• Proverbs and Sayings 101-200

Proverbs and Sayings
1. A bad excuse is better than none.
Giving a poor excuse is better than not having an excuse as a poor excuse may be believed.
2. A bad workman blames his tools.
Workers who do not have the necessary ability to do something successfully blames their equipment or tools.
3. A bird in hand is worth two in the bush.
What you actually have now is more valuable than something you may get, so avoid risking what you have to get it.
4. A bully is always a coward.
A bully is one who picks on someone who is weaker and cannot fight back.
5. A burnt child dreads fire.
Someone who has a bad experience tends to always avoid such experience.
6. A dog is man's best friend.
Dogs are more faithful than any human companion.
7. A chip off the old block.
A person who has similar character or appearance as that of his or her parent.
8. A cold hand and a warm heart.
This is used to say to someone with cold hands in order to stop them being shy or embarrassed.
9. A drowning man will clutch at a straw.
When a person is desperate or in a very difficult situation, he will seize any opportunity to save or improve himself.
10. A fate worse than death
An experience that is so bad that we wish we need not have to go through
11. A fool and his money are soon parted.
There is a tendency for foolish people to be easily cheated or lose their money.
12. A friend in need is a friend indeed.
If someone is your true friend, he will stand by you in times of difficulties.
13. A friend to all is a friend to none.
A person who tries to be friends with everyone will end up being friends with no one.
14. A good beginning is half the battle
A good start to an undertaking is halfway to making a success of it.
15. A good beginning makes a good ending
Thorough preparation ensures a successful ending.
16. A good tale is none the worse for being told twice.
It is all right to tell a story, joke, etc. a second time if it is a good story. This proverb is often used to justify repeating a story.
17. A good wife/husband makes a good husband/wife.
A wife or husband who treats the family well will find her or his spouse doing the same.
18. A guilty conscience needs no accuser.
People who have done wrong unconsciously express their guilt in what they say or how they behave, or think they are always the subject of other people's talk.
19. A heavy purse makes a light heart.
People who have plenty of money are happy and free from worry.
20. A hungry man is an angry man.
Hunger makes a man angry.
21. A man is as old as he feels; a woman is as old as she looks.
A man may feel younger on a good day and older on a bad day, and a woman makes herself look younger or older by using clothing and make-up to make herself younger or older than she actually is.
22. A man is known by the company he keeps.
People's judgement of you may be based on the reputation or character of the people you associate with.
23. A miss is as good as a mile.
If you miss, you miss even though you almost hit the target.
24. A penny saved is a penny earned/gained.
However small the amount you save, it is still wise to save.
25. A rich man's joke is always funny
Wealthy people are surrounded by flatterers who strive to win their favour by laughing at all their jokes even though they are not funny.
26. A rolling stone gathers no moss.
People who move or travel around freely or easily have less personal responsibility or attachment.
27. A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.
It the qualities inherent in someone or something that matter and not whatever name they are called.
28. A small leak will sink a great ship.
Unimportant or insignificant problem can escalate into big or serious problem.
29. A stitch in time saves nine.
It is better to deal with problems early than to wait until they get worse.
30. A watched pot never boils.
When we watch impatiently to happen, it seems to take longer than usual to happen.
31. A wolf in sheep's clothing.
There are people who hide the fact that they are evil with a pleasant and friendly appearance.
32. A woman's work is never done.
The household chores are unending being repeated day after day.
33. A word spoken is past recalling.
This is a reminder that we should think carefully before speaking because we cannot take back what we have said.
34. Absence makes the heart grow fonder.
One's feeling of affection increases when a close one such as a family member or a friend is not in one's company.
35. Actions speak louder than words.
What one does is more important than what one says.
36. Action without thought is like shooting without aim.
One should think before one acts in order to get what one wants.
37. All roads lead to Rome.
All the methods of doing something will achieve the same result in the end.
38. All that glitters is not gold.
Things are not always as valuable as they appear to be.
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39. All things are possible with God.
Anything might happen as nothing is impossible to the divine will.
40. All work and no play make Jack a dull boy.
One should take a break from work for leisure or relaxation to prevent harm to one's health, quality of work or personal relationships.
41. All's fair in love and war.
One can skip all reasonable behavior when in love and war.
42. All's well that ends well.
When everything ends in a good or satisfactory way, all difficulties one encounters along the way can be forgotten.
43. Always a bridesmaid, never the bride.
Someone who is never the most important person in a situation.
44. An apple a day keeps the doctor away.
This proverb lays emphasis on fruit as an important element in one's healthy diet.
45. An Englishman's home is his castle.
English people believe that they should be able to control what happens in their own homes, and that no one else should tell them what to do there.
46. As you make your bed, so must you lie on it.
You must accept the consequences of your foolish action or decision.
47. As you sow, so you shall reap.
Whether you do something good or bad determines what will happen to you in the future.
48. Ask a silly question and you get a silly answer.
If you ask a question that cannot be answered, or to which the answer is obvious, you are likely to receive a humorously inappropriate or nonsensical reply.
49. Ask no questions and you'll be told (or hear) no lies.
It is better you do not ask questions of someone who is not willing to answer and so may tell a lie.
