Words worth understanding
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.
4,000 entries with editorial explanations. The wider collection also contains entries still awaiting an individual interpretation.
proverb · Traditional
A refusal preferred to a broken promise values an honest limit over an assurance that is not fulfilled. It asks for care before taking on a commitment.
Read the explanation and example ↗proverb · Traditional
A rich person said not to need character separates social advantage from moral conduct through a provocative claim. The saying questions what wealth may allow someone to avoid demonstrating.
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A damaging influence can affect more than its immediate surroundings. In a group, address particular harmful conduct before it disrupts others, without labelling a person as inherently spoiled or beyond change.
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The saying values a modest unsuccessful attempt above a boastful success. It judges conduct as well as outcome.
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A smart head paired with a soft tongue connects judgment with gentle expression. The saying values how understanding is communicated.
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A small flaw can attract particular attention against an otherwise excellent background. The cloth represents high quality or strong expectations, while the spot explains why one defect may seem disproportionately conspicuous.
Read the explanation and example ↗proverb · Traditional (French-language collection)
A companion drawn mainly by hospitality may not remain dependable when the benefits end. Sharing a table alone does not establish lasting friendship.
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Judge an action or undertaking by what it produces rather than by its outward show. Look at conduct and results when deciding whether a promising appearance is supported by substance.
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Gentleness toward children, older people and animals is presented as an authentic cowboy quality. The saying gives care a place in its ideal of strength.
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A wife chosen for virtue and a concubine for beauty divides women into roles with different selection criteria. The saying expresses an instrumental, gendered relationship hierarchy.
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Stubbornly ignoring relevant limits can bring difficulty. The saying warns about wilfulness without treating every firm decision as unreasonable.
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A wolf losing fangs but not inclination contrasts reduced power with a presumed continuing tendency. The saying separates capacity from disposition.
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A woman as a garden flower and a husband as its fence gives marriage an image of beauty and protection. The saying assigns the two partners unequal roles.
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Once spoken, words can reach other people beyond the speaker’s control. The thrown stone illustrates consequences that cannot simply be withdrawn, encouraging care before release while leaving room for apology and repair afterward.
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A stepchild blamed both for not washing and for using water portrays a person condemned whichever choice they make. The saying exposes incompatible standards rather than a real fault in the child.
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The saying asks for the heart to be guarded because actions flow from it. It presents inward commitments as influential in conduct.
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Abstinence described as medicine gives refraining from something a restorative value. The saying leaves the object of abstinence unspecified.
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The saying gives actions a louder voice than words. It asks that conduct carry more weight than a declaration alone.
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The saying places age ahead of honesty in a terse order of precedence. It can be read critically as asking whether seniority is being allowed to outweigh conduct.
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Visible religious participation does not by itself establish admirable conduct. The saying asks people to distinguish an outward sign of devotion from the way someone actually treats others.
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Flatterers living at the expense of their flatterers presents praise within a costly relationship. The repeated wording makes the precise direction of dependence unclear.
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The saying claims that everything is fair in love and war. It portrays powerful aims as reasons to suspend ordinary limits on conduct.
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Someone may treat everything that comes their way as useful to their purpose. The net makes opportunities seem readily usable, while leaving open whether that resourcefulness is considerate, appropriate or merely self-serving.
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The saying divides promises into those kept and those broken. It directs attention from making a commitment to what follows it.
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