Di irati laneos pedes habent—The gods when angry have their feet covered with wool.

Diet cures more than doctors.

Dii laboribus omnia vendunt—The gods sell all things to hard labour.

Dives aut iniquus est aut iniqui hæres—A rich man is an unjust man, or the heir of one.

Do not halloo till you are out of the wood.

[Greek]—Don’t pronounce sentence till you have heard the story of both parties.

Doing nothing is doing ill.

Dolium volvitur—An empty vessel rolls easily.

Domi manere convenit felicibus—Those who are happy at home should remain at home.

Don’t reckon your chickens before they are hatched.

Dulcibus est verbis alliciendus amor—Love is to be won by affectionate words.

Duos qui sequitur lepores neutrum capit—He who follows two hares is sure to catch neither.

Durum telum necessitas—Necessity is a hard weapon.

E flamma cibum petere—To live by desperate means (lit. to seek food from the flames).

E multis paleis paulum fructus collegi—Out of much chaff I have gathered little grain.

E tenui casa sæpe vir magnus exit—A great man often steps forth from a humble cottage.

Early to bed and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.

Eat at your pleasure, drink in measure.

Eat what you like, but pocket nothing.

Eating little and speaking little can never do harm.

Ego apros occido, alter fruitur pulpamento—I kill the boars, another enjoys their flesh.

Eloignement—Estrangement.

Employment is enjoyment.

Empta dolore docet experientia—Experience bought with pain teaches effectually.

Empty vessels make the most noise.

En amour comme en amitié, un tiers souvent nous embarrasse—A third person is often an annoyance to us in love as in friendship.

Enough is as good as a feast.

Enough is better than too much.

Enquire not what is in another man’s pot.

Et sanguis et spiritus pecunia mortalibus—Money is both blood and life to men.

Eum ausculta, cui quatuor sunt aures—Listen to him who has four ears, i.e., who is readier to hear than to speak.

Even a hair casts a shadow.

Even a horse, though he has four feet, will stumble.

Every bean has its black.

Every bullet has its billet.

Every cock is proud on his own dunghill.

Every couple is not a pair.

Every day hath its night, every weal its woe.

Every door may be shut but death’s door.

Every good gift comes from God.

Every heart knows its own bitterness.

Every honest miller has a golden thumb.

Every light has its shadow.

Every little helps.

Every man has his weak side.

Every one draws the water to his own mill.

Every one for himself and God for us all.

Every one knows best where his shoe pinches him.

Every one should sweep before his own door.

Every one thinks his own burden the heaviest.

Every rose has its thorn.

Every shoe fits not every foot.

Every tub must stand on its own bottom.

Everybody is wise after the event.

Everybody’s business is nobody’s.

Everybody’s friend is nobody’s.

Everything is as you take it.

Evil comes to us by ells and goes away by inches.

Evil communications corrupt good manners.

Ex auribus cognoscitur asinus—An ass is known by his ears.

Ex quovis ligno non fit Mercurius—A Mercury is not to be made out of any log.

Ex scintilla incendium—From a spark a conflagration.

Ex umbra in solem—Out of the shade into the sunshine.

Exercitatio optimus est magister—Practice is the best master.

Experience is the mistress of fools.

Experience makes even fools wise.

Experience that is bought is good, if not too dear.

Experientia docet—Experience teaches.

Extra lutum pedes habes—You have got your feet out of the mud.

Extrema gaudii luctus occupat—Grief treads on the confines of gladness.

Extremes beget extremes.

Extremes meet.

Extremis malis extrema remedia—Extreme remedies for extreme evils.

Fabricando fabri fimus—We become workmen by working.

Fac et excusa—Do it and so justify yourself.

Facile est inventis addere—It is easy to add to or improve on what has been already invented.

Facile largiri de alieno—It is easy to be generous with what is another’s.

Faint heart never won fair lady.

Fair and softly goes far in a day.

Fair enough, if good enough.

Fair is not fair, but that which pleaseth.

Fair play’s a jewel.

Fair words butter no parsnips.

Famæ laboranti non facile succurritur—It is not easy to repair a damaged character.

Fame is but the breath of the people, and that often unwholesome.

Fames et mora bilem in nasum conciunt—Hunger and delay stir up one’s bile (lit. in the nostrils).

Familiarity breeds contempt.

Fancy surpasses beauty.

Fast bind, fast find.

Fate leads the willing, but drives the stubborn.

Faults are thick when love is thin.

Fear can keep a man out of danger, but courage only can support him in it.

Feasting makes no friendship.

Feather by feather the goose is plucked.

Feebleness is sometimes the best security.

Feed a cold and starve a fever.

Felicitas nutrix est iracundiæ—Prosperity is the nurse of hasty temper.

Felicity lies much in fancy.

Fervet olla, vivit amicitia—As long as the pot boils, friendship lasts.

Festina lente—Hasten slowly.

Festinatio tarda est—Haste is tardy.

Few are fit to be entrusted with themselves.

Few may play with the devil and win.

Few take wives for God’s sake, or for fair looks.

Fiat justitia, ruat cœlum—Let justice be done, though the heavens should fall in.

Fiat justitiam, pereat mundus—Let justice be done, and the world perish.

Fidelius rident tiguria—The laughter of the cottage is more hearty and sincere than that of the court.

Fides facit fidem—Confidence awakens confidence.

Find employment for the body, and the mind will find enjoyment for itself.

Fine feathers make fine birds.

Fingunt se medicos quivis idiota, sacerdos, Judæus, monachus, histrio, rasor, anus—Any untrained person, priest, Jew, monk, playactor, barber, or old wife is ready to prescribe for you in sickness.

Finis coronat opus—The end crowns the work, i.e., first enables us to determine its merits.

Fire and water are good servants but bad masters.

First come, first served.

Fit fabricando faber—A smith becomes a smith by working at the forge.

Fit words are fine, but often fine words are not fit.

Flattery brings friends, but the truth begets enmity.

Flattery sits in the parlour when plain dealing is kicked out of doors.

Fluvius cum mari certas—You but a river, and contending with the ocean.

Follow love and it will flee, flee love and it will follow thee.

Follow the river, and you will get to the sea.

Fontes ipsi sitiunt—Even the fountains complain of thirst.

Fools and obstinate men make lawyers rich.

Fools ask what’s o’clock, but wise men know their time.

Fools grow without watering.

For one rich man that is content there are a hundred who are not.

Forbidden fruit is sweetest.

Force without forecast is of little avail.

Forgetting of a wrong is a mild revenge.

Formidabilior cervorum exercitus, duce leone, quam leonum cervo—An army of stags would be more formidable commanded by a lion, than one of lions commanded by a stag.

Fortiter ferendo vincitur malum quod evitari non potest—By bravely enduring it, an evil which cannot be avoided is overcome.

Fortuna favet fatuis—Fortune favours fools.

Fortuna favet fortibus—Fortune favours the brave.

Fortune can take from us nothing but what she gave.

Four eyes see more than two.

Fretting cares make grey hairs.

Friends may meet, / But mountains never greet.

Friends, like mushrooms, spring up in out-of-the-way places.

Friendship made in a moment is of no moment.

[Greek]—From a bad crow a bad egg.

From a bad paymaster get what you can.

From hearing comes wisdom, from speaking repentance.

From our ancestors come our names, from our virtues our honours.

From pillar to post—originally from whipping-post to pillory, i.e., from had to worse.

Frost and fraud both end in foul.

Frugality is an estate.

Fruit is seed.

Frustra Herculi—In vain to speak against Hercules.

Frustra laborat qui omnibus placere studet—He labours in vain who studies to please everybody.

Fugere est triumphus—Flight (i.e., from temptation) is a triumph.

Full vessels give the least sound.

Furor fit læsa sæpius patientia—Patience, when outraged often, is converted into rage.

Fury wasteth, as patience lasteth.

Gallus in sterquilinio suo plurimum potest—The cock is proudest on his own dunghill.

Gear is easier gained than guided.

Get a good name and go to sleep.

Get money, honestly if you can, but get money.

Get spindle and distaff ready, and God will send the flax.

Gifts make their way through stone walls.

Give a dog an ill name and hang him.

Give a hint to a man of sense and consider the thing done.

Give a man luck and throw him into the sea.

Give a rogue rope enough, and he will hang himself.

Give and spend, / And God will send.

Give and take.

Give every man his due.

Give him an inch and he’ll take an ell.

Give neither counsel nor salt till you are asked for it.

Give the devil rope enough and he will hang himself.

Give way to your betters.

Gladiator in arena consilium capit—The gladiator is taking advice when he is already in the lists.

Gluttony kills more than the sword.

God comes at last, when we think He is farthest off.

God comes to see us without bell.

God comes with leaden feet, but strikes with iron hands.

God deals His wrath by weight, but His mercy without weight.

God defend me from the man of one book.

God gives all things to industry.

God helps those who help themselves.

God is where He was.

God never forsakes His own.

God permits, but not for ever.

God stays long, but strikes at last.

Gold is the sovereign of all sovereigns.

Good advice / Is beyond all price.

Good and quickly seldom meet.

Good bees never turn drones.

Good bread needs baking.In Goethe.

Good company upon the road is the shortest cut.

Good courage breaks ill-luck.

Good husbandry is good divinity.

Good is good, but better carrieth it.

Good laws often proceed from bad manners.

Good luck comes by cuffing.

Good mind, good find.

Good take heed / Doth surely speed.

Good to begin well, but better to end well.

Good ware makes a quick market.

Good wine needs no bush, i.e., advertisement.

Good words and no deeds.

Good words cool more than cold water.

Good words cost nothing and are worth much.

Good works will never save you, but you will never be saved without them.

Gossiping and lying go hand in hand.

Government of the will is better than increase of knowledge.

Grasp all, lose all.

Grass grows not on the highway.

Gratia gratiam parit—Kindness produces kindness.

Gratitude is the least of virtues, ingratitude the worst of vices.

Great boast, small roast.

Great cry but little wool, as the devil said when he shear’d his hogs.

Great gifts are for great men.

