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
The saying prefers a considerate refusal to a reluctant promise. It values an honest limit over an undertaking someone does not willingly accept.
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A polite refusal preferred to a worthless promise values an honest limit over an assurance that cannot be relied upon. The saying connects care with clarity.
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Being on your own can be preferable to company that mistreats you or pulls you into harmful conduct. Companionship has value when its quality is considered.
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The saying prefers a position others envy to one they pity, treating envy as a sign of apparent advantage. That comparison exposes a concern with social standing rather than proving that either reaction accurately describes someone’s life.
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The saying ranks encountering reckless foolishness as worse than meeting a bereaved bear. Its extreme comparison emphasises danger attributed to unrestrained folly.
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Passing up a joke can be wiser than hurting a friend for a moment’s amusement. Consider the person affected before deciding that a clever remark must be said.
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Material advantage may not be worth gaining through conduct that brings shame or harms others. The saying places integrity above wealth, rather than treating money as the only measure of a good life.
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A careless remark may be harder to put right than an ordinary stumble. The comparison warns about the effects of speech, without proving that physical injury is minor or that necessary words should remain unspoken.
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Allowing extra time may be preferable to missing a moment that matters. The exaggerated comparison stresses the consequences of lateness, without making three hours early a sensible rule for every appointment.
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Harmful company can be worse than an unpleasant immediate setback. The saying warns against relationships that repeatedly lead someone into trouble, but its comparison does not justify violence or abuse.
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Forgiveness sought afterward preferred to permission beforehand values acting first. The saying treats later repair as easier than prior agreement.
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Religious belief should guide conduct rather than be used to hide it. The two uses of a cloak contrast a genuine purpose with a convenient disguise.
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A promise and its fulfilment are separated by the work needed to carry it out. Good intentions matter, but a confident statement is not yet evidence of a completed result.
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The phrase puts a big fish in a little sea. As a human analogy, it describes someone prominent within a relatively small setting.
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The saying minimises punishment with birch twigs by claiming that it does not break ribs. The narrow comparison leaves other pain and harm outside its account.
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People with similar interests, habits or outlooks often spend time together. A shared activity or way of thinking can make a group feel familiar and easier to join.
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The saying contrasts birds of prey with singing birds. As an explicit analogy, a threatening role may be imagined as lacking the charm associated with a pleasant voice.
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Family ties may inspire especially strong loyalty. Blood represents kinship, while water provides the contrast with relationships outside the family.
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Blushing is imagined as the visible colour of moral sensitivity. The saying can praise a moment of modesty, but a bodily reaction does not prove honesty or virtue, and the absence of visible embarrassment does not establish a defect of character.
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Boots, chaps and cowboy hats made the only things that matter gives visible identity objects an exaggerated priority. The saying expresses enthusiasm for a particular persona.
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This saying presents boys’ behaviour as predictable because they are boys. It can affectionately describe ordinary play, but it also risks excusing misconduct and treating gender as destiny; responsibility and care remain necessary regardless of who acts.
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Boasting can sound impressive when encouraged, yet fail when action is required. The dog makes a noise but does not bite.
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Boasting may sound impressive, but dependable persistence is more useful. Judge what someone follows through on rather than relying only on their confident claims.
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Boasting can seem impressive while lacking what would make it convincing. The incomplete dog turns grand talk into an image of missing substance.
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