proverb · Source-linked selection
Great thieves always have their sleeves full of gags.
Great thieves always have their sleeves full of gags.
In print by 1857 AD · industrial
Recorded in a printed collection by this date; the original date of these words is still unknown.
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
Powerful wrongdoers may have ways to silence objections. The hidden gags portray suppression of scrutiny, not a claim that every influential person is guilty.
What the words are saying
The thieves carry gags ready to prevent others from speaking. The sleeves suggest that the means of silencing may be kept out of view until needed. In a critical reading, the image asks whether complaints disappear because a problem has been answered or because those raising it cannot safely continue. Attend to the conditions for speaking and examining evidence. The historical accusation is exaggerated and cannot identify a real wrongdoer on its own. Silence deserves investigation, but is not proof of a particular hidden offence.
Everyday example
A committee notices that members stop raising concerns after being threatened with exclusion and revisits how objections can be heard.
When to use it
Use it to question whether apparent agreement was produced by suppression.
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What it does not mean
Do not infer guilt merely from influence or silence; assess the actual conduct and evidence.
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 (French-language collection)
Attribution: traditional - Country attributed
- Not established
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin. - Historical period
- In print by 1857 AD · industrial
In print by 1857: recorded in A Polyglot of Foreign Proverbs (1857). Collection publication is an upper bound for this wording, not its earliest origin, composition date or the author's lifetime.
An author lifetime, approximate period or collection date is not necessarily the date when these words were first written or spoken. - Recorded source
- A Polyglot of Foreign Proverbs (1857) (1857 AD)
Printed page 34; French section, paragraph 688; source wording: Les gros larrons ont toujours les manches pleines de baillons.
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.