proverb · Words worth keeping
Better brain than brawn.
Better brain than brawn.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
The saying prefers brain to brawn. It values thought or judgment over reliance on physical force alone.
What the words are saying
The two body-related labels compress a choice of approach. A useful interpretation considers what the task needs without ranking people’s dignity by intellectual or physical ability. Strength can matter, and thought is not automatically adequate for every problem.
Everyday example
A team asks what understanding would improve its approach before relying on greater effort alone.
When to use it
Use it to compare approaches without ranking human worth.
What it does not mean
No universal superiority of one capacity or complete solution through thought 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 770; PDF page 110
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.