Great souls are not cast down by adversity.

Great talkers are like leaky pitchers, everything runs out of them.

Great talkers are little doers.

Greediness bursts the bag.

Grief divided is made lighter.

Gutta cavat lapidem non vi, sed sæpe cadendo—The drop hollows the stone not by force, but by continually falling.

Gutta fortunæ præ dolio sapientiæ—A drop of good fortune rather than a cask of wisdom.

Hæredis fletus sub persona risus est—The weeping of an heir is laughter under a mask.

Habits are at first cobwebs, at last cables.

Half a loaf is better than no bread.

Handsome is that handsome does.

Hap and mishap govern the world.

Happy is he that is happy in his children.

Happy is the man whose father went to the devil.

Hard with hard builds no houses; soft binds hard.

Harm watch, harm catch.

Hasty resolutions seldom speed well.

Have not thy cloak to make when it begins to rain.

Have the French for friends, but not for neighbours.

He dances well to whom fortune pipes.

He frieth in his own grease.

He has hard work who has nothing to do.

He has seen a wolf.Of one who suddenly curbs his tongue.

He is a poor smith who cannot bear smoke.

He is a wise child that knows his own father.

He is all there when the bell rings.

He is lifeless that is faultless.

He is my friend that grinds at my mill.

He is my friend that helps me, and not he that pities me.

He is neither fish, nor flesh, nor good red herring.

He is not the best carpenter who makes the most chips.

He is richest that has fewest wants.

He is the greatest conqueror who has conquered himself.

He knocks boldly at the door who brings good news.

He knows best what good is that has endured evil.

He knows much who knows how to hold his tongue.

He knows not what love is that has no children.

He knows the water the best who has waded through it.

He loses his thanks who promises and delays.

He must needs go that the devil drives.

He needs a long spoon who eats out of the same dish with the devil.

He spends best that spares to spend again.

He that builds by the wayside has many masters.

He that buyeth magistracy must sell justice.

He that buys what he does not want, must often sell what he does want.

He that by the plough would thrive, / Himself must either hold or drive.

He that can be won with a feather will be lost with a straw.

He that cannot pay in purse must pay in person.

He that ceases to be a friend never was a good one.

He that cuts himself wilfully deserves no salve.

He that deserves nothing should be content with anything.

He that does what he can, does what he ought.

He that does you a very ill turn will never forgive you.

He that eats longest lives longest.

He that endureth is not overcome.

He that gives to the poor lends to the Lord.

He that goes a-borrowing goes a-sorrowing.

He that goes softly goes safely.

He that grasps at too much holds nothing fast.

He that has a head of wax should not walk in the sun.

He that has no sense at thirty will never have any.

He that has no shame has no conscience.

He that hears much and speaks not at all, / Shall be welcome both in bower and hall.

He that hinders not a mischief is guilty of it.

He that humbles himself shall be exalted.

He that is born of a hen must scrape for a living.

He that is doing nothing is seldom without helpers.

He that is down, the world cries “Down with him!”

He that is full of himself is very empty.

He that is ill to himself will be good to nobody.

He that is not handsome at twenty, strong at thirty, rich at forty, nor wise at fifty, will never be handsome, strong, wise, or rich.

He that is surety for another, is never sure himself.

He that kills a man when he is drunk must be hanged for it when he is sober.

He that lies down with dogs will rise up with fleas.

He that lives with cripples learns to limp.

He that lives with wolves will learn to howl.

He that marries for money sells his liberty.

He that on pilgrimages goeth ever, / Becometh holy late or never.

He that promises too much means nothing.

He that runs in the dark may well stumble.

He that runs may read.

He that seeks others to beguile, / Is oft o’ertaken in his own wile.

He that serves the altar should live by the altar.

He that sows in the highway loses his corn.

He that sows iniquity shall reap sorrow.

He that spares the bad injures the good.

He that spares the rod spoils the child.

He that speaks the thing he should not / Must often hear the thing he would not.

He that steals for others will be hanged for himself.

He that strikes with the sword shall perish by the sword.

He that talks much errs much.

He that talks much lies much.

He that will not when he may, / When he will he shall have nay.

He that will not work shall not eat.

He that would be rich in a year will be hanged in half a year.

He that would have eggs must endure the cackling of the hens.

He that would live in peace and rest / Must hear, and see, and say the best.

He that would reap well must sow well.

He who avoids the temptation avoids the sin.

He who ceases to pray ceases to prosper.

He who deals with honey will sometimes be licking his fingers.

He who does me good teaches me to be good.

He who has love in his heart has spurs in his heels.

He who is weighty is willing to be weighed.

He who is willing to work finds it hard to wait.

He who laughs at crooked men should need walk very straight.

He who lays out for God lays up for himself.

He who likes borrowing dislikes paying.

He who makes constant complaint gets little compassion.

He who pleased everybody died before he was born.

He who scrubs every pig he sees will not long be clean himself.

He who sends mouths will send meat.

He who serves God serves a good Master.

He who stays in the valley will never cross the mountain.

He who steals an egg would steal an ox.

He who waits for dead men’s shoes may go barefoot.

He whom God steers sails safely.

He will never set the Thames on fire.

He works hard who has nothing to do.

He would fain fly, but wants wings.

He’s a man who dares to be / Firm for truth when others flee.

Health is better than wealth.

Hear God, and God will hear you.

Hearsay is half lies.

Heaven is as near by sea as by land.

Hedges between keep friendship green.

Help which is long on the road is no help.

Help yourself and your friends will help you.

Hic funis nihil attraxit—This bait has taken no fish; this scheme has not answered.

Home is home, be it never so homely.

Homini ne fidas nisi cum quo modium salis absumpseres—Trust no man till you have eaten a peck of salt with him, i.e., known him so long as you might have done so.

Honesta paupertas prior quam opes malæ—Poverty with honour is better than ill-gotten wealth.

Honesty is the best policy.

Honesty is the poor man’s pork and the rich man’s pudding.

Honour and ease are seldom bedfellows.

Hope is a good anchor, but it needs something to grip.

Hope is a waking man’s dream.

Housekeeping without a wife is a lantern without a light.

How can he be godly who is not cleanly?

However far a man goes, he must start from his own door.

Hunger and cold betray a man to his enemy.

Hunger is the best sauce.

Hunger will break through stone walls.

Hungry bellies have no ears.

Husbands can earn money, but only wives can save it.

I am black, but I am not the devil.

I can’t work for nothing, and find thread.

“I don’t care,” is a deadly snare.

I have saved the bird in my bosom, i.e., kept my secret.

I know enough to hold my tongue, but not to speak.

I love my friends well, but myself better.

I stout and you stout, who will carry the dirt out?

I talk of chalk and you of cheese.

I will get it from his purse or get it from his skin.

I will lay a stone at your door, i.e., never forgive you.

Idle folks lack no excuses.

Idle people have the least leisure.

Idleness is only the refuge of weak minds and the holiday of fools.

Idleness is the greatest prodigality in the world.

Idleness is the root of all evil.

Idleness rusts the mind.

If a donkey bray at you, don’t bray at him.

If a man be born in a stable, that does not make him a horse.

If a man deceives me once, shame on him; if he deceives me twice, shame on me.

If a man once fall, all will tread on him.

If an ass goes a-travelling, he’ll not come home a horse.

If coals do not burn, they blacken.

If it rains—well! If it shines—well!

If it were not for hope, the heart would break.

If Jack were better, Jill would not be so bad.

If one door shuts, another will open.

If the cap fit, wear it.

If the counsel be good, no matter who gave it.

If the farmer cannot live who drives the plough, how can he live who drives a fast-trotting mare?

If the pills were pleasant, they would not be gilded.

If the sky fall, we shall catch larks.

If the sun shines on me, what matters the moon?

If the young knew, if the old could, there’s nothing but would be done.

If there were no clouds, we should not enjoy the sun.

If there were no fools, there would be no knaves.

If virtue keep court within, honour will attend without.

If you agree to carry the calf, they’ll make you carry the cow.

If you can’t get a loaf, don’t throw away a cake.

If you cannot bite, never show your teeth.

If you cannot drive the engine, you can clear the road.

If you cannot have the best, make the best of what you have.

If you command wisely, you’ll be obeyed cheerfully.

If you desire to enjoy my light, you must supply oil to my lamp.

If you don’t do better to-day, you’ll do worse to-morrow.

If you don’t touch the rope, you won’t ring the bell.

If you have a good seat, keep it.

If you lie upon roses when young, you will lie upon thorns when old.

If you pity rogues, you are no great friend of honest men.

If you put a chain around the neck of a slave, the other end fastens itself around your own.

If you raise one ghost, you will have the churchyard in motion.

If you run after two hares, you will catch neither.

If you say nothing, nobody will repeat it.

If you sell the cow, you sell her milk too.

If you trust before you try, / You may repent before you die.

If you want a pretence to whip a dog, say that he ate the frying-pan.

If you want to know a man, make a solitary journey with him.

If you want work done, go to the man who is already fully occupied.

If you would be a smith, begin with blowing the fire.

If you would be well served, you must serve yourself.

If you would have it well done, you must do it yourself; you must not leave it to others.

If your wife is short, stoop to her.

Ignavis semper feriæ sunt—To the indolent every day is a holiday.

Ignem ne gladio fodito—Do not stir the fire with a sword.

Ignorance is the mother of impudence.

Ignoti nulla cupido—There is no desire for what is unknown.

Ill comes upon war’s back.

Ill got, ill spent.

Ill news comes apace.

Ill weeds grow apace.

Ill-doers are ill thinkers.

Ill-gotten wealth seldom descends to the third generation.

Im Wasser kannst du dein Antlitz sehn, / Im Wein des andern Herz erspähn—In water thou canst see thine own face, in wine thou canst see into the heart of another.

In a calm sea, every man is a pilot.

In a thousand pounds of law there is not an ounce of love.

In annulo Dei figuram ne gestato—Wear not the image of the Deity in a ring, i.e., do not use the name of God on frivolous occasions, or in vain.

In aqua scribis—You are writing on water.

