OriginSir Thomas Browne was the first to put the expression into print in the form we now use, in Religio Medici, 1642.ExplanationThis proverb expresses the over-riding demands of taking care of one’s family, before caring for others.You should take care of your family and other people who live close to you before helping people who […]
OriginThis proverb was first recorded in the mid 17th-century.ExplanationThe way something or someone looks from outside may give us the wrong impression. Meeting people for the first time we always make a judgement based on their appearances though the proverb tells us not to make such a mistake. Appearances are really deceptive; it’s like a
OriginThe first example of this idea in print was in the works of St. Thomas More in 1532.ExplanationIt is based on the idea that it is very hard to find a sewing needle in a haystack (a tall pile of dry grass). It means when something is extremely difficult (or impossible) to find.This is considered
OriginThis proverb was stated slightly differently in 1640 ( To him that will, ways are not wanting) but has been repeated in its present form since the early 1800s.ExplanationIf you are determined enough, you can find a way to achieve what you want, even if it is very difficult. If one really wants to do
OriginEdward George Bulwer Lytton (1803-1873), an English novelist, wrote this for the first time in 1839.ExplanationThis proverb means that you can solve problems or achieve your purpose better and more effectively through communication with words than by violence with weapons. A piece of writing can cause people to change their opinions (e.g., to fight a
OriginThe expression is recorded in Richard Edwards in 1566.Explanation‘Strike while the iron is hot’ has been derived from a blacksmith striking a horse shoe when the temperature of the metal was exactly right. If the blacksmith would wait too long then the metal would cool and would become more difficult to shape. We should take
OriginThis is an 18th-century proverb.ExplanationIt is used for saying that it is difficult to change a way of behaving that someone has had for many years. Also, existing habits are hard to change. People find it difficult to change their accustomed behaviour. When you become accustomed to having something or doing something, it becomes routine
OriginOrigin of this proverb is found in the religious book-Bible, Galations VI (King Jamesw Version); whatsover a man soweth, that shall he also reap.Explanation‘As you sow, so shall you reap’ is a proverb which means that actions or deeds of a person repay him/her in kind. If you did bad things in the past, you
OriginThe use of this proverb was first made by the poet and dramatist Michael Drayton in 1596.ExplanationIf you add fuel to the fire, you do something to make a bad situation even worse. It means to make a problem worse; to say or do something that makes a bad situation worse; to make an angry
OriginThis is an early 19th-century proverb.ExplanationThere are many different routes to the same goal. All paths or activities lead to the centre of things. This was literally true in the days of the Roman Empire, when all the empire’s roads radiated out from the capital city, Rome. Any of the means or methods that one
OriginThe great Roman leader Julius Caesar recorded the earliest known version of this proverb, ‘Experience is the teacher of all things,’ in ‘De Bello Civili’ (c. 52 B.C.).ExplanationYou will learn more from things that happen to you in real life than you will from hearing about or studying things that happen to other people. Life
OriginThis proverb was first seen in 1630.ExplanationIt is better to stop something bad from happening than it is to deal with it after it has happened. It’s better to take care that a problem does not happen than to solve the problem afterwards. If a doctor advises the patient not to eat curd as the
OriginThe first known use of ‘might is right’ in the English language was in 1846.ExplanationThe phrase “might is right” refers to the idea that people who have power can do whatever they want. This idea is often phrased a little differently as “might makes right”. In this case, the word “might” is being used in
OriginThe proverb is recorded in the 16th-century in English, but the idea is found in Latin in the works of the Roman historian Quintus Curtius.ExplanationDon’t be afraid of dogs that bark or people that threaten you (say they will do something bad to you) – in both cases they rarely take action. Someone who makes
OriginThis proverb was first recorded in 1546.ExplanationThe proverb means that we should do a thing after careful consideration beforehand.Think carefully about what you are about to do before you do it. We should know what we are getting into before we commit ourselves. Check that you are clear what is ahead of you before making