proverb · Legacy record
One father is (worth) more than a hundred schoolmasters.
One father is (worth) more than a hundred schoolmasters.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
The saying rates one father above a hundred schoolmasters. It gives parental influence an exaggerated value compared with formal instruction.
What the words are saying
The numerical contrast is a value claim rather than a measured educational effect. A critical interpretation can recognise caregiving without assuming every father is beneficial or that teachers and other caregivers are lesser. Families differ, and the supplied father-raised versus teacher-taught division does not establish an exclusive role for either.
Everyday example
A reader considers how caring relationships and teachers both contribute to learning without ranking a child’s family arrangement.
When to use it
Use it critically to discuss caregiving and education without a family hierarchy.
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What it does not mean
No hundredfold effect, exclusive paternal role or universal superiority over teachers 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
- 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
- Contributor-provided proverb reference
Supplied reference A; unit 889; PDF page 124
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.