proverb · Words worth keeping
Between saying and doing there's a long road.
Between saying and doing there's a long road.
In print by 1893 AD · industrial
Recorded in a printed collection by this date; the original date of these words is still unknown.
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
A promise and its fulfilment are separated by the work needed to carry it out. Good intentions matter, but a confident statement is not yet evidence of a completed result.
What the words are saying
The long road turns the distance between words and action into a journey. A person may sincerely describe what they plan to do while underestimating the steps that follow. The proverb encourages attention to those steps, including the time, effort and resources needed to reach the promised outcome. It need not make every promise suspicious or dismiss planning as useless. Clear commitments can guide work when they are accompanied by realistic arrangements. The useful question is what will happen next and how progress can be recognised, rather than how impressive the original declaration sounds.
Everyday example
After promising to restore a garden, a group agrees who will obtain tools, clear the site and maintain it afterward.
When to use it
Use it to turn a promise into practical steps and follow-through.
What it does not mean
A delay does not necessarily prove dishonesty; examine the circumstances.
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 proverb
Attribution: traditional - Country attributed
- Not established
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin. - Historical period
- In print by 1893 AD · industrial
In print by 1893: recorded in Dictionary of Quotations (1893). Collection publication is an upper bound for this wording, not its earliest origin, composition date or the author's lifetime.
An author lifetime, approximate period or collection date is not necessarily the date when these words were first written or spoken. - Recorded source
- Dictionary of Quotations (1893) (1893 AD)
Printed citation: Pr. · page_029
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.