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 (French-language collection)
A reliable warning deserves attention, but the confidence placed in its source should not replace checking the situation. Even an experienced observer may sometimes be mistaken.
Read the explanation and example ↗proverb · Traditional
Dealing with a small problem early can prevent it from becoming a larger, more difficult problem later. Timely attention often saves extra work and disruption.
Read the explanation and example ↗proverb · Traditional (French-language collection)
Frequent familiarity can reduce appreciation. Something useful or valuable may be taken for granted because it is always present rather than because its worth has diminished.
Read the explanation and example ↗proverb · Traditional
Waiting can feel slower when you constantly monitor the thing you are waiting for. Redirecting your attention may make an unavoidable delay easier to tolerate, without changing its actual duration.
Read the explanation and example ↗proverb · Traditional (French-language collection)
An ineffective safeguard can leave an avoidable opportunity for loss. Review whether a precaution works in practice rather than assuming that its existence is enough.
Read the explanation and example ↗proverb · Traditional (French-language collection)
Knowing how many resources you have does not by itself protect or care for them. Measurement can support oversight, but it needs to be followed by suitable attention to what is being counted.
Read the explanation and example ↗proverb · Traditional (French-language collection)
Protection depends partly on continuing to notice changing conditions. A precaution taken once may become ineffective if its assumptions or surroundings later change.
Read the explanation and example ↗proverb · Traditional (Spanish-language collection)
Saving a comparatively slight thing while wasting something more valuable reverses sensible priorities. The ashes and flour contrast asks whether apparent carefulness protects what actually matters in the situation.
Read the explanation and example ↗proverb · Traditional (French-language collection)
A person can overlook something immediately available while searching farther away. Check the present situation before assuming that the missing resource must be elsewhere.
Read the explanation and example ↗proverb · Traditional (French-language collection)
Doing nothing can resemble being asleep even when a person is awake. The saying challenges disengagement, but it does not make rest, recovery or quiet thought equivalent to neglect.
Read the explanation and example ↗proverb · Traditional (French-language collection)
Retain a practical way to guide or stop something entrusted to you. The bridle represents oversight that should not be abandoned merely because things seem calm.
Read the explanation and example ↗proverb · Traditional (Spanish-language collection)
A result can be spoiled at the point when work moves into its next stage. The crooked loaf makes careful handling part of finishing, rather than treating preparation alone as enough.
Read the explanation and example ↗proverb · Traditional (Spanish-language collection)
Strong feelings and visible resources may leave signs even when someone tries to conceal them. Love, grief and money name different things that can become noticeable, without cancelling a person’s right to privacy.
Read the explanation and example ↗proverb · Traditional (French-language collection)
Darkness can reduce visibility and make help or companionship harder to find. The warning encourages considering conditions rather than assuming ordinary safeguards remain equally available.
Read the explanation and example ↗proverb · Traditional
People or concerns that are no longer regularly encountered may receive less attention. Distance can make remembering and maintaining a connection require deliberate effort rather than routine contact.
Read the explanation and example ↗proverb · Traditional (French-language collection)
Useful help responds to the need a person actually has. The itching place represents a specific concern that a general offer may fail to address.
Read the explanation and example ↗proverb · Traditional (French-language collection)
Shared ownership can leave a task neglected when no one knows who is responsible. Agree practical care and maintenance rather than assuming that collective interest organises itself.
Read the explanation and example ↗proverb · Traditional (French-language collection)
Help given before a difficulty may be more useful than help that arrives after it. Consider when information or support is needed, not only whether it is offered.
Read the explanation and example ↗proverb · Traditional (French-language collection)
Moving or disturbing something can cause losses that were easy to overlook. Consider whether unnecessary handling or repeated changes will shed useful parts of an arrangement.
Read the explanation and example ↗proverb · Traditional (French-language collection)
A person with a larger purpose may choose not to pursue every small target. The eagle image asks whether an activity deserves attention in relation to the task.
Read the explanation and example ↗proverb · Traditional (French-language collection)
Care often directs attention toward those who depend on us. Notice their needs without assuming that concern requires constant supervision or leaves no room for independence.
Read the explanation and example ↗proverb · Traditional
Careful attention to how work is organised can matter more than personally performing every task. A responsible supervisor helps by noticing problems, clarifying expectations and supporting people who do the work.
Read the explanation and example ↗proverb · Traditional (French-language collection)
A loud environment can drown out something more important than the surrounding noise. Make space to notice the signal before assuming nothing meaningful is being said.
Read the explanation and example ↗proverb · Traditional (French-language collection)
Attention often returns to a source of discomfort. Notice whether revisiting it helps you understand or address the problem, or merely keeps the irritation in view.
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