proverb · Words worth keeping
A hedge between keeps friends green.
A hedge between keeps friends green.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
The saying puts a hedge between friends to keep the friendship green. It suggests that boundaries can help a relationship remain healthy.
What the words are saying
The separation and growing colour combine distance with continued connection. A useful reading discusses space or privacy that suits the people involved rather than prescribing the same boundary for everyone. A hedge is a metaphor, not a guarantee that distance improves all friendships.
Everyday example
Two friends discuss how much contact and privacy each prefers rather than assuming constant access.
When to use it
Use it to discuss mutually understood boundaries in friendship.
What it does not mean
No universal boundary or guaranteed flourishing is established.
Agent-assisted editorial interpretation. This explains the words; it does not by itself verify their author or earliest origin.
Attribution & collection notes
- Author or tradition
- Traditional
Attribution: traditional - Country attributed
- Not established
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin. - Historical period
- Historical period not yet established
No sufficiently supported historical placement has been established. Import and download dates are not treated as composition dates. - Recorded source
- Contributor-provided proverb reference
Supplied reference A; unit 487; PDF page 72
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.