proverb · Words worth keeping
Silks and satins put out the fire in the kitchen.
Silks and satins put out the fire in the kitchen.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
Spending on outward display can crowd out ordinary necessities. Fine clothing is pictured as consuming the resources that would keep the kitchen working.
What the words are saying
The phrase puts luxury and everyday provision in competition. Silks and satins represent costly appearance, while the kitchen fire represents a basic household function. Its warning concerns priorities: something visibly impressive may be bought at the expense of what makes daily life possible. It can be applied to a particular optional expense without condemning fine clothing or assuming that someone’s appearance reveals their circumstances. The question is whether the chosen display undermines a need the person also wants to meet.
Everyday example
A group scales back decorative purchases so that the main supplies for an event remain affordable.
When to use it
Use it to discuss an optional display that is displacing an essential requirement.
What it does not mean
Appearance alone does not reveal a person’s finances or priorities.
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 897 · Kitchen
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.
- Culture
- English