proverb · Words worth keeping
As sound as a nut.
As sound as a nut.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
The phrase uses a sound nut as an image of being intact or in good condition. It is a compact expression of confidence in the thing described.
What the words are saying
Sound supplies the quality, while the nut makes it concrete. The useful reading identifies the comparison without turning the expression into proof of hidden condition. Someone can use it affectionately or informally, but an actual assessment requires more than a confident phrase. The surrounding context determines whether it concerns an object, a person or something else.
Everyday example
A restorer describes an object approvingly and then checks its actual condition before recommending its use.
When to use it
Use it as an informal comparison for apparent soundness.
What it does not mean
It is not a health assessment or a guarantee that damage is absent.
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
- A Dictionary of English Proverbs and Proverbial Phrases
Entry 1478 · Sound
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.
- Culture
- English