Proverb 7th form

ENGLISH PROVERBS

Absence make the heart grow fonder: People often feel more affectionate toward each other when they are apart.

Actions speak louder than words: People’s actions are more convincing than their words are.

After the feast comes the reckoning: People must always pay the price of their excesses.

All that glitters is not gold: Some things aren’t as valuable as they appear to be.

An apple a day keeps the doctor away: Eating an apple everyday helps a person stay healthy.

The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree: Children take after their parents.

Bad news travel fast: Reports of problems and misfortune spread quickly.

Barking dogs seldom bite: People who threaten others usually don’t hurt them.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder: What seems ordinary or ugly to one person might seem beautiful to another.

Beggars can’t be choosers: When a person has nothing, he or she must accept whatever help is offered.

The best things in life are free: The things that give a person the most happiness don’t cost anything.

Better a live coward than a dead hero: It’s better to run from a life-threatening situation than to fight and risk being killed.

Better late than never: It’s better to do something late than not to do it at all.

Better safe than sorry: It’s better to choose a safe course of action than a risky one that could lead to regrets.

The bigger they are the harder they fall: The more important someone is, the more severe are the consequences of his failure.

A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush: Something you already have is better than something you might get.

Birds of a feather flock together: People of the same type seem to gather together.

Blood is thicker than water: Members of the same family share stronger ties with each other than they do with others.

Charity begins at home: One should take care of one’s own family, friends or fellow citizens before helping other people.

Clothes don’t make the man: A person shouldn’t be judged by the clothes he wears.

Curiosity killed the cat: It is dangerous to be curious.

Do as I say not as I do: Follow my advice but don’t follow my example.

Don’t bite off more than you can chew: Don’t assume more responsibility than you can handle; don’t be overconfident

Don’t count your chickens before they are hatched: Don’t plan on the successful results of something until those results actually occur.

Don’t cry over spilt milk: Don’t grieve about having done something that can’t be undone.

Don’t judge a book by its cover: Don’t form an opinion about something based on appearance alone.

Don’t judge a man until you’ve walked in his boots: Don’t criticize a person until you’ve tried to do the things he does.

Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth: Don’t complain about something that is given to you.

Don’t out all your eggs in one basket: Don’t risk losing everything at once.

Don’t put off for tomorrow what you can do today: Don’t unnecessarily postpone doing something.

Don’t out the cart in front of the horse: Don’t do things in the wrong order.

Familiarity breeds contempt: When you know people well you will discover their weaknesses and you may come to scorn them.

The first step is always the hardest: The most difficult part of accomplishing something is getting started.

A fool and his money are soon parted: A foolish person quickly spends his money on worthless things.

Forewarned is forearmed: Being warned about something before it happens allows a person to prepare for it.

A friend in need is a friend indeed: A true friend will help you in time of trouble.

A friend who shares is a friend who cares: A true friend unselfishly shares what she has.

Good things come in small packages: Small containers can hold objects of great value.

The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence: Another place or situation always appears to be better than your own.

Haste makes waste: When one hurries too much, one is likely to do a poor job and have to waste time doing it over.

He who hesitates is lost: A person who doesn’t behave decisively is unlikely to succeed.

He who laughs last, laughs best: The person who succeeds in making the last move has the most fun.

Hindsight is better than foresight: People see and understand things more clearly after they’ve happened than before they’ve happened.

If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again: Persevere until you reach your goal.

If you can’t beat them join them: If you can’t defeat your opponents, join forces with them.

If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen: If you can’t tolerate the pressures of a particular situation, remove yourself from that situation.

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery: Trying to be someone is the most genuine way of praising that person.

In unity there is strength: A group of people with the same goals accomplish more than individuals can.

It never rains but it pours: Good and bad things tend to happen in groups.

It takes two to tango: When two people work as a team, they are both responsible for the team’s successes and failures.

Leave well enough alone: Don’t try to improve something that is already satisfactory.

A leopard can’t change its spots: A person can’t change his or her basic character once it’s formed.

Lightning never strikes twice in the same place: The same misfortune won’t happen twice to the same person.

Look before you leap: Consider all aspects of a situation before you take any action.

Love is blind: One sees no faults in the person one loves.

Love makes the world go round: When people show respect and consideration for one another, the world is a better place.

Make hay while the sun shines: Take advantage of an opportunity to do something.

Man doesn’t live by bread alone: People’s psychological needs as well as their physical needs must be satisfied if they are to live.

A man is known by the company he keeps: A person is believed to be like the people with whom he or she spends time.

Might makes right: The stronger of two opponents will always control the situation.

Misery loves company: Unhappy people often get satisfaction from having others share their misery.

A miss is as god as a mile: Losing by a narrow margin is no different than losing by a large margin.

Money doesn’t grow on trees: Money isn’t easily obtained.

Necessity is the mother of invention: Most inventions are created to solve a problem.

No news is good news: If one doesn’t hear the outcome of a situation, that outcome must be positive.

No pain, no gain: Nothing can be accomplished without effort.

Nothing hurts like the truth: It is painful to discover an unpleasant truth about oneself.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained: You can’t achieve anything if you don’t try.

Old habits die hard: It is very difficult to change an established pattern of behavior.

One good turn deserves another: A favor should be repaid with another favor.

One man’s gravy is another man’s poison: What is pleasing to one person may not be pleased to another.

One swallow doesn’t a summer make: One piece of evidence is not enough to prove something.

The pen is mightier than the sword: The written word is more powerful than physical force.

Possession is nine-tenth of the law: the person who possesses something has the strongest claim to owning it.

Practice makes perfect: Doing something many times improves one’s skill at it.

The proof of the pudding is in the eating: The only way to judge something is to try it.

Rome wasn’t built in a day: Important things don’t happen overnight.

The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak: A person’s body isn’t always as strong as his mind.

The squeaking wheel gets the oil: Those who complain the loudest get the most attention.

Strike while the iron is hot: Act at the best possible time.

There is no honor among thieves: One dishonest person can’t trust another.

There is more than one way to skin a cat: There are many ways to achieve a goal.

There’s no fool like an old fool: A foolish act seems even more foolish when performed by an older person, who should have a lot of wisdom.

There’s no place like home: A person is happiest with his family and friends.

Too many chiefs, not enough Indians: Too many people are giving orders, and not enough people are following orders.

Too many cooks spoil the broth: Too many people trying to take care of something can ruin it.

Two heads are better than one: Two people working together can solve a problem quicker and better than a person working alone.

Two’s company, but three is crowd: Couples often enjoy their privacy and dislike having a third person around.

Variety is the spice of life: Differences and changes make life enjoyable.

The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach: The way to gain a man’s love is by preparing food that he enjoys.

When in Rome, do as Romans do: When traveling, follow the customs of the local people.

When the cat’s away, the mice will play: Some people will misbehave when they aren’t being watched.

Where there is smoke, there is fire: When there is evidence of a problem, there probably is a problem.

You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink: You can propose a course of action to someone, but you can’t force that person to accept it.

You can’t have your cake and eat it too: You can’t enjoy the advantages of two conflicting activities at once.

You can’t teach an old dog new tricks: Elderly people can’t change their behavior or learn anything new.

You have to take the good with the bad: You must accept disappointment along with success.

You reap what you sow: The amount of effort you put into something determines how much get out of it.

You are never too old to learn: A person can learn at any age.