In arena ædificas—You are building on sand.

In caducum parietem inclinare—To lean against a falling wall.

In cauda venenum—Poison lurks in the tail; or, there is a sting in the tail.

In courtesy rather pay a penny too much than too little.

In deep waters men find great pearls.

In doubtful matters courage may do much; in desperate, patience.

In every beginning think of the end.

In every country the sun rises in the morning.

In every fault there is folly.

In for a penny, in for a pound.

In medio virtus—Virtue lies in the mean.

In much corn is some cockle.

In the coldest flint there is hot fire.

In the end / Things will mend.

In the evening one may praise the day.

In the husband, wisdom; in the wife, gentleness.

In utramvis dormire aurem—To sleep on both ears, i.e., soundly, as no longer needing to keep awake.

In water you may see your own face; in wine the heart of another.

Incedit in Scyllam qui vult vitare Charybdim—He falls into Scylla in struggling to escape Charybdis.

Incendit omnem feminæ zelus domum—The jealousy of a woman sets a whole house in a flame.

Industry is Fortune’s right hand, and Frugality her left.

Inimicus et invidus vicinorum oculus—An enemy and an envious man is an eye over his neighbour.

Injuriæ spretæ exolescunt, si irascaris agnitæ videntur—Injuries that are slighted and unnoticed are soon forgotten; if you are angry, they are seen to be acknowledged.

Injuriarum remedium est oblivio—Oblivion is the best remedy for injuries.

Insolence is pride when her mask is pulled off.

Inter delicias semper aliquid sævi nos strangulat—In the midst of our enjoyments there is always some wrong to torture us.

Inter pueros senex—An old man among boys.

Into a mouth shut flies fly not.

Ipse Jupiter, neque pluens omnibus placet, neque abstinens—Even Jupiter himself cannot please all, whether he sends rain or fair weather.

Is cadet ante senem, qui sapit ante diem—He will die before he is old who is prematurely wise.

Is your trumpeter dead, that you are obliged to praise yourself?

It chanceth in an hour that cometh not in seven years.

It costs more to revenge injuries than to bear them.

It is a foul bird that dirties its own nest.

It is a good horse that never stumbles, and a good wife that never grumbles.

It is a great journey to life’s end.

It is a great point of wisdom to find out one’s own folly.

It is a hard winter when one wolf eats another.

It is a long lane that has no turning.

It is a poor heart that never rejoices.

It is a poor mouse that has but one hole.

It is a reproach to be the first gentleman of one’s race, but greater to be the last.

It is a sad house where the hen crows louder than the cock.

It is a sin against hospitality to open your doors and shut up your countenance.

It is a sorry goose that will not baste itself.

It is all in my eye, i.e., it is nowhere else.

It is always term time in the court of conscience.

It is an equal failing to trust everybody and to trust nobody.

It is an ill sign to see a fox lick a lamb.

It is an ill wind that blows nobody good.

It is as much intemperance to weep too much as to laugh too much.

It is best to take half in hand and the rest by and by.

It is better to do well than to say well.

It is cheap enough to say, “God help you.”

It is folly to live in Rome and strive with the Pope.

It is good to fear the worst; the best can save itself.

It is hard even to the most miserable to die.

It is hard for an empty sack to stand upright.

It is hard to be poor and honest.

It is hard to carry a full cup.

It is hard to kick against the pricks.

It is hard to put old heads on young shoulders.

It is hard to suffer wrong and pay for it too.

It is harder to marry a daughter well than to bring her up well.

It is ill standing in dead men’s shoes.

It is ill to take out of the flesh what is bred in the bone.

It is more painful to do nothing than something.

It is never too late to mend.

It is nobler to become great than to be born great.

It is not lost that comes at last.

It is not the beard that makes the philosopher.

It is one thing to speak much, and another to speak pertinently.

It is possible to sin against charity, when we do not sin against truth.

It is sure to be dark if you shut your eyes.

It is the company, and not the charge that makes the feast.

It is the frog’s own croak that betrays him.

It is the master-wheel which makes the mill go round.

It is the ordinary way of the world to keep folly at the helm, and wisdom under the hatches.

It is too late to husband when all is spent.

It is too late to spare when the bottom is bare.

It is truth that makes a man angry.

It is wise not to know a secret, and honest not to reveal it.

It never rains but it pours.

It never smokes but there’s fire.

It will be all the same a hundred years hence.

It will be an ill web to bleach.

It’s a poor man that always counts his sheep.

It’s dogged as does it.

It’s good sheltering under an old hedge.

It’s hard sailing when there is no wind.

It’s height makes Grantham steeple stand awry.

It’s ill living where everybody knows everybody.

It’s ill wool that will take no dye.

It’s never too late to learn.

It’s no use killing nettles to grow docks.

It’s no use pumping a dry well.

It’s not “What has she?” but “What is she?”

It’s too late to cast anchor when the ship is on the rocks.

Jack at a pinch.

Jack is as good as Jill.

Jack of all trades and master of none.

Jack will never be a gentleman.

Jack-o’-both sides is, before long, trusted by nobody, and abused by both parties.

Jack’s as good as his master.

Jeerers must be content to taste of their own broth.

Jest not with the eye, nor religion.

Jest with an ass, and he will flap you in the face with his tail.

Jesting brings serious sorrows.

Jesting lies bring serious sorrows.

Joan is as good as my lady in the dark.

Joy and sorrow / Are to-day and to-morrow.

Joy surfeited turns to sorrow.

Joys shared with others are more enjoyed.

Judge not of men and things at first sight.

Jugulare mortuos—To stab the dead; to slay the slain.

Justice pleaseth few in their own house.

Keep good company, and you shall be of the number.

Keep some till more come.

Keep the bowels open, the head cool, and the feet warm, and a fig for the doctors.

Keep the common road and you are safe.

Keep well while you are well.

Keep your shop, and your shop will keep you.

Keeping from falling is better than helping up.

Kind words are worth much and they cost little.

Kindle not a fire that you cannot extinguish.

Kindness is lost upon an ungrateful man.

Kindnesses, like grain, increase by sowing.

Kings alone are no more than single men.

Kings have long arms.

Kissing goes by favour.

Knavery may serve for a turn, but honesty is best in the long-run.

Know ere thou hint, and then thou may’st slack: / If thou hint ere thou know, then it is too late.

Knowledge humbleth the great man, astonisheth the common man, and puffeth up the little man.

Knowledge is no burden.

Lætus sorte tua vives sapienter—You will live wisely if you live contented with your lot.

La faiblesse de l’ennemi fait notre propre force—The weakness of the enemy forms part of our own strength.

Labour past is pleasant.

Lad’s love’s a busk of broom, hot awhile and soon done.

Land was never lost for want of an heir.

Lapis qui volvitur algam non generat—A rolling stone gathers no moss.

Largitio fundum non habet—Giving has no bottom.

Last in bed, best heard.

Latrante uno, latrat statim et alter canis—When one dog barks, another straightway begins to bark too.

Latrantem curatne alta Diana canem?—Does the high-stepping Diana care for the dog that bays her?

Laus in proprio ore sordescit—Self-praise is offensive.

Lavishness is not generosity.

Law cannot persuade when it cannot punish.

Law is a bottomless pit; keep far from it.

Law is a lottery.

Law-makers should not be law-breakers.

Laws, like cobwebs, catch flies, but let hornets go free.

Lawyers and painters can soon make black white.

Lawyers and woodpeckers have long bills.

Lawyers are needful to keep us out of law.

Lay by something for a rainy day.

Lay by, like ants, a little store, / For summer lasts not evermore.

Lay not all the load on the lame horse.

Lay the blame at the right door.

Lay thy hand upon thy halfpenny twice before thou partest with it.

Lay up and lay out should go together.

Lay up that you may lay out.

Laziness begins with cobwebs and ends with iron chains.

Laziness is nothing unless you carry it out.

Lazy as Ludlam’s dog, that laid his head against the wall to bark.

Lean liberty is better than fat slavery.

Learn a craft while you are young, that you may not have to live by craft when you are old.

Learn to creep before you leap.

Learn to say before you sing.

Learn wisdom from the follies of others.

Learning is a sceptre to some, a bauble to others.

Learning makes a man a fit companion for himself.

Learning makes a man wise, but a fool is made all the more a fool by it.

Learning without thought is labour lost.

Least said is soonest mended.

Leave a jest when it pleases you best.

Leave a welcome behind you.

Leave it if you cannot mend it.

Leave not the meat to gnaw the bones, / Nor break your teeth on worthless stones.

Leave off no clothes / Till you see a June rose.

Leave to-morrow till to-morrow.

Leave well alone.

Leaves enough, but few grapes.

Leaving for gleaner makes farmer no leaner.

Leberide cæcior—Blinder than a serpent’s slough.

Leges bonæ malis ex moribus procreantur—Good laws are begotten of bad morals.

Leisure is the reward of labour.

Lend only what you can afford to lose.

Leonem larva terres—You frighten a lion with a mask.

Leporis vitam vivit—He lives the life of a hare, i.e., always full of fear.

Less of your courtesy and more of your purse.

Less of your honey and more of your honesty.

Lessons hard to learn are sweet to know.

Let a good pot have a good lid.

Let a horse drink when he will, not what he will.

Let a man be a man, and a woman a woman.

Let anger’s fire be slow to burn.

Let another do what thou wouldst do.

Let another’s shipwreck be your beacon.

Let charity be warm if the weather be cold.

Let each tailor mend his own coat.

Let every fox take care of his own brush.

Let every man do what he was made for.

Let every man praise the bridge he goes over.

Let every tailor keep to his goose.

Let gleaners glean, though crops be lean.

Let him that does not know you buy you.

Let him that earns eat.

Let him who is well off stay where he is.

Let him who knows not how to pray go to sea.

Let John Bull beware of John Barleycorn.

Let not mirth turn to mischief.

Let not plenty make you dainty.

Let not poverty part good company.

Let not your money become your master.

Let not your mouth swallow you.

Let the best horse leap the hedge first.

Let the cobbler stick to his last.

