had advised her to be careful and not throw the baby out with the bathwater.
Proverbs are wise sayings in a language based on the practical experiences of different
kinds. They can mostly be used independently to explain a situation in very few words.
Here are some common proverbs used in English which you can also use in your day to day
talks to cut the long talk short and still convey it with same conviction.
1. Absence makes the heart grow fonder Our love for the loved ones grows more with
the distance.
The two brothers deeply wish to meet as they havent seen each other since 10 years. After
all, absence makes the heart grow fonder.
2. Accidents will happen in the best regulated families Unforeseen can happen with
anybody.
You need to be extremely cautious with electricity The accidents will happen in the best
regulated families.
3. Actions speak louder than words What people do shows more about them than what
they just say.
Hearing about her friends illness, she directly reached the hospital with a cheque of 50,000
Rs/-. Her concern was evident after all, actions speak louder than words.
4. Appearances are deceptive Internal truth of a person is usually different from what is
visible outside.
You should not believe strangers immediately. Appearances can be deceptive.
5. Never judge by appearances Dont use looks as the criteria to assess someone.
I saw the CEO of a big blue chip company hanging out with his friends at a local market in
casual attire. Its true that you cant judge someone by their appearance.
6. An apple a day keeps the doctor away An apple eaten everyday keeps you in good
health.
My father has always stayed in a good health with his habit of eating an apple everyday. For
him, An apple a day keeps the doctor away has worked well.
7. Art is long, life is short. Life is too short to learn all the art in this world.
She always complained of getting bored. I advised her to learn some music or painting. After
all, Art is long, life is short.
8. Dont throw the baby out with the bathwater Be careful to not throw away good things
with bad while cleaning.
She deleted some useful files also along with the useless ones while cleaning her computer. I
9. You scratch my back, Ill scratch yours If you help me, Ill help you.
America is pushing the Indian government for FDI in retail. Indian government will get the
foreign currency while America gets a big market for its goods. The principle is simple You
scratch my back, Ill scratch yours.
10. Beauty is only skin deep Never judge by appearance A good looking woman may
not necessarily be good by character.
My daughter-in-law is very beautiful but very cunning Beauty is only skin deep.
11. As you make your bed, so you must lie in it. Be prepared to face the consequences
of your wrong actions.
To full his dreams, he had left his parents alone in their old age. Now his son wants to go
abroad with his wife and settle there. He has made his bed, now he must life in it.
12. Honesty is the best policy Being truthful saves you from many problems. It is the best
thing to do.
You may make a quick buck with dishonest means but ultimately you may not get a good
nights sleep. Honesty is the best policy to follow for a happy life.
13. Beggars cant be choosers A needy person should accept what is offered without
complaining.
She was complaining about the amount of money they had sent. I asked her to accept
gratefully what she has got Beggars cant be choosers.
14. Big is beautiful Large size is advantageous.
One way to separate good fruits from bad is the size. Big is beautiful.
15. Birds of a feather flock together People with similar qualities, seek each others
company.
I am sure she must be a genius doctor. She is a close friend of Dr. Ram, who referred me to
her Birds of a feather flock together.
16. The early bird catches the worm The quicker one/ first in line gets the opportunities.
He reached first and picked up the best deal. The early bird caught the worm.
17. Once bitten, twice shy From experience, we learn to avoid situation causing trouble or
distress.
Its three years since she divorced her husband. Everyone is forcing her to re-marry but she
doesnt want to. Once bitten, twice shy is the situation she is in.
18. Theres a black sheep in every family One member in every family doesnt fit into the
characteristic of the family.
My son is the black sheep of our family. All of us are very talkative while he is very reserve.
19. Two blacks dont make a white You can not justify something wrong you have done
because someone else has also done it.
You can not justify your late night parties just because your friend attends them. Two blacks
dont make a white.
20. If the blind lead the blind, both shall fall- If a person lacking in some expertise leads
others, all of them shall fail.
They mistook me to be a great singer and sent their children to learn singing. If a blind leads
the blind, both shall fail.
21. In the country of the blind, the one eyed man is king The person with a little ability in
a group of those with absolutely no ability is at an advantage.
In the whole group, Marie is the only one who knows the basics of coding. She is like that one
eyed man who is a king in the country of blind.
22. There are none so blind as those who will not see It is useless explaining those who
do not want to understand.
Her son usually misbehaves with the relatives but she doesnt find anything wrong in him.
There are none so blind as those who will not see.
23. Blood is thicker than water Family relationship is stronger than others.
His brother was aware about his life threatening ailment but he did not call up even once to
inquire and they say blood is thicker than water.
