proverb · Legacy record
Talk and arrows are better if straight; roads and bows are better if curved.
Talk and arrows are better if straight; roads and bows are better if curved.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
Straight speech and arrows are contrasted with curved roads and bows. The saying gives different forms different advantages rather than treating one shape as always best.
What the words are saying
Straight talk can suggest clarity, while the other comparisons remind a reader to consider function. These are editorial readings of the image, not technical design rules. Directness need not become cruelty, and an indirect approach can sometimes be appropriate.
Everyday example
Someone states a concern clearly while adapting the practical route for addressing it.
When to use it
Use it to consider suitability rather than one universal style.
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What it does not mean
No weapon, road-building or universally correct communication procedure is supplied.
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 wisdom reference (2014 AD)
Supplied reference B; unit 343; PDF page 35; collection label: Tibet Province of China
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.
- Culture
- Tibet Province of China