Let the night come before we praise the day.

Let the world wag.

Let the young people mind what the old people say, / And where there is danger keep out of the way.

Let your purse be your master.

Let your trouble tarry till its own day comes.

Liberality is not giving largely but wisely.

Libido effrenata effrenatam appetentiam efficit—Unbridled gratification produces unbridled desire.

Lie not in the mire, and say, “God help!”

Lies hunt in packs.

Lies may be acted as well as spoken.

Lies need a great deal of killing.

Lies that are half true are the worst of lies.

Life would be too smooth if it had no rubs in it.

Light another’s candle, but don’t put out your own.

Light not your candle at both ends.

Light without life is a candle in a tomb; / Life without love is a garden without bloom.

Lightly come, lightly go.

Like a lusty winter, frosty but kindly.

Like a tailor’s needle, say, “I go through.”

Like author, like book.

Like cures like.

Like draws to like, the world over.

Like father, like son.

Like master, like man.

Like mistress, like maid.

Like mother, like daughter.

Like priest, like people.

Like prince, like people.

Like Scotsmen, aye wise ahint the hand (after the event).

Like the dog in the manger, he will neither eat himself nor let the horse eat.

Likely tumbles in the fire, / When unlikely rises higher.

Limit your wants by your wealth.

Lions are not frightened by cats.

Lions’ skins are not to be had cheap.

Lis litem generat—Strife genders strife.

Litem parit lis, noxa item noxam parit—Strife begets strife, and injury likewise begets injury.

Little and often fills the purse.

Little bantams are great at crowing.

Little boats must keep near shore.

Little bodies have great souls.

Little by little the little bird builds its nest.

Little children, little sorrows; big children, great sorrows.

Little chips light great fires.

Little enemies and little wounds must not be despised.

Little fishes should not spout like whales.

Little folks like to talk about great folks.

Little griefs are loud, great sorrows are silent.

Little is done when every man is master.

Little minds, like weak liquors, are soonest soured.

Little pigeons can carry great messages.

Little pigs eat great potatoes.

Little pitchers have long ears—i.e., children have.

Little pot, / Don’t get hot / On the spot.

Little strokes fell great oaks.

Little things please little minds.

Little troubles are great to little people.

Little wealth, little sorrow.

Little wit in the head makes much work for the feet.

Little wrongs done to others are great wrongs done to ourselves.

Live and let live.

Live in to-day, but not for to-day.

Live not for yourself alone.

Live not to eat, but eat to live.

Live only a moment at a time.

Live to learn and learn to live.

Live upon trust, / And pay double you must.

Live with a singer if you would learn to sing.

Live with your friend as if he might become your enemy.

Living well is the best revenge.

Loans and debts make worries and frets.

Loans should come laughing home.

Loaves put awry in the oven come out awry.

Lock the stable before you lose the steed.

Locking the stable door when the steed is stolen.

Loin de la cour, loin du souci—Far front court, far from care.

Long lent is not given.

Long talk makes short work.

Look above you, and then look about you.

Look at paintings and fightings from a distance.

Look at your own corn in May, / And you’ll come weeping away.

Look before you leap.

Look before you, or you’ll have to look behind you.

Look for squalls, but don’t make them.

Look not a gift horse in the mouth.

Look through a keyhole, and your eye will be sore.

Lookers-on see more than the players.

Loquacity storms the ear, but modesty takes the heart.

Lose thy fun rather than thy friend.

Lost time is never found again.

Loudness is a foe to melody.

Love and lordship like not fellowship.

Love and poverty are hard to hide.

Love and pride stock Bedlam.

Love asks faith, and faith asks firmness.

Love can neither be bought nor sold; its only price is love.

Love does much, but money does more.

Love furthers knowledge.

Love hath a large mantle.

Love in the heart is better than honey in the mouth.

Love is a secret no man knows / Till it within his bosom glows.

Love is as warm in fustian as in velvet.

Love is neither bought nor sold.

Love is the mother of love.

Love laughs at locksmiths.

Love lightens labour and sweetens sorrow.

Love me, love my dog.

Love rules his kingdom without a sword.

Love rules without a sword and binds without a cord.

Love should not be all on one side.

Love will creep where it cannot go.

Love’s fire, if it once go out, is hard to kindle.

Lovers’ purses are tied with cobwebs.

Lovers’ time runs faster than the clock.

Luck is the idol of the idle.

Lupus non curat numerum (ovum)—The wolf is not scared by the number of the sheep.

Lupus pilum mutat, non mentem—The wolf changes his coat, but not his disposition.

Lying and stealing live next door to each other.

Lying pays no tax.

Lying rides on debt’s back.

Mad bulls cannot be tied up with a pack-thread.

Mad dogs cannot live long.

Mad people think others mad.

Magis gaudet quam qui senectam exult—He rejoices more than an old man who has put off old age, i.e., has become young again.

Magis magni clerici non sunt magis sapientes—The greatest scholars are not the wisest men.

Magni refert quibuscum vixeris—It matters a great deal with whom you live.

Magnus Alexander corpore parvus erat—The great Alexander was small in stature.

Maidens should be mild and meek, / Swift to hear, and slow to speak.

Maids should be seen and not heard.

Make a crutch of your cross.

Make all sure, and keep all pure.

Make every bargain clear and plain, / That none may afterwards complain.

Make good cheese, if you make little.

Make haste slowly.

Make hay while the sun shines.

Make not another’s shoes by your own foot.

Make not thy friend too cheap to thee, nor thyself to thy friend.

Make not thy tail broader than thy wings.

Make not two sorrows of one.

Make short the miles with talk and smiles.

Make the plaster as large as the sore.

Make your hay as best you may.

Make your mark, but mind what your mark is.

Mala gallina, malum ovum—Bad ben, bad egg.

Mala ultro adsunt—Misfortunes come unsought.

Male parta male dilabuntur—Things ill gotten go ill.

Malo nodo malus quærendus cuneus—For a hard knot a hard tool must be sought.

Malum vas non frangitur—A worthless vessel is seldom broken.

Man doth what he can, and God what He will.

Man is a bundle of habits.

Man is fire and woman tow; the devil comes and sets them in a blaze.

Man proposes, God disposes.

Man’s best candle is his understanding.

Man’s extremity is God’s opportunity.

Man’s life is filed by his foe.

Man’s work lasts till set of sun; / Woman’s work is never done.

Manners are stronger than laws.

Many a cow stands in the meadow and looks wistfully at the common.

Many a fine dish has nothing on it.

Many a good cow hath a bad calf.

Many a good drop of broth may come out of an old pot.

Many a good father hath but a bad son.

Many a man settleth more by an inch of his will than by an ell of his thrift.

Many a one is good because he can do no mischief.

Many a true word is spoken in jest.

Many acres will not make a wiseacre.

Many an honest man stands in need of help that has not the face to beg it.

Many are wise in jest but fools in earnest.

Many beat the sack, and mean the miller.

Many can bear adversity, but few contempt.

Many can make bricks, but cannot build.

Many commit sin and blame Satan.

Many cooks spoil the broth.

Many cut broad thongs out of other people’s leather.

Many estates are spent in the getting, / Since women, for tea, forsook spinning and knitting, / And men, for their punch, forsook hewing and splitting.

Many find fault without any end, / And yet do nothing at all to mend.

Many get into a dispute well that cannot get out well.

Many go out for clothes, and come home stript.

Many hands make light work.

Many have been ruined by buying good pennyworths.

Many have come to port after a great storm.

Many kiss the hand they wish cut off.

Many lick before they bite.

Many littles make a mickle.

Many old camels carry the skins of the young ones to the market.

Many rendings need many mendings.

Many talk like philosophers and live like fools.

Many there be that buy nothing with their money but repentance.

Many ventures make a full freight.

Many words hurt more than swords.

Many would be cowards if they had courage enough.

Many would have been worse if their estates had been better.

Mar not what, marred, cannot be mended.

March winds and April showers.

Margarita e stercore—A pearl from a dunghill.

Marriage with peace is the world’s paradise; with strife, this life’s purgatory.

Marriages are made in heaven.

Marry above your match, and you get a master.

Marry for love, but only love that which is lovely.

Marrying is easy, but housekeeping is hard.

Masters are mostly the greatest servants in the house.

Masters should be sometimes blind and sometimes deaf.

Masters two / Will not do.

Match-makers often burn their fingers.

Mature fieri senem, si diu velis esse senex—You must become an old man soon if you would be an old man long.In Cicero.

Maximus novator tempus—Time is the greatest innovator.

“May-be” is very well, but “must” is the master.

Meals and matins minish never.

Measure men around the heart.

Measure three times before you cut once.

Meat and matins hinder no man’s journey.

Meat is more than its carving, and truth is more than oratory.

Medicines are not meant to feed on.

Meekness is not weakness.

Mellitum venerium, blanda oratio—A flattering speech is honied poison.

Men apt to promise are apt to forget.

Men are never wise but returning from law.

Men are not to be measured by inches.

Men are very generous with that which costs them nothing.

Men chew not when they have no bread.

Men rattle their chains to show that they are free.

Men will blame themselves for the purpose of being praised.

Men’s actions are not to be judged of at first sight.

Mendico ne parentes quidem amici sunt—To a beggar not even his own parents show affection.

Mendings are honourable, rags are abominable.

Mens bona regnum possidet—A good mind possesses a kingdom.

Merces virtutis laus est—Applause is the reward of virtue.

Mere wishes are bony fishes.

Merry be the first, / And merry be the last, / And merry be the first of August.

Merx ultronea putret—Proffered service stinks (i.e., is despised).

Mésalliance—A marriage with one of inferior rank.

Mildness governs more than anger.

Mind the corner where life’s road turns.

Mind your P’s and Q’s.

Mind your work, and God will find your wages.

Minima de malis—Of two evils choose the least.

Miramur ex intervallo fallentia—We admire at a distance things which deceive us.

Misfortunes come on wings and depart on foot.

Misfortunes never come single.

Misfortunes when asleep are not to be wakened.

Misreckoning is no payment.

