proverb · Traditional
Don’t meet trouble half-way.
Meeting trouble halfway pictures moving toward a difficulty before it arrives. The saying warns against treating a feared problem as already certain.
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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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532 matching explanations
proverb · Traditional
Don’t put off for tomorrow what you can do today.
The instruction discourages postponing until tomorrow what can be done today. It gives timely action priority over unnecessary delay.
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Don't put off until tomorrow what you can do today.
The saying advises doing today what can be done today. It discourages delaying a task merely because tomorrow is available.
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Don’t squander opportunity.
The instruction warns against squandering an opportunity. It asks that a possible advantage not be lost through careless use or neglect.
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Don't stop the plough to catch a mouse.
Do not interrupt an important undertaking for every minor distraction. Weigh the interruption against the value of keeping the main task moving.
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Don’t worry about eggs that haven’t been laid yet.
The instruction postpones worry about eggs not yet laid. It asks someone to distinguish a future possibility from an event already present.
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Doors and drawers stick before a rain.
The saying puts sticking doors and drawers before rain. It interprets a change in household movement as a weather sign.
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Early sow, early mow.
Beginning a task earlier can allow its result to arrive earlier. The sowing-and-mowing image connects preparation with timing, but an early start is useful only when conditions suit the task; speed alone does not guarantee readiness or quality.
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Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.
The rhyme links early sleep and waking with health, wealth and wisdom. It compresses three desired outcomes into one timing prescription.
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Early to bed, early to rise, makes you healthy, wealthy & wise.
The saying links an early bedtime and early rising with health, wealth and wisdom. It praises a daily routine through three promised benefits.
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Easy come, easy go.
The saying pairs easy arrival with easy departure. It suggests that something gained readily may also be lost readily.
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Eat when the meal is ready, speak when the time is ripe.
A ready meal and ripe time for speech compare action with suitable conditions. The saying asks that speaking fit the occasion.
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Evening orts are good morning fodder.
The saying makes evening leftovers useful as morning fodder. It presents material left over at one time as provision for a later use.
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Evening promises are like butter: morning comes, and it’s all melted.
Evening promises melting like butter by morning picture assurances losing substance quickly. The saying questions a commitment that does not endure beyond its occasion.
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Every dog has its day.
The saying gives every dog its day. It offers encouragement that someone overlooked may yet have an opportunity or success.
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Every fire is small at first.
A fire small at first gives a modest beginning the image of potential growth. The saying asks attention to what may develop from an initial condition.
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Every tide has its ebb.
A period of strength or abundance may recede. The ebb reminds the reader that a favourable condition need not remain at its peak.
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Everything has an end–except a sausage, which has two.
Everything having an end interrupted by a sausage having two turns a statement about finishing into a joke about physical ends. The saying plays on two meanings of end.
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Everything hath an end, and a pudding hath two.
The saying combines a reminder that things finish with a playful double meaning of “end.” Its joke lightens the observation rather than providing a precise rule about how every experience concludes.
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Everything is good in its season.
Something useful or welcome can be better suited to one occasion than another. The saying values timing and context, while its broad wording should not imply that every action becomes good merely by choosing a moment for it.
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Everything is the worse for wearing.
Use can cause wear that needs attention. The saying warns about deterioration while overlooking ways that use can also improve skill, familiarity or value.
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Farewell baskets, the vintage is ended.
Baskets dismissed after the vintage is finished picture equipment whose immediate season of use has ended. Recognise when a particular task is over.
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Fear is only temporary. Regrets last forever.
The saying contrasts temporary fear with everlasting regret. It encourages action by presenting hesitation as short-lived and missed opportunity as permanent.
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Feather by feather the goose is plucked.
A series of small removals can amount to a substantial loss. Plucking the goose one feather at a time pictures gradual depletion that may be missed when each change is considered separately.
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