proverb · Source-linked selection
Better it is to meet a bear bereaved of her whelps, than a fool in his folly.
Better it is to meet a bear bereaved of her whelps, than a fool in his folly.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
The saying ranks encountering reckless foolishness as worse than meeting a bereaved bear. Its extreme comparison emphasises danger attributed to unrestrained folly.
What the words are saying
The bear supplies an alarming image, making the judgment about the fool unusually forceful. A careful application focuses on a harmful action or decision rather than treating a person as permanently contemptible. The verse does not supply a real ranking of physical dangers; its force belongs to exaggeration.
Everyday example
A team pauses an impulsive decision that would disrupt everyone’s work and explains the concrete risk without insulting its proposer.
When to use it
Use it to discuss reckless conduct through an exaggerated comparison.
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What it does not mean
It is not animal-safety advice or a basis for condemning a person’s entire character.
Agent-assisted editorial interpretation. This explains the words; it does not by itself verify their author or earliest origin.
Attribution & collection notes
- Author or tradition
- Traditional
Attribution: traditional - Country attributed
- Not established
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin. - Historical period
- Historical period not yet established
No sufficiently supported historical placement has been established. Import and download dates are not treated as composition dates. - Recorded source
- A Dictionary of English Proverbs and Proverbial Phrases
Entry 608 · Fool
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.
- Culture
- English