Misunderstanding brings lies to town.

Moderate riches will carry you; if you have more, you must carry them.

Modest dogs miss much meat.

Modesty ruins all that bring it to court.

Moles and misers live in their graves.

Monday religion is better than Sunday profession.

Money answers everything, / Save a guilty conscience sting.

Money begets money.

Money borrowed is soon sorrowed.

Money calls, but does not stay: / It is round and rolls away.

Money is the ruin of many.

Money is the sinew of love as well as of war.

Money makes the mare to go.

Money masters all things.

Money often unmakes the men who make it.

Money refused loses its brightness.

Money spent on the brain is never spent in vain.

More credit may be thrown down in a moment than can be built up in an age.

More light, more life, more love.

More meat and less mustard.

More springs up in the garden than the gardener sows there.

More than we use is more than we want.

Mores amid noveris, non oderis—Know well, but take no offence at the manners of a friend.

Mortuo leoni et lepores insultant—Even hares insult a dead lion.

Most felt, least said.

Most of our evils come from our vices.

Most things have two handles, and a wise man takes hold of the best.

Mother’s darlings are but milksop heroes.

Mother’s love is the cream of love.

Mother’s truth keeps constant youth.

Mourning tendeth to mending.

Mrs. Chatterbox is the mother of mischief.

Much bruit, little fruit.

Much corn lies under the straw that is not seen.

Much learning is a weariness of the flesh.

Much meat, much disease.

Much religion, but no goodness.

Much rust needs a rough file.

Mud chokes no eels.

Muddy spring, muddy stream.

Mules deliver great discourses because their ancestors were horses.

Mulier quæ sola cogitat male cogitat—The thoughts of a woman when alone tend to mischief.

Multæ manus onus levius faciunt—Many hands make light work.

Multa docet fames—Hunger (i.e., necessity) teaches us many things.

Multa novit vulpis, sed felis unum magnum—The fox knows many shifts, the cat only one great one, viz., to run up a tree.

Multas amicitias silentium diremit—Silence, or neglect, dissolves many friendships.

Multos in summa pericula misit / Venturi timor ipse mali—The mere apprehension of coming evil has driven many into positions of great peril.

Multos ingratos invenimus, plures facimus—We find many men ungrateful; we make more.

Multum sapit qui non diu desipit—He is very wise who does not long persist in folly.

Music will not cure the toothache.

My dame fed her hens on thanks, but they laid no eggs.

My house is my castle.

My house, my house, though thou art small, / Thou art to me the Escurial.

My son is my son till he have got him a wife, / But my daughter’s my daughter all the days of her life.

Nature abhors a vacuum.

Nature is beyond all teaching.

Nature passes nurture.

Nature takes as much pains in the forming of a beggar as an emperor.

Ne depugnes in alieno negrotio—Do not take up the cudgels in another man’s affairs.

Ne Jupiter quidem omnibus placet—Not even Jupiter can please everybody.

Near is my shirt, but nearer is my skin.

Nec caput nec pedes—In confusion, neither head nor tail.

Nec cui de te plusquam tibi credas—Do not believe any man more than yourself about yourself.

Nec obolum habet unde restim emat—He hasn’t a penny left to buy a halter.

Necessity is the mistress of the arts.

Necessity is the mother of invention.

Necessity makes even cowards brave.

Needles and pins, needles and pins! / When a man marries his trouble begins.

Neither crow nor croak.

Neither lead nor drive.

Neither wise men nor fools / Can work without tools.

Neither women nor linen by candlelight.

Nemo læditur nisi a seipso—No man is harmed but by himself.

Nemo potest nudo vestimenta detrahere—You cannot strip a garment off a naked man.

Nemo sibi nascitur—No one is born for himself.

Nequicquam sapit qui sibi non sapit—He is wise to no purpose who is not wise for himself.

Never bray at an ass.

Never burn your fingers to snuff another man’s candle.

Never buy a pig in a poke.

Never cackle till your egg is laid.

Never despise the day of small things.

Never do things by halves.

Never fall out with your bread and butter.

Never find fault with the absent.

Never fish in troubled waters.

Never fry a fish till it’s caught.

Never give up the ship.

Never grudge a penny for a pennyworth.

Never grumble nor mumble.

Never hang a man twice for one offence.

Never have an idle hour, or an idle pound.

Never hold a candle to the devil.

Never is a long day.

Never lean on a broken staff.

Never leave a certainty for an uncertainty.

Never look a gift-horse in the mouth.

Never look for a knot in a bulrush.

Never meet trouble half way.

Never mind who was your grandfather. What are you?

Never offer to teach fish to swim.

Never preach beyond your experience.

Never put your hand into a wasp’s nest.

Never repeat old grievances.

Never say die! / Up, man, and try!

Never say of another what you would not have him hear.

Never shirk the hardest work.

Never sigh, but send.

Never speak ill of those whose bread you eat.

Never spur a willing horse.

Never stint soap and water.

Never swap horses while crossing a stream.

Never tell in the parlour what you heard in the kitchen.

Never throw a hen’s egg at a sparrow.

Never too old to turn; never too late to learn.

Never trouble yourself with trouble till trouble troubles you.

Never trust a wolf with the care of lambs.

Never try to prove what nobody doubts.

Never venture all in one bottom.

Never write what you dare not sign.

New brooms sweep clean.

New laws, new frauds.

New lords, new laws.

Nightingales will not sing in a cage.

Nihil scire est vita jucundissima—To know nothing at all is the happiest life.

Nil sole et sale utilius—Nothing so useful as the sun and salt.

Nil tam difficile est quod non solertia vincat—There is nothing so difficult but skill will surmount it.

Nimia cura deterit magis quam emendat—Too much pains may injure rather than improve your work.

Nimium altercando veritas amittitur—In too eager disputation the truth is lost sight of.

Nine tailors cannot make a man.

No answer is also an answer.

No autumn fruit without spring blossoms.

No bees, no honey; / No work, no money.

No cloth is too fine for moth to devour.

No errors are so mischievous as those of great men.

No fishing like fishing in the sea.

No fool was ever so foolish, but some one thought him clever.

No frost can freeze Providence.

No gains without pains.

No greater promisers than those who have nothing to give.

No herb will cure love.

No horse so blind as the blind mare.

No house without mouse; no throne without thorn.

No joy without alloy.

No longer pipe, no longer dance.

No man can gather cherries in Kent at the season of Christmas.

No man can make a good coat with bad cloth.

No man can see over his own height.

No man has a worse friend than he brings with him from home.

No man hath a velvet cross.

No man is always wise except a fool.

No man is born wise or learned.

No man is the worse for knowing the worst of himself.

No man lives so poor as he was born.

No man loveth his fetters, be they made of gold.

No mill, no meal.

No need to teach your grandames to suck eggs.

No news is good news.

No one claims kindred with the poor.

No one eats goldfish.

No one knows the weight of another’s burden.

No one knows where the shoe pinches but him who wears it.

No one likes to bell the cat.

No pains, no gains.

No penny, no paternoster.

No receiver, no thief.

No safe wading in an unknown water.

No tale so good but may be spoiled in the telling.

No vice goes alone.

No weather’s ill when the wind’s still.

No weeping for shed milk.

No whip cuts so sharply as the lash of conscience.

No wonder lasts over three days.

No word is ill spoken if it be not ill taken.

No work, no recompense.

Noble housekeepers need no doors.

Nobody calls himself rogue.

Nodum in scirpo quæris—You look for a knot in a bulrush, i.e., are too scrupulous.

Non est bonum ludere cum Diis—It is not good to trifle with the gods.

Non est de sacco tanta farina tuo—So much meal cannot have come from your own sack.

Non est ejusdem et multa et opportuna dicere—The same person will not both talk much and to the purpose.

Non progredi est regredi—Not to advance is to go back.

Non purgat peccata qui negat—He who denies his sins does not atone for them.

Non uti libet, sed uti licet, sic vivamus—We must live not as we like, but as we can.

Nondum omnium dierum sol occidit—The sun of all days has not yet set.

None are so well shod but they may slip.

None can pray well but he who lives well.

None is so deaf as he who will not hear.

None so blind as they who will not see.

None think the great unhappy but the great.

Nosce tempus—Know your time; make hay while the sun shines.

Not every parish priest can wear Dr. Luther’s shoes.

Nothing comes amiss to a hungry man.

Nothing for nothing, and very little for a halfpenny.

Nothing for nothing.

Nothing is cheap if you don’t want it.

Nothing is lasting that is feigned.

Nothing is safe from fault-finders.

Nothing stands in need of lying but a lie.

Nothing stings so bitterly as loss of money.

Nothing that is violent is permanent.

Nothing venture, nothing win.

Novacula in cotem—He has met his match (lit. the razor against the whetstone).

“Now” is the watchword of the wise.

Nulla dies sine linea—Let no day pass without its line.

Nullum numen abest si sit prudentia—Where there is prudence, a protecting divinity is not far away.

Nullum simile quatuor pedibus currit—No simile runs on all fours, i.e., holds in every respect.

Nuts are given us, but we must crack them ourselves.

Oaks fall when reeds stand.

Obedience is better than sacrifice.From Bible.

Occasio facit furem—Opportunity makes the thief.

Oculus domini saginat equum—The master’s eye makes the horse fat.

Of all studies, study your present condition.

Of two evils choose the least.

Offenders never pardon.

Old age is a heavy burden.

Old age is honourable.

Old age, though despised, is coveted by all.

Old birds are hard to pluck.

Old birds are not caught with chaff.

Old head and young hand.

Old head upon young shoulders.

Old heads will not suit young shoulders.

Old men are twice children.

Old ovens are soon heated.

Old oxen have stiff horns.

Old shoes are easiest.

Old wounds soon bleed.

Olla male ferret—It does not look hopeful; the pot boils poorly.

Omne nimium vertitur in vitium—Every excess develops into a vice.

Omnem movere lapidem—To leave no stone unturned.

Omnia bonos viros decent—All things are becoming in good men.

Omnia ejusdem farinæ—All things are of the same stuff, lit. grain.

