proverb · Legacy record
Judge a person not by the ability to make money, but by the ability to keep it.
Judge a person not by the ability to make money, but by the ability to keep it.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
Keeping money preferred to making it gives retention a greater role in judging financial conduct. The saying shifts attention from income to what remains.
What the words are saying
A critical interpretation does not rank human worth by wealth or treat limited savings as proof of poor character. Necessary costs, unequal resources and circumstances affect what someone can retain. The wording supplies no financial strategy or reliable comparison of particular people.
Everyday example
A reader examines actual obligations before assuming that a smaller retained amount reflects worse judgment.
When to use it
Use it critically to discuss resource retention without a personal worth test.
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What it does not mean
No character measure, savings guarantee or financial recommendation is established.
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
China
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
- Contributor-provided wisdom reference (2014 AD)
Supplied reference B; unit 237; PDF page 29; collection label: China
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.
- Culture
- China