Famous Proverbs

1] All cats are grey in the dark

2] Never make threats you cannot carry out.

3] There is many a good tune played on an old fiddle

4] He who hesitates is lost

5] Do not limp before the lame

6] A man has choice to begin love, but not to end it.

7] A gentleman never remembers unkindness shown towards him

8] Virtue has all things in itself

9] What the king wills, that the law wills

10] Sour, sweet, bitter and pungent flavours must all be tasted

11] The axe falls on a straight tree first

12] The rich man thinks of the future, the poor man thinks of today

13] Ill weeds grow apace (or fast)

14] Every bean has its black

15] Many eyes upon the king

16] Forgiveness is perfect when the sin is not remembered

17] When the melon is ripe, it will drop by itself

18] If a thing is worth doing, it is worth doing well

19] Petty laws breed great crimes

20] The unexpected always happens.

21] Good to begin well, better to end well.

22] A thief knows a thief knows a thief as a wolf knows a wolf

23] A bow long bent at last waxes weak

24] A tiger that roars is not a man-eater

25] Beggars must not be choosers

26] God is a sure paymaster

27] If you play with fire you get burnt

28] A man whose conscience is clear, of a knock at midnight has no fear

29] There are as good fish in the sea as ever came out of it

30] Children and fools cannot lie.

31] He preaches well (or best) that lives well (or best).

32] Do as I say, not as I do

33] A short cut is often a wrong cut

34] Be careful to whom you give

35] God gave us the seed of every plant, but we must sow it.

36] It chances in an hour, that appears not in seven years

37] Because he would not eat it, the food got maggoty

38] Thieves and rogues have the best luck, if they do but escape hanging

39] Judge not of men and things at first sight

40] Green leaves enhance the charm of the peony flower

41] A drowning man will clutch at a straw

42] The world is full of fools

43] The buyer needs a hundred eyes, the seller but one

44] Mercy to the criminal may be cruelty to the people

45] He that comes of a hen, must scrape

46] It is profound ignorance that inspires the dogmatic tone

47] Wiles help weak folk

48] He who can wait obtains what he wishes.

49] Many drops make a shower

50] He who does not rise with the sun does not enjoy the day

51] Honesty is the best policy

52] He that hopes not for good, fears not evil.

53] Those who sell dog-meat often display a lamb’s head

54] It is a good tongue that says no ill, and a better heart that thinks none

55] The calmest husbands make the stormiest wives

56] No man ever becomes thoroughly bad all at once

57] Stolen sweets are sweeter

58] Work smart; don’t work hard

59] Dirty water does not wash clean.

60] Mustard is a good sauce, but mirth is better

61] Even dust, when piled up, may form a hill

62] Don’t bite the hand that feeds you

63] Mustard is a good sauce, but mirth is better

64] Truth conquers all things

65] Strings high stretched either soon crack or quickly grow out of tune.

66] Wise men do not argue with idiots

67] Don’t try to run before you walk

68] Experience is a dear school, but fools learn in no other

69] How seldom in life is the moon directly overhead

70] Courtesy on one side never lasts long

71] Let every pedlar carry his own burden

72] It is no use spoiling the ship for a half penny worth of tar

73] The borrower is servant to the lender

74] There is no tree but bears some fruit

75] Poison is poison though it comes in a golden cup.

76] Ill news comes apace.

77] Even the grubs in the rocks manage to survive

78] Kindness to the good is better investment than kindness to the rich.

79] The tailor makes the man

80] Work has a bitter root but sweet fruit.

81] Fools rejoice at promises

82] The cow knows not what her tail is worth till she has lost it

83] A rose by any other name would smell as sweet

84] The deed comes back upon the doer.

85] The best of men are but men at best.

86] The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence

87] To refuse and to give tardily is all the same

88] Honey catches more files than vinegar.

89] One swallow does not make a summer

90] Learning is a treasure which accompanies its owner everywhere.

91] If the doctor cures, the sun sees it; but if he kills, the earth hides it.

92] He who considers too much will perform little.

93] A fool at forty is a fool indeed

94] If you would know the value of a ducat, try to borrow one

95] There is nothing that costs less than civility

96] Dry bread at home is better than roast meat abroad

97] No man limps because another is hurt

98] Leave well alone

99] Water is the king of food

100] Hasty climbers have sudden falls