Words worth understanding
Start with the thought in plain English. Then explore the imagery, a practical example, when to use it, and what the saying does not mean.
4,000 entries with editorial explanations. The wider collection also contains entries still awaiting an individual interpretation.
proverb · Traditional
A tree hitting a car only in self-defence reverses ordinary responsibility in a comic collision scene. The tree is given the role of a responding actor.
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A turkey not voting for an early Christmas gives a choice an image of opposing one’s own severe disadvantage. The saying highlights interests behind a decision.
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A weapon called an enemy even to its owner gives a means of force an image of possible danger to the person possessing it. The saying questions control being assumed from ownership.
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A wife chosen for virtue and a concubine for beauty divides women into roles with different selection criteria. The saying expresses an instrumental, gendered relationship hierarchy.
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The saying mocks women as unable to keep information private unless they do not know it. This is a sexist accusation about confidentiality, not a reliable judgement of any individual.
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A woman as a garden flower and a husband as its fence gives marriage an image of beauty and protection. The saying assigns the two partners unequal roles.
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The saying compares women’s minds with changeable winter wind, presenting them as unreliable or inconsistent. This is a sexist generalisation, not evidence about the judgement of a particular woman.
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The saying assigns verbal power to women. A critical reading can recognise the force of speech while rejecting a fixed rule about gender and ability.
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The saying compares a woman’s speech to a lamb’s moving tail, mocking it as continual or trivial chatter. It is a sexist dismissal of speech, not an assessment of what anyone actually says.
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The saying describes work associated with women as continuously recurring, especially household and care tasks. It can make an overlooked burden visible without establishing that such work naturally belongs to women.
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Ability denied opportunity is described as insufficient on its own. The saying distinguishes having a capacity from being able to exercise it.
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A stepchild blamed both for not washing and for using water portrays a person condemned whichever choice they make. The saying exposes incompatible standards rather than a real fault in the child.
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People may blame someone who is absent and hear a different account when that person is present. The contrast asks whether judgement changes when the person can explain.
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An undeserved gift costing freedom pictures a benefit creating pressure or dependence. The saying questions an apparently generous offer with possible hidden expectations.
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The saying argues that paid work should not be called slavery. A critical reading distinguishes compensation from the freedom and fair conditions that a worker also needs.
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A defendant’s admission valued above a hundred witnesses gives direct acknowledgment an exaggerated evidential importance. The saying contrasts an asserted confession with others’ accounts.
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Adversity leading through knowledge to wisdom gives difficult experience an image of learning. The saying values reflection on what happens.
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Advice after injury compared with medicine after death makes delayed help appear unable to prevent an already completed harm. The saying values timely support.
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Advice rejected and adversity left to teach contrast offered guidance with learning through consequences. The saying questions how far counsel can direct another person’s choices.
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After a trial one party naked and another without a shirt gives both sides a costly outcome. The supplied sentence includes a Serb label.
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Locking a barn after a cow is stolen gives a precaution an image of arriving after a loss. The saying questions delayed prevention.
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A dog barking after a hyena leaves contrasts a bold display with the absence of its apparent challenge. The saying questions courage performed only when the risk has passed.
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The saying places age ahead of honesty in a terse order of precedence. It can be read critically as asking whether seniority is being allowed to outweigh conduct.
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A settlement may avoid the expense and strain of a prolonged dispute. The proverb favours agreement where it is fair and workable, without making cost a reason to abandon protection, accountability or a legitimate claim.
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