proverb · Words worth keeping
Patch and sit long, build and soon flit.
Patch and sit long, build and soon flit.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
Repairing an existing arrangement may support continued use, while a larger new undertaking may create pressures that force a move. The contrast questions whether novelty is worth its cost.
What the words are saying
Patching and sitting long are set against building and soon leaving. The saying can favour a manageable repair over an ambitious change whose demands have been underestimated. It does not prove that repair is always cheaper or better. A useful reading compares the actual condition, purpose and ongoing requirements of each option rather than judging by whether it is old or new.
Everyday example
A group repairs a suitable shared space instead of beginning a larger project it cannot realistically maintain.
When to use it
Use it to compare continued use with the demands of a new undertaking.
What it does not mean
Some arrangements need replacement; this is not construction or property advice.
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 1213 · Patch
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.
- Culture
- English