Commend a wedded life, but keep thyself a batchelor.
Commend a wedded life, but keep thyself a batchelor.
Meaning in plain English
The saying recommends praising marriage while remaining unmarried. It separates favourable words about a way of life from choosing its commitments oneself.
Example
Someone speaks warmly about friends’ marriages while openly explaining that remaining single suits their own circumstances.
Deeper explanation and when to use it
Commend and keep pull in different directions: approval is easy to voice, while the speaker preserves a different position. This may be a joke about hesitation or about advising others to do what one avoids. A useful reading considers whether the stated approval is sincere and whether a person has acknowledged the reasons for their own choice.
When to use it
Use it to distinguish approval from personal commitment.
Keep in mind
The bachelor’s position is a historical gendered framing, not a better life prescribed for everyone.
Edsverb editorial interpretation · agent reviewed · 2026-10-04. This explains the saying; it does not establish its historical origin.
- Source
- A Dictionary of English Proverbs and Proverbial Phrases
Entry 76 · Batchelor
Read the original context ↗ - Attribution confidence
- traditional · historical anthology
Preserved as printed; independently unverified. - Historical coordinate
- Undated
No reliable date supplied by the collection. - Rights & edition
- Public domain (United States)
Translations and rights may differ elsewhere.
Provenance and licences ↗
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