24. Half a loaf is better than no bread Be grateful for what you get rather than
complaining for what you dont have.
Judiciously use the money your father sends you rather than complaining for the things he
cant afford. Half a loaf is better than no bread.
25. You cant make bricks without straws You cant accomplish something without the
right material.
Of course, you need to study hard to win a gold medal. You cant make bricks without straws.
26. Dont cross a bridge until you come to it Dont try to deal with anticipated problems.
Let them become realities.
The team captain was asked if he believes there are any match fixers in his team and would
he like to drop them. He replied, I dont think so about any of my boys. We have to wait for
that bridge to come to cross it.
27. If it isnt broken, dont fix it If something is working well, dont try to improve upon it.
He has already made a name for himself in the society. His new campaign was absolutely
un-required as the results tell us. I had told him, if it isnt broken, dont fix it.
28. A new broom sweeps clean - A new person at a new position implements an
aggressive and enthusiastic reform.
The new Marketing manager got a new advertising strategy implemented for a complete
makeover in the brand image of the company. The results are awesome. The new broom has
worked for them.
29. Let bygones be bygones Forget you past complains and start over afresh.
Theres no way you can save your relationship with your brother unless you let bygones be
bygones.
30. If the cap fits, wear it Accept the words of criticism if you think they are correct.
There was a major goof up in deal. The boss said, the cap fits me and I am ready to wear it.
Lets get on to fix the problem now.
31. Dont count your chickens before they are hatched One should not assume himself
to be successful, unless the actual result is out.
The deal is not final yet, we dont want any publicity for it right now. So, keep the information
confidential and lets not count the chickens before they are hatched.
32. Every cloud has a silver lining Look for positivity in every tough situation.
The silver lining to the cloud is that untimely high tide will help all the debris of ship wreck to
be thrown out to the sea shore in next few hours.
33. Cut your coat according to your cloth Adjust your expenditures according to your
income.
She wanted to buy the biggest house in the area but the mother advised her to cut her coat
according to the cloth.
34. Comparisons are odious Comparing once person with another make them feel
offensive.
Mark pulled up this project way better than Phillip could was the bosss statement in the
meeting. Phillip felt belittled obviously comparisons are odious.
35. Youve got to be cruel to be kind For the benefits in long term, you may need to do
something unpleasant at present.
To instil the virtues of good behaviour and discipline in your children may need you to be
cruel to be kind.
36. Desperate diseases demand desperate remedies Big problems need bold and
extremes steps to solve them.
Terrorist attacks in the country city were on the rise. Realising that desperate diseases
require desperate remedies, the home ministry ordered a death sentence to the two most
deadly terrorists.
37. Speak the truth and shame the devil Avoid speaking lies to save any future
problems.
You seem to be not so serious about your relationship with her. Im sorry if it offends you but
being her friend, I have got to speak he truth and shame the devil.
38. Love me, love my dog If you love me, you must accept me as I am.
Knowing that her love for boxing will consume most of her time, he married her. She had
already told him, for a successful relationship if you love me, you have got to love my dog.
39. Dont put all your eggs in one basket Redistribute your resources. Dont keep all your
hopes on one.
The boss re-structured the team and re-distributed the accounts. He did not want to put all his
eggs in one basket.
40. The eye is bigger than the belly The visual appeal of the food tempts us to eat more
even when we have no appetite.
Delicacies from all over the world were served in the party. I had had as much as I could but
couldnt resist eating the ice cream as the eye is bigger than the belly.
41. Forbidden fruit is the sweetest - If something is forbidden, our attraction to do that
increases all the more.
If you prevent your child from eating chocolates, he will be all the more attracted to eat them.
Forbidden fruits are often the sweetest ones. So, limit them but dont ban them.
42. Man proposes but God disposes We may make plans but cant control the outcome.
They had got their tickets reserved for the pilgrimage but had to cancel it due to heavy snow
fall. God disposed their proposal.
43. All that glitters is not gold Everything that looks good is not necessarily good. Dont
judge things by looks.
My colleague was very good and polite to me on face but he kept complaining about my
every small mistake to the boss. All that glitters is not gold.
44. The grass is always greener on the other side Applies to people who are always
dissatisfied.
She always thought her friends were extremely happy in foreign countries but in reality they
were just making the ends meet. Her husband told her that grass is always greener on the
other side.
45. Beware of Greeks bearing gifts Be careful of rivals kindness.
They are biggest political rivals in the area but James speaking good of Davids plan to
combat terrorism made Dave suspicious of Johns Greek gifts.