Omnia venalia Romæ—All things can be bought at Rome.

Omnis commoditas sua fert incommoda secum—Every convenience brings its own inconveniences along with it.

On a long journey even a straw is heavy.

On his own saddle one rides safest.

On Monday morning don’t be looking for Saturday night.

On prend le peuple par les oreilles, comme on fait un pot par les anses—The public are to be caught by the ears, as one takes a pot by the handles.

On some men’s bread butter will not stick.

On the sea sail, on the land settle.

Once a knave, always a knave.

Once a man and twice a child.

Once is no custom.

Once is no rule.

One abides not long on the summit of fortune.

One barking dog sets all the street a-barking.

One beats the bush, and another catches the bird.

One can live on little, but not on nothing.

One chick keeps a hen busy.

One cloud is enough to eclipse all the sun.

One crow never pulls out another’s eyes.

One dog can drive a flock of sheep.

One enemy is too many, and a hundred friends too few.

One enemy may do us more harm than a hundred friends can do us good.

One eye of the master does more than both his hands.

One eye-witness is better than ten hearsays.

One false move may lose the game.

One fool makes many.

One good head is better than a hundred strong hands.

One good mother is worth a hundred schoolmasters.

One good turn deserves another.

One grain fills not a sack, but helps his fellows.

One hand washes another.

One hard word brings on another.

One head cannot hold all wisdom.

One hour’s sleep before midnight is worth two after.

One jeer seldom goeth forth but it bringeth back its equal.

One keep-clean is better than ten make-cleans.

One lie makes many.

One lie needs seven lies to wait upon it.

One link broken, the whole chain is broken.

One loss brings another.

One man makes a chair, and another man sits in it.

One man may lead a horse to the water, but twenty cannot make him drink.

One man may steal a horse more safely than another may look at him over a hedge.

One man’s meat is another man’s poison.

One man’s opinion is no man’s opinion.

One may see that with half an eye.

One must not look a gift horse in the mouth.

One of these days is none of these days.

One pirate gets nothing of another but his cask.

One ploughs, another sows; / Who will reap, no one knows.

One sheep follows another.

One sickly sheep infects the flock.

One sin opens the door to another.

One swallow does not make a summer.

One sword keeps another in the scabbard.

One wrong step may give you a great fall.

One’s too few, three’s too many.

Onus segni impone asello—Lay the burden on the lazy ass.

Open not your door when the devil knocks.

Open rebuke is better than secret love.

Opinion is the mistress of fools.

Opportunities neglected are irrecoverable.

Optimi consiliarii mortui—The best counsellors are the dead.

Optimum obsonium labor—Labour is the best sauce.

Otiosis nullus adsistit Deus—No deity assists the idle.

Our fear commonly meets us at the door by which we think to run from it.

Our flatterers are our worst enemies.

Out of debt, out of danger.

Out of the frying-pan into the fire.

Ouvrage de longue haleine—A long-winded or tedious business.

Overdone is worse than underdone.

Oysters are not good in a month that hath not an R in it.

Pain past is pleasure.

Par le droit du plus fort—By the right of the strongest.

Parents’ blessings can neither be drowned in water nor consumed in fire.

Patch and long sit, / Build and soon flit.

Patience is a plaister for all sores.

Patience is a stout horse, but it will tire at last.

Patience, money, and time bring all things to pass.

Patient waiters are no losers.

Patriæ fumus igne alieno luculentior—The smoke of our own country is brighter than fire in a foreign one.

Paul Pry is on the spy.

Pay beforehand if you would have your work ill done.

Pay good wages, or your servants will pay themselves.

Pay the reckoning over-night, and you won’t be troubled in the morning.

Pay well when you are served well.

Pay what you owe, and what you’re worth you’ll know.

Pay without fail, / Down on the nail.

Pelt all dogs that bark, and you will need many stones.

Pence well-spent are better than pence ill-spared.

Penny goes after penny, / Till Peter hasn’t any.

Penny wise is often pound foolish.

People throw stones only at trees which have fruit on them.

People who are too sharp cut their own fingers.

People who live in glass houses should never throw stones.

“Perhaps” hinders folks from lying.

Perimus licitis—We come to ruin by permitted things.

Perseverance performs greater works than strength.

Persevere and never fear.

Persuasion is better than force.

Peter’s in, Paul’s out.

Pigs grow fat where lambs would starve.

Pigs grunt about everything and nothing.

Pigs when they fly go tail first.

Plain dealing is dead, and died without issue.

Plain dealing’s a jewel, but they that use it die beggars.

Plaster thick, / Some will stick.

Plough or not plough, you must pay your rent.

Plures adorant solem orientem quam occidentem—More do homage to the rising sun than the setting one.

Plures crapula quam gladius—Excess kills more than the sword.

Poor folks must say “Thank ye” for little.

Poor men’s tables are soon placed.

Porte fermée, le diable s’en va—The devil goes away when he sees a shut door.

Possession is nine-tenths of the law.

Post epulas stabis vel passus mille meabis—After eating, you should either stand or walk a mile.

Pot! don’t call the kettle black.

Potatoes don’t grow by the side of the pot.

Poverty breeds strife.

Poverty has no greater foe than bashfulness.

Poverty is no crime and no credit.

Poverty is not a shame, but the being ashamed of it is.

Practice makes perfect.

Practise thrift, or else you’ll drift.

Præcepta ducunt, at exempla trahunt—Precept guides, but example draws.

Praise a fool, and you water his folly.

Praise God more, and blame neighbours less.

Praise makes good men better, and bad men worse.

Praise Peter, but don’t find fault with Paul.

Praise the bridge which carries you over.

Praise the hill, but keep below.

Pray devoutly, / And hammer stoutly.

Pray to God, but keep the hammer going.

Pray to God, sailor, but pull for the shore.

Prayer and provender never hinder a journey.

Prayer knocks till the door opens.

Prayer must not come from the roof of the mouth, but from the root of the heart.

Prayer should be the key of the day and the lock of the night.

Precious ointments are put in small boxes.

Prejudice is a prophet which prophesies only evil.

“Pretty Pussy” will not feed a cat.

Prevention is better than cure.

Pride and poverty are ill met, yet often live together.

Pride feels no cold.

Pride must suffer pain.

Pride will have a fall; for pride goeth before, and shame cometh after.

Pride with pride will not abide.

Pride’s chickens have bonny feathers, but bony bodies.

Priestcraft is no better than witchcraft.

Private reproof is the best grave for private faults.

Procul a Jove, procul a fulmine—Far from Jove, far from his thunderbolts.

Proffered service stinks—i.e., is not appreciated.

Prope ad summum, prope ad exitum—Near the summit, near the end.

Prosperity destroys fools and endangers the wise.

Proverbs are the wisdom of the streets.

Providence may change, but the promise must stand.

Providence often puts a large potato in a little pig’s way.

Providence provides for the provident.

Punctuality is the soul of business.

Punishment follows hard upon crime.

Put the saddle on the right horse.

Put your foot down where you mean to stand.

Put your hand no farther than your sleeve will reach.

Put your hand quickly to your hat and slowly to your purse, and you’ll take no harm.

Put your own shoulder to the wheel.

Quæ e longinquo magis placent—Things please the more the farther fetched.

Quæ infra nos nihil ad nos—The things that are below us are nothing to us.

Quæ peccamus juvenes ea luimus senes—We pay when old for the excesses of our youth.

Quæ supra nos nihil ad nos—Things which are above us are nothing to us.

Quære verum—Seek the truth.

Quævis terra alit artificem—Every land supports the artisan.

Quackery has no friend like gullibility.

Qualis rex, talis grex—Like king, like people.

Quality is better than quantity.

Quem Jupiter vult perdere dementat prius—Him whom Jupiter wishes to ruin, be first infatuates.

Qui capit ille facit—He who takes it to himself has done it.

Qui medice vivit, misere vivit—He who lives by medical prescription lives miserably.

Qui non proficit, deficit—He who does not advance loses ground.

Qui perd péche—He who loses sins.

Qui spe aluntur, pendent, non vivunt—Those who feed on hope, hang on, they do not live.

Quick removals are slow prosperings.

Quick resentments are often fatal.

Quick returns make rich merchants.

Quick steps are best over miry ground.

Quick to borrow is always slow to pay.

Quicker by taking more time.

Quit not certainty for hope.

Quum Romæ fueris, Romano vivite more—When you are at Rome live after the fashion at Rome.

Raison d’état—A reason of state.

Re opitulandum non verbis—We should assist by deeds, not in words.

Rebuke ought to have a grain more of salt than of sugar.

Rebuke with soft words and hard arguments.

Reckoners without their host must reckon twice.

Religion lies more in walk than in talk.

Remis velisque—With oars and sails; with tooth and nail.

Remove the cause, and the effect will cease.

Repentance costs very dear.

Repentance is good, but innocence is better.

Report makes crows blacker than they are.

Reproof never does a wise man harm.

Reputation is commonly measured by the acre.

Reputation serves to virtue as light does to a picture.

Reserve the master-blow.

Respect a man, he will do the more.

Respect yourself, or no one else will respect you.

Rest and success are fellows.

Rest is won only by work.

Riches bring cares.

Riches have wings.

Right wrongs no man.

Rivers need a spring.

Robbing Peter to pay Paul.

Rore vixit more cicadæ—He lived upon dew like a grasshopper.

Roses grow among thorns.

Round the world, but never in it.Of sailors.

Sæpe est etiam sub palliolo sordido sapientia—Wisdom is often found even under a shabby coat.

Sabbath profaned, / Whate’er may be gained, / Is sure to be followed by sorrow.

Sabbath well spent / Brings a week of content.

Sadness and gladness succeed each other.

Safe bind, safe find.

Sallow wits censure everything that is beyond their depth.

Sapiens dominabitur astris—A wise man will lord it over the stars.

Satan’s friendship reaches to the prison door.

Satires run faster than panegyrics.

Satius est recurrere, quam currere male—It is better to run back than run on the wrong way.

Sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander.

Save a thief from the gallows, and he’ll cut your throat.

