proverb · Words worth keeping
The skin is nearer than the shirt.
The skin is nearer than the shirt.
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
Immediate personal interests may feel stronger than interests at a greater distance. Recognise that closeness without assuming it justifies ignoring every obligation to others.
What the words are saying
The skin lies beneath the shirt and is more immediately felt. As a figurative comparison, the saying observes why someone may protect their own needs or a close relationship before a more distant concern. A practical reading distinguishes necessary care from using proximity as a blanket excuse. Personal limits matter, but so do fair commitments and the consequences of a choice. The image does not supply an order in which every person must be valued. Ask which needs are urgent, what has been promised and how competing responsibilities can be met realistically.
Everyday example
Someone checks their household’s essential needs before offering help, while still keeping a modest commitment they can reasonably fulfil.
When to use it
Use it to discuss proximity and competing responsibilities.
What it does not mean
Closeness does not make distant people less worthy. Consider fair duties and actual needs rather than loyalty alone.
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 30; French section, paragraph 597; source wording: La peau est plus proche que la chemise.
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.