proverb · Words worth keeping
Allow one donkey to bray at a time.
Allow one donkey to bray at a time.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
The instruction permits only one donkey to bray at a time. As a human analogy, it asks speakers to take turns rather than add overlapping noise.
What the words are saying
The animal image disparages the speakers while making simultaneous sound concrete. A useful application can organise an exchange without treating participants as foolish. The phrase does not establish animal behaviour or require that a particular person’s voice be excluded.
Everyday example
A chair invites each participant to finish before another begins responding.
When to use it
Use it to discuss turn-taking while acknowledging the disparaging image.
What it does not mean
The comparison does not establish intelligence or justify excluding a voice.
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 227; PDF page 36
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.