Save something for a sore foot.

Say nay, and take it.

Say no ill of the year till it be past.

“Say well” is good, but “Do well” is better.

Say well or be still.

Saying and doing are two different things.

Scald not thy lips with another man’s porridge.

Scandal will not rub out like dirt when it is dry.

Scatter with one hand, gather with two.

Scotsmen reckon ay frae an ill hour.

Screw not the chord too sharply lest it snap.

Seek not to reform every one’s dial by your own watch.

Seek till you find, and you’ll not lose your labour.

Seek your salve where you got your sore.

Self loves itself best.

Send a fool to the market, and a fool he’ll return.

Send a wise man of an errand, and say nothing to him.

Send your charity abroad wrapt in blankets.

Septem convivium, novem convitium—Seven is a banquet, nine a brawl.

Septem horas dormisse sat est juvenique, senique—Seven hours of sleep is enough both for old and young.

Sero clypeum post vulnera sumo—I am too late in taking my shield after being wounded.

Sero sapiunt Phryges—The Trojans became wise when too late.

Sero venientibus ossa—The bones for those who come late.

Serpens ni edat serpentem, draco non fiet—Unless a serpent devour a serpent, it will not become a dragon, i.e., unless one power absorb another, it will not become great.

Serum auxilium post prælium—Help comes too late when the fight is over.

Serving one’s own passions is the greatest slavery.

Set a beggar on horseback and he’ll ride to the devil.

Set a thief to catch a thief.

Set not your loaf in till the oven’s hot.

Shallow streams make most din.

Shame of poverty is almost as bad as pride of wealth.

She that is ashamed to eat at table eats in private.

She that is born handsome is born married.

She that takes gifts herself she sells, / And she that gives them does nothing else.

Short boughs, long vintage.

Short prayers reach heaven.

Short reckonings make long friends.

Si caput dolet omnia membra languent—If the head aches, all the members of the body become languid.

Si claudo cohabites, subclaudicare disces—If you live with a lame man you will learn to limp.

Si gravis brevis, si longus levis—If severe, short; if long, light.

Si jeunesse savait! si vieillesse pouvait!—If youth knew; if age could!

Si leonina pellis non satis est, assuenda vulpina—If the lion’s skin is not enough, we must sew on the fox’s.

Silence gives (or implies) consent.

Silence is wisdom, when speaking is folly.

Silent men, like still waters, are deep and dangerous.

Simile gaudet simili—Like loves like.

Sit in your own place, and no man can make you rise.

Six feet of earth make all men equal.

Skill is stronger than strength.

Sloth is the key to poverty.

Slow fire makes sweet malt.

Slow help is no help.

Small faults indulged let in greater.

Small profits and quick returns.

Small rain lays great dust.

Smooth waters run deep.

Smooth words make smooth ways.

So many servants, so many enemies.

So many slaves, so many enemies.

Soft words win hard hearts.

Soft, or fair, words butter no parsnips.

Solitude is often the best society.

Some evils are cured by contempt.

Some have been thought brave because they were afraid to run away.

Some men are wise, and some are otherwise.

Some men go through a forest and see no firewood.

Some that speak no ill of any do no good to any.

Soon enough, if well enough.

Soon hot, soon cold.

Soon ripe, soon rotten.

Sorex suo perit indicio—The mouse perishes by betraying himself.

Sorrow is good for nothing but sin.

Sorrow will pay no debt.

Sow good works and you will reap gladness.

Spare but to spend, and only spend to spare.

Spare the rod and spoil the child.

Speak little and to the purpose.

Speak little, but speak the truth.

Speak the truth and shame the devil.

Speak well of your friend; of your enemy say nothing.

Speak when you are spoken to, and come when you are called for.

Speaking without thinking is shooting without aim.

Speedy execution is the mother of good fortune.

Step by step one goes far.

Still swine eat all the draff.

Still waters run deep.

Storms make oaks take deeper root.

Straws show which way the wind blows.

Strike while the iron is hot.

Striving to better, oft we mar what’s well.

Stultus semper incipit vivere—The fool is always beginning to live.

Stultus, qui, patre occiso, liberos relinquat—He who kills the father and leaves the children is a fool.

Submitting to one wrong often brings on another.

Supple knees feed arrogance.

Surfeit has killed more than hunger.

Sweep before your own door.

Tête de fou ne blanchit jamais—A fool’s head never grows grey.

Take a hair of the same dog that bit you, and it will heal the wound.

Take care of the pence; the pounds will take care of themselves.

Take heed of the vinegar of sweet wine.

Take heed you find not that you do not seek.

Take time in turning a corner.

Talk of the devil and he’ll appear.

Talking of love is making it.

Tam Marte quam Minerva—As much by Mars as by Minerva; as much by courage as by wisdom.

Tanquam ungues digitosque suos—As well as his nails and fingers; at his fingers’ ends.

Tarde venientibus ossa—To those who come late the bones.

Taurum tollet qui vitulum sustulerit—He who has carried the calf will be able by and by to carry the ox.

Teaching others teacheth yourself.

Tenterden steeple was the cause of Goodwin Sands.

That grief is light which is capable of counsel.

That is but an empty purse that is full of other men’s money.

That is gold that is worth gold.

That is well spoken that is well taken.

That must be true which all men say.

That one will not, another will.

That suit is best that best fits me.

That that comes of a hen will scrape.

That which is good to take is good to keep.

That which one least anticipates soonest comes to pass.

That which proves too much proves nothing.

That which two will takes effect.

That which was bitter to endure may be sweet to remember.

That which we may live without we need not much covet.

That which will not be butter must be made into cheese.

That which will not be spun, let it not come between the spindle and the distaff.

That’s a lee wi’ a lid on, / And a brass handle to tak ho’d on.

That’s my good that does me good.

That’s the best gown that goes up and down the house.

The absent party is still faulty.

The archer who overshoots the mark misses, as well as he that falls short of it.

The back of one door is the face of another.

The back-door robs the house.

The beaten road is the safest.

The best fish swim near the bottom.

The best is best cheap.

The best mirror is an old friend.

The best of the sport is to do the deed and say nothing.

The best remedy against an ill man is much ground between both.

The best use of money is to pay debts.

The best work in the world is done on the quiet.

The bishop has set his foot in it—i.e., the broth is singed.(The explanation of which, according to Grose, is: Whenever a bishop passed through a town or a village, all the inhabitants ran out to receive his blessing; this frequently caused the milk on the fire to be left till burnt.)

The biter is often bit.

The burden one likes is cheerfully borne.

The cat shuts its eyes when stealing the cream.

The charitable give out at the door, and God puts in at the window.

The counsel thou wouldst have another keep, first keep thyself.

The danger past and God forgotten.

The darkest hour is nearest the dawn.

The devil is an ass.

The devil lurks behind the cross.

The devil may get in by the keyhole, but the door won’t let him out.

The dog that fetches will carry.

The donkey means one thing and the driver another.

The earthen pot must keep clear of the brass kettle.

The evil that goeth out of thy mouth flieth into thy bosom.

The evil wound is cured, but not the evil name.

The example of good men is visible philosophy.

The exception proves the rule.

The eye is the mirror of the soul.

The eye that sees all things else sees not itself.

The face is the index of the mind.

The fair maid who, the first of May, / Goes to the fields at break of day, / And washes in dew from the hawthorn tree, / Will ever after handsome be.

The faithful servant is a humble friend.

The falling out of faithful friends is the renewing of love.

The fire in the flint shows not till it’s struck.

The fire that does not warm me shall never scorch me.

The first article that a young trader offers for sale is his honesty.

The first breath / Is the beginning of death.

The first faults are theirs that commit them, / The second are theirs that permit them.

The first of the nine orders of knaves is he that tells his errand before he goes it.

The first step towards greatness is to be honest.

The first year let your house to your enemy; the second to your friend; the third, live in it yourself.

The foot of the owner is the best manure for his land.

The fox thrives best when he is most curst.

The full moon brings fair weather.

The good mother saith not, “Will you?” but gives.

The gown is hers that wears it, and the world is his who enjoys it.

“The grapes are sour,” said the fox when he could not reach them.

The great thieves punish the little ones.

The greatest expense we can be at is that of our time.

The greatest scholars are not always the wisest men.

The greatest vessel hath but its measure.

The grey mare is the better horse.

The groundsel speaks not save what it heard at the hinges.

The hand that gives, gathers.

The hardest step is over the threshold.

The heart of a fool is in his mouth, but the mouth of a wise man is in his heart.

The heart sees farther than the head.

The heart that once truly loves never forgets.

The highest price a man can pay for a thing is to ask for it.

The horse thinks one thing, and he that rides him another.

The house that is a-building looks not as the house that is built.

The king’s errand may come in at the cadger’s gate.

The last drop makes the cup run over.

The last ounce breaks the camel’s back.

The longest day soon comes to an end.

The man who has imagination without learning has wings without feet.

The mastiff is quiet while curs are yelping.

The mill will never grind with the water that is past.

The mob has many heads, but no brains.

The more haste, the worse speed.

The mother’s heart is always with her children.

The nearer the church the farther from God.

The noblest vengeance is to forgive.

The old fox is caught at last.

The owl of ignorance lays the egg of pride.

The ox lies still while the geese are hissing.

The pitcher goes so often to the water that it comes home broken at last.

The poor man’s budget is full of schemes.

The rainbow in the morning / Is the shepherd’s warning; / The rainbow at night / Is the shepherd’s delight.

The road to ruin is always kept in good repair, and the travellers pay the expense of it.

The road’s afore you, the sky’s aboon you.

The shortest answer is doing.

The smoke of a man’s own house is better than the fire of another’s.

The snail sees nothing but his own shell, and thinks it the grandest place in the world.

The soul is not where it lives, but where it loves.

The stomach has no ears.

The stone that lieth not in your way need not offend you.

The stream can never rise above the springhead.

The sun can be seen by nothing but its own light.

The sun may do its duty, though your grapes are not ripe.

The sweetest wine makes the sharpest vinegar.

