proverb · Source-linked selection
In the husband wisdom, in the wife gentleness.
In the husband wisdom, in the wife gentleness.
Historical period not yet established
Editorial context: This assigns wisdom and gentleness by marital gender. Both qualities can be expected of every participant.
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
The saying assigns wisdom to the husband and gentleness to the wife as complementary ideals. It is a gendered allocation of virtues, not evidence that either quality belongs only to one partner.
What the words are saying
The two qualities are distributed between the husband and wife instead of being requested from both. That arrangement can sound harmonious, but it also narrows what each person is expected to contribute: judgement is associated with the husband, and a gentle manner with the wife. The interpretation should preserve this division so its limitations can be discussed. A household may benefit from thoughtful decisions and considerate behaviour, yet those capacities need not be separated by gender. Ask how the actual partners share deliberation and care rather than treating the proverb as a prescription that one must decide while the other must soften the exchange.
Everyday example
Two partners planning a move both contribute to the decisions and both take care over the conversation, instead of assigning judgement to one and gentleness to the other.
When to use it
Use it to examine a division of desirable qualities by marital gender, not to allocate those qualities in practice.
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What it does not mean
Wisdom and gentleness can be expected of every participant; gender does not determine who should reason or show care.
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 831 · Husband
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.
- Culture
- English