proverb · Words worth keeping
Wedding and ill-wintering tame both man and beast.
Wedding and ill-wintering tame both man and beast.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
The saying presents marriage and harsh conditions as forces that subdue people. A critical reading questions its assumption that a partnership should tame someone.
What the words are saying
Wedding is paired with ill wintering and compared across people and animals. It may describe responsibilities changing behaviour, but the harsh image should not make deprivation or domination seem desirable. A useful interpretation distinguishes freely accepted commitments from enforced submission. Relationships can support growth while preserving each person’s dignity, independence and voice.
Everyday example
Partners discuss responsibilities together instead of treating marriage as a way to control an unruly person.
When to use it
Use it critically to examine commitment described as forced submission.
What it does not mean
Marriage does not justify deprivation, coercion or treatment of a person as an animal to tame.
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 1742 · Wedding
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.
- Culture
- English