proverb · Words worth keeping
Cowardice is afraid to be known or seen.
Cowardice is afraid to be known or seen.
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
Cowardice is pictured as avoiding being noticed, especially where a person does not want an action or refusal scrutinised. The saying can question evasiveness, but choosing privacy or feeling afraid does not by itself establish cowardice or wrongdoing.
Example
A coordinator avoids giving any account of an agreed task; the group asks what was done rather than labelling quiet participants cowards.
Deeper explanation and when to use it
The sentence makes visibility the thing that cowardice fears. Figuratively, someone may avoid being known because public attention would bring questions about a decision, responsibility or lack of action. That image can help identify an evasive response to a specific obligation. It becomes unfair if any wish for privacy is treated as suspicious. People may have sound reasons for limiting attention, and caution can be appropriate. A constructive discussion identifies what needs to be accounted for and asks for that account, without assigning a character defect from another person’s reluctance to be seen.
When to use it
Use it cautiously to question avoidance of a specific responsibility or account.
Keep in mind
Privacy, caution and fear are not sufficient evidence of cowardice.
An interpretation of the words, not a claim about their 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
- Date unknown
- Culture
- English