46. Handsome is as handsome does Deeds define a mans character.
My father was a man of principles and he always lived up to them. Since childhood, he taught
us, your actions speak for you because handsome is as handsome does.
47. Give a man enough rope and hell hang himself If you give excess freedom to
someone they will eventually make themselves fall in trouble.
He gave his children a lot of freedom. However, the younger one got into a bad company and
became a drug addict. He hung himself with the enough rope his father had given him.
48. Make hay while the sun shines If you get an opportunity, you must try to take
immediate benefit out of it.
The world renowned physics scientist was visiting the college. Trying to make the hay while
sun was shining, I decided to show him my research papers and ask him for an opportunity to
work under him.
49. The road to hell is paved with good intentions Without actions, good intentions are
useless.
The idea to build a network joining all the water bodies in the country was a great one but the
road to hell was paved with them never being put into action.
50. A swarm of bees in May is worth a load of hay Right activity in the season produces
good yield.
The paddy crop was a major failure this year. It did not rain sufficiently at right time A
swarm of bees in May is worth a load of hay.
Here are a few examples of African proverbs.
 A tree is known by its fruit (of Zulu origin - this means that success is shown
by the deeds.)
I have been bitten by a tsetse fly (of Tanzanian origin this means that a
person will continuously be a pest until you pay off a debt.)
The word of friend makes you cry the word of an enemy makes you laugh
(of Algeria, Burkina Faso, Mali, Mauritania, and Niger this means that a friend
will tell you the truth and sometimes the truth hurts, whereas an enemy will only
lead you down the wrong path by giving you advice that seems good but is not.)
Asian Proverbs
Some examples of Asian proverbs include the following:
The old horse in the stable still yearns to run (this means that those who are
older still have things they would like to accomplish.)
A spark can start a fire that burns the entire prairie (this means that a small
problem can snowball into a huge problem that can cause major damage.)
Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed
him for a lifetime (this means that teaching people is better in the long run
because it gives them the skills to provide for themselves as opposed to you
doing things for them.)
American Proverbs
Some examples of American based proverbs include:
"Absence makes the heart grow fonder (this means that when you separate
from someone that you love by putting distance between you that you will
inevitably love them more and yearn to see them.)
"All that glitters is not gold (this means that just because something looks
good, does not necessarily mean that it is good.)
"A monkey in silk is a monkey no less (this means that just because someone
dresses fancy does not necessarily mean that they are fancy or of good
character.)
English Proverbs
Some examples of English proverbs include:
Early to bed and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise.
Its no use locking the stable door after the horse has bolted.
Laugh and the world laughs with you, weep and you weep alone.
See a pin and pick it up, all the day youll have good luck; see a pin and let it lie,
bad luck youll have all day.
Tis better to have loved and lost, than never to have loved at all.
Mondays child is fair of face/Tuesdays child is full of grace,/Wednesdays child
is full of woe,/Thursdays child has far to go,/Fridays child is loving and
giving,/Saturdays child works hard for its living/And a child thats born on the
Sabbath day/Is fair and wise and good and gay.
Proverbs from Other Countries
Arabic Proverb: An army of sheep led by a lion would defeat an army of lions led
by a sheep.
Finnish proverb: Even a small star shines in the darkness.
Italian Proverb: After the game, the king and pawn go into the same box.
Jewish Proverb: God could not be everywhere and therefore he made mothers.
Russian Proverb: Better to stumble than make a slip of the tongue.
Spanish Proverb: Since we cannot get what we like, let us like what we can get.
What Is a Proverb?
A proverb is most often a phrase or saying that gives advice in an obscure way.
The phrase usually has an allegorical type of message behind that when first
heard may seem a little odd. Usually a proverb is very well known because of its
popular use in colloquial language.
Role of Proverbs in Society
Proverbs play many roles in society. The first, possibly, most common role that a
proverb plays is to educate. Most often tossed around as expert advice in
conversation, the innate role to educate people on what might happen if they do
something.
Think of a proverb as a little tidbit of wisdom that just about everyone no matter
where they are from can offer. There is a proverb for just about every
circumstance, and proverbs can be applied to any situation.
English and American proverbs are almost second nature when delivered. The
origins are quite often little known, yet the expressions are popular. Ethnic
proverbs, on the other hand, may be a little deeper to digest, and require non-
natives of the proverbs country of origin, to think about the meaning in order to
better understand how it applies to their lives.
Read more at http://examples.yourdictionary.com/examples-of-
proverbs.html#pi9PDTKLlZ0r20SB.99