50. Barking dogs seldom bite.
People who make the most or loudest threats are unlikely to carry out their threats.
51. Barking up the wrong tree.
Have a wrong idea of getting something that is desired.
52. Be born with a silver spoon in your mouth.
To be born into a rich family.
53. Beggars can't be choosers.
We must be grateful for what is given to us, otherwise we would have nothing.
54. Beat about the bush.
To avoid or delay talking about something by talking about something else that is irrelevant or insignificant.
55. Beauty is but skin-deep.
Beauty exists on the surface only, and may conceal an unpleasant character.
56. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
Not everyone will agree that the same thing or person is attractive which means beauty is subjective.
57. Beggars must not be choosers.
When we cannot get something better, what we get we must be grateful and without complaint.
58. Better a devil you know than a devil you don't know.
It is wiser to deal with someone familiar although you do not like them than to deal with someone who you do not know, who might be worse.
59. Better an old man's darling than a young man's slave.
It is better to be married to an older man who will care for you lovingly than to a younger man who may ill-treat you.
60. Better late than never.
Someone arrives or something happens later as one wishes is better than not at all.
61. Between the devil and the deep blue sea.
One has two choices which are both undesirable.
62. Birds of a feather flock together.
People tend to associate with others who have same interests or possess similarly bad character.
63. Bite off more than one can chew.
To try to do more than one is able to do.
64. Blood is thicker than water.
The affection between members of a family is much stronger than any other relationship.
65. Blow one's own trumpet.
To praise oneself for one's own achievements
66. Born with a silver spoon in the mouth.
To be born into a rich family.
67. Both poverty and prosperity come from spending money – prosperity from spending it wisely.
Spending money without thought or care for the consequences makes one poor while spending money to get good returns on investments makes one succeed financially.
68. Boys will be boys.
Boys must be excused for their bad behavior.
69. Bread always falls buttered side down.
It often happens that the least desired of all possible outcomes will result.
70. Burn the candle at both ends.
Work so hard for too long.
71. Business is business.
There is no sympathetic feeling in business.
72. Call a spade a spade.
Say the truth about someone or something even if the truth is not respectful, polite or pleasant.
73. Cast pearls before swine.
To offer something that is very valuable to someone who does not understand how valuable it is.
74. Charity begins at home.
Caring for someone should begin with those closest and dearest to you before others.
75. Children should be seen and not heard.
In the presence of adults, children should not speak unless spoken to.
76. Christmas comes but once a year.
Excessive spending and enjoying the pleasure of Christmas or other celebrations are justified as they don't happen often.
77. Civility costs nothing.
There is nothing to lose by being polite.
78. Cleanliness is next to godliness.
It emphasizes the importance of personal hygiene and cleanliness.
79. Cold hands, warm heart.
Those whose hands are cold to the touch are supposedly kind and affectionate by nature; this is used to comfort someone whose hands are cold to stop them from feeling embarrassed.
80. Cross the bridge only when you come to it.
You will not think or worry about something until it actually happens.
81. Curiosity killed a cat.
Desire to find out about something can lead you into trouble.
82. Cut your coat according to your cloth.
Spend only as much money as you can afford, and do not try to live beyond your means.
83. Dead men tell no tales.
People who are dead cannot tell secrets, so it may be expedient to kill somebody who could betray a secret or give information about the criminal activities of others.
84. Death pays all debts.
Dead people do not owe anything to people who are living.
85. Desires are nourished by delays.
A desire or wish becomes stronger if it is not satisfied immediately.
86. Desperate diseases need desperate remedies.
When we are in a particularly difficult situation, it is right or reasonable to take drastic action.
87. Diamond cut diamond.
One cunning person is a match for another.
88. Discretion is the better part of valour.
It is often wiser to be careful than to take unnecessary risks.
89. Don't bite off more than you can chew.
Don't take on a difficult task that you cannot tackle.
90. Don't bite the hand that feeds you.
One should not be unkind or ungrateful to those on whom one depends for financial or other support.
91. Don't build your castles in the air.
Don't have plans or hopes that are unlikely ever to become real.
92. Don't burn your bridges behind you.
Be wise enough not to make an irrevocable decision before thinking carefully as one can never be sure of what the future holds.
93. Don't count your chickens before they are hatched.
It is better not to optimistically assume one will get or be successful until one has actually got it or succeeded.
94. Don't cry out before you're hurt.
There is no need to upset yourself about something bad that may or may not happen.
95. Don't cry over spilt milk.
Don't feel sorry about an earlier mistake or misfortune that cannot be put right.
96. Don't get mad, get even.
Take positive action to retaliate for a wrong that has been done to you, rather than wasting your time and energy in angry recrimination
97. Don't halloo till you're out of the wood.
Avoid any show of victory, achievement, relief until you are certain that you have overcome the difficult circumstances.
98. Don't judge a book by its cover.
Do not judge someone or something from outward appearance as we don't know what that someone or something is like.
99. Don't meet trouble half-way.
Don't worry about problems before they actually happen.
100. Don't put all your eggs in one basket.
Don't risk doing only one thing but spread your risks so that if it fails you will not lose everything.

• Proverbs and Sayings 101-200