The thin edge of the wedge is to be feared.

The tongue ever turns to the aching tooth.

The tongue is not of steel, but it cuts.

The tree is no sooner down than every one runs for his hatchet.

The vulgar keep no account of your hits, but of your misses.

The whole man to one thing at a time.

The wife is the key of the house.

The wished-for comes too late.

The words of the wise are as goads.

The world is as you take it.

The worse things are, the better they are.

The wrath of brothers is fierce and devilish.

There are more ways to the wood than one.

There are two sides to every question.

There is a skeleton in every house.

There is a snake in the grass.

There is a time for all things.

There is always life for a living one.

There is more pleasure in loving than in being beloved.

There is no better counsellor than time.

There is no going to heaven in a sedan.

There is no grief that time will not soften.

There is no jesting with edge tools.

There is no joy without alloy.

There is no true love without jealousy.

There is no venom like that of the tongue.

There is not so much comfort in having children as there is sorrow in parting with them.

There is not the thickness of a sixpence between good and evil.

There is nothing like leather.A cobbler’s advice in an emergency.

There is nothing so secret but it comes to light.

There were no ill language if it were not ill taken.

There’s always life for the living.

There’s many a slip / ’Twixt the cup and the lip.

There’s no seeing one’s way through tears.

There’s nothing certain but uncertainty.

They love most who are least valued.

They love us truly who correct us freely.

They must hunger in winter that will not work in summer.

“They say so” is half a lie.

They that are booted are not always ready.

They that know one another salute afar off.

They who seek only for faults see nothing else.

Things will never be bettered by an excess of haste.

Think and thank God.

Those who do nothing generally take to shouting.

Those who make the best use of their time have none to spare.

Though he says nothing, he pays it with thinking, like the Welshman’s jackdaw.

Though the cat winks a while, yet sure she is not blind.

Though we lose our fortune, yet we should not lose our patience.

Though you stroke the nettle ever so kindly, yet it will sting you.

Threatened folks live long.

Three things drive a man out of doors—smoke, a leaking roof, and a scolding wife.

Thrift must begin with little savings.

Throw no gift again at the giver’s head; / Better is half a loaf than no bread.

Thursday come, and the week’s gone.

Thy hand is never the worse for doing thy own work.

Thy secret is thy prisoner.

Tickle me, Bobby, and I’ll tickle you.

Time and thinking tame the strongest grief.

Time brings roses.

Time devours all things.

Time is money.

Time trieth truth.

Time works great changes.

Timidi mater non flet—The mother of the coward has no occasion to weep.

’Tis a folly to fret; grief’s no comfort.

’Tis a good ill that comes alone.

’Tis better to cry over your goods than after them.

’Tis day still while the sun shines.

Tit for tat is fair play.

To be born with a silver spoon in the mouth.

To do good to the ungrateful is to throw rose-water into the sea.

To draw a long bow, i.e., exaggerate.

To every deep there is a deeper still.

To keep the wolf from the door.

To open your windows be ever your care.

To pour oil on the fire is not the way to quench it.

To put the cart before the horse.

To seem and not to be, is throwing the shuttle without weaving.

To shoot wide of the mark—i.e., guess foolishly when you don’t know.

To strain at a gnat and swallow a camel.

Too many cooks spoil the broth.

Tourner casaque—To change sides; become a turncoat.

True blue will never stain.

True coral needs no painter’s brush.

Trust begets truth.

Trust dies because bad pay poisons him.

Trust, but not too much.

Truth and oil are ever above.

Truth hath always a fast bottom.

Truth is God’s daughter.

Truth is the daughter of Time.

Truth may languish, but can never perish.

Truth seeks no corners.

Try and Trust will move mountains.

Two dogs over one bone seldom agree.

Two dogs strive for a bone, and a third runs away with it.

Two heads are better than one, or why do folks marry?

Two in distress make sorrow less.

Two is company, but three is none.

Two kitchen fires burn not on one hearth.

Two may keep counsel, putting one away.

Two of a trade seldom agree.

Two removals are as bad as a fire.

Two things a man should never be angry at; what he can help, and what he cannot.

Ubi bene, ibi patria—Where it is well with me, there is my country.

Ubi uber, ibi tuber—There are no roses without thorns.

Ubt dolor, ibi digitus—Where the pain is, there the finger will be.

Undertake no more than you can perform.

Unequal marriages are seldom happy ones.

Union is strength.

Unkindness destroys love.

Unus vir nullus vir—One man is no man.

Upbraiding turns a benefit into an injury.

Usus est tyrannus—Custom is a tyrant.

Usus promptum facit—Practice makes perfect.

Ut canis e Nilo—Like the dog by the Nile, i.e., drinking and running.

Vache ne sait ce que vaut sa queue jusqu’à ce-qu’elle l’ait perdue—The cow doesn’t know the worth of her tail until she has lost it.

Vainglory blossoms, but never bears.

Valour is worth little without discretion.

Vanity is a blue-bottle, which buzzes in the window of the wise.

Vanity is the pride of Nature.

Vel cæco appareat—Even a blind man could perceive it.

Velocem tardus assequitur—The slow overtakes the swift.

Velvet paws hide sharp claws.

Vengeance is wild justice.

Vent au visage rend un homme sage—Wind in the face (i.e., adversity) makes a man wise.

Verbum sat sapienti—A word is enough to a wise man.

Vestibulum domus ornamentum est—The hall is the ornament of a house, i.e., first impressions have great weight.

Vestis virum facit—The garment makes the man.

Vice is its own punishment.

Violent fires soon burn out.

Virtue is the queen of labourers.

Vows made in storms are forgotten in calms.

Vultus est index animi—The countenance is the index of the mind.

Want is the mother of industry.

Want makes wit.

Watched pot never boils.

Waters that are deep do not babble as they flow.

We are bound to be honest, but not to be rich.

We can live without our friends, but not without our neighbours.

We hate delay, yet it makes us wise.

We must take the world as we find it.

We readily believe what we wish to be true.

We should eat to live, and not live to eat.

We should not spur a willing horse.

Weave in faith and God will find thread.

Welcome is the best cheer.

Welcome, Misfortune, if thou comest alone.

Well thriveth that well suffereth.

Well to work and make a fire, / Doth both care and skill require.

What belongs to everybody belongs to nobody.

What comes from the heart goes to the heart.

What devilry soever kings do, the Greeks must pay the piper.

What God makes he never mars.

What is bought is cheaper than a gift.

What is bred in the bone will never come out of the flesh.

What is done by night appears by day.

What is done in a hurry is never done well.

What is known to three is known to everybody.

What is learned in the cradle is carried to the tomb.

What is sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander.

What the eye does not admire, / The heart does not desire.

What the eye don’t see, the heart don’t grieve.

What will you have? quoth God; pay for it and take it.

What’s good for the bee is good for the hive.

What’s the good of a sun-dial in the shade?

Whatever you are, be a man.

When a man is going downhill, everybody gives him a kick.

When a Sark-foot wife gets on her broomstick, the dames of Allonby are ready to mount.

When Adam dolve and Eve span, / Who was then the gentleman?

When caught by a tempest, wherever it be, / If it lightens and thunders, beware of a tree.

When children stand quiet, they have done some harm.

When clouds appear like rocks and towers, / The earth’s refreshed with frequent showers.

When God will, no wind but brings rain.

When it’s dark at Dover, / It is dark all the world over.

When money’s taken, / Freedom’s forsaken.

When poverty comes in at the door, love flies out at the window.

When rogues fall out, honest men get their own.

When the cat’s away, / The mice will play.

When the devil dies, he never lacks a chief mourner.

When the fox preaches, take care of your geese.

When the heart is afire, some sparks will fly out at the mouth.

When the hungry curate licks the knife, there is not much for the cleric.

When the sun is highest, he casts the least shadow.

When things are at their worst, they will mend.

When three know it, all know it.

When two friends have a common purse, one sings and the other weeps.

When we can’t do as we would, we must do as we can.

When whins are out of bloom, kissing is out of fashion.

When you are all agreed upon the time, quoth the vicar, I’ll make it rain.

When you see a snake, never mind where he came from.

Where content is there is a feast.

Where drink goes in, wit goes out.

Where God helps, nought harms.

Where it is weakest, the thread breaketh.

Where no fault is, there needs no pardon.

Where no oxen are, the crib is clean.

Where one is wise, two are happy.

Where the carcase is, the ravens will gather.

Where there is no love, all are faults.

Where there is no shame, there is no honour.

Where there is smoke there is fire.

Where there’s a will there’s a way.

Where your will is ready, your feet are light.

Wherever a man dwells he will be sure to have a thorn-bush near his door.

Whether the pitcher strike the stone or the stone the pitcher, it is bad for the pitcher.

Whether you boil snow or pound it, you can have but water of it.

While thy shoe is on thy foot, tread upon the thorns.

Who chatters to you, will chatter of you.

Who doth not work shall not eat.

Who goes a-borrowing, goes a-sorrowing.

Who looks not before finds himself behind.

Whoso does not good, does evil enough.

Wide will wear, but tight will tear.

Wilful waste makes woeful want.

Willows are weak, yet they bind other wood.

Wine neither keeps secrets nor fulfils promises.

Wine washes off the daub.

Wink at small faults.

Wisdom sometimes walks in clouted shoes.

Wit once bought is worth twice taught.

Women, priests, and poultry have never enough.

Women’s jars breed men’s wars.

Words are fools’ pence.

Write down the advice of him who loves you, though you like it not at present.

Yielding is sometimes the best way of succeeding.

You can’t be lost on a straight road.

You can’t see the wood for the trees.

You can’t tell a nut till you crack it.

You cannot climb a ladder by pushing others down.

You cannot make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear.

You cannot push a man far up a tree.

You gazed at the moon and fell in the gutter.

You know not where a blessing may light.

You may grow good corn in a little field.

You must be content sometimes with rough roads.

You must lose a fly to catch a trout.

You must not measure every man’s corn by your own bushel.

Zeal is like fire; it needs both feeding and watching.

Zeal without knowledge is a runaway horse.