proverb · Words worth keeping
Corn is cleansed with the wind, and the soul with chastening.
Corn is cleansed with the wind, and the soul with chastening.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
The saying compares grain cleared by wind with a soul improved through correction. It makes separation of unwanted material an image of moral change.
What the words are saying
Corn and soul are paired, with chastening given the role of a cleaning force. A useful interpretation asks what habit or action actually needs correction and how a person can learn from it. The analogy should not imply that suffering automatically purifies someone or that harsh treatment is deserved. Reflection and changed conduct matter more than a claim of cleansing.
Everyday example
Someone accepts a fair criticism, corrects a misleading statement and adopts a more careful practice.
When to use it
Use it to discuss moral correction through an explicit grain-cleaning analogy.
What it does not mean
The metaphor does not justify imposed suffering or establish spiritual purification.
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 317 · Corn
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.
- Culture
- English