proverb · Traditional
As one door closes, another always opens.
The saying closes one door and always opens another. It offers hope that a lost opportunity may be followed by a different one.
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What does it mean?
Start with the thought in plain English. Then explore the imagery, a practical example, when to use it, and what the saying does not mean.
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197 matching explanations
proverb · Traditional
As patient as Job.
The phrase praises patience by comparing it with Job. The biblical association supplies an image of endurance through suffering rather than a measured degree of calmness.
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At first, all things appear difficult.
Everything appearing difficult at first gives unfamiliar beginnings a demanding character. The saying offers perspective on early uncertainty.
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Be not too hasty to outbid another.
Competing for something can tempt a person to act before judging whether the next commitment is worthwhile. The saying favours a pause before outbidding, without prescribing a purchase strategy or making every competitive response unwise.
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Be not weary of well-doing.
Continue worthwhile action without letting discouragement alone decide its end. The appeal to well-doing needs to include the limits of a person’s capacity.
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Be slow in choosing, but slower in changing.
The saying asks for slow choosing and even slower changing. It values care in a decision and steadiness after it is made.
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Bear and forbear.
Endure ordinary difficulties and show restraint toward other people’s faults. Patience and mutual tolerance can keep small frictions from becoming repeated quarrels.
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Bear with evil and expect good.
The saying combines endurance of present difficulty with hope for something better. It can support patience during a bounded setback, but hope does not guarantee improvement and bearing evil should never require accepting abuse, danger or preventable wrongdoing.
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Better a bare foot than no foot at all.
An imperfect resource is compared with losing the underlying capacity altogether. The saying can encourage appreciation of what remains useful, but its bodily comparison must not become a demand that someone accept inadequate support or feel grateful for hardship.
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Better go about than fall into the ditch.
A longer or less direct route may be better than a shortcut with an avoidable hazard. Going about instead of entering the ditch pictures a worthwhile adjustment, without requiring someone to avoid every uncertain path.
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Better late thrive than never do well.
The saying prefers thriving late to never doing well. It values a delayed improvement over its complete absence.
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Cloudy mornings turn to clear evenings.
An unpromising beginning need not determine how the rest of an experience develops. The cloudy-morning image encourages leaving room for improvement, while it should not be treated as a weather forecast or a promise that every difficulty ends well.
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Constant dropping wears the stone.
Small efforts repeated over time can produce a substantial change. The saying values steady persistence, while leaving room to check whether the effort is effective and whether the desired result is actually achievable.
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Crosses are ladders for getting to heaven.
The saying pictures crosses as ladders toward heaven. Burdens are made into a religious image of possible progress rather than mere obstruction.
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Crosses are ladders that lead to heaven.
The saying presents crosses as ladders leading to heaven. It gives burdens a hopeful direction within a religious interpretation of suffering.
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Dainty dogs may have to eat dirty puddings.
The contrast between dainty preferences and unappealing food suggests that circumstances may limit choice. The saying can encourage flexibility when a preferred option is unavailable, but it should not be used to demand acceptance of unsafe, degrading or otherwise unsuitable conditions.
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Demonstrate staying powerful.
The instruction asks for a demonstration of staying powerful. It values maintained capacity rather than merely claiming strength once.
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Desires are nourished by delays.
Waiting for something can make the desire for it more intense. Notice how anticipation affects your judgement rather than assuming that a growing wish proves the thing is becoming more worthwhile.
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Do not holloa till you are out of the wood.
Do not announce success while an important difficulty remains unresolved. The call made before leaving the wood cautions against premature celebration, while allowing recognition of genuine progress on the way.
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Do not spur a free horse.
A willing contributor may not need additional pressure. The freely moving horse warns that unnecessary urging can strain cooperation, while still allowing clear expectations, constructive feedback and attention to whether help is needed.
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Doing nothing is the hardest work.
Inactivity can feel surprisingly demanding when someone is waiting, uncertain or unable to act. The saying overturns the assumption that doing nothing is always easy, without making rest wrong or presenting everyone’s experience as the same.
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Don’t bite off more than you can chew.
Taking a bite too large to chew compares excessive commitment with more food than can be managed. It asks that responsibilities match available capacity.
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Don’t count your chickens before they are hatched.
The saying warns against counting chickens before the eggs hatch. It cautions against treating an expected result as already secured.
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Don't cry over spilled milk.
The saying asks someone not to cry over milk already spilled. It encourages attention to what remains possible after an event cannot be undone.
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