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Friendship.

Explore passages mentioning friend, friends, friendship. Topic suggestions use transparent word matching, not scholarly classification. Editorial meanings and lexical matches are discovery aids, not independent authentication of a quotation.

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Culture labels and country attributions follow the source collections; earliest origins may be unknown.

353 results · Page 8 of 15Play this collection ▷
01Undated
God tempers the wind to the shorn sheep.

Meaning: The saying expresses trust that divine care makes allowance for vulnerability. The shorn sheep and moderated wind picture compassion toward exposed need.

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02Undated
Every one can tame a shrew but he that hath her.

Meaning: The saying claims outsiders can tame a shrew more easily than the person living with her. It contrasts detached advice with the difficulty of an ongoing relationship through a derogatory gendered label.

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04Undated
Soft words butter no parsnips.

Meaning: Pleasant words cannot substitute for a practical contribution when one is needed. The parsnips remain unbuttered by reassurance alone, while considerate language can still support useful action.

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06Undated
A fat sorrow is better than a lean one.

Meaning: Having resources can ease some burdens of a difficult situation. Fat and lean sorrow contrast hardship with and without material support.

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07Undated
When sorrow is asleep, wake it not.

Meaning: Do not needlessly revive a distress that has temporarily eased. Sleeping sorrow pictures a respite worth treating with care.

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10Undated
A poor man's table is soon spread.

Meaning: Limited means may leave a meal simple to prepare because little is available. The saying recognises scarcity without making it a virtue or an occasion for ridicule.

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11Undated
Nothing dries up sooner than tears.

Meaning: The saying pictures visible tears ending quickly. A careful reading separates that outward change from the feelings and needs that may continue underneath.

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12Undated
He loseth his thanks who promiseth and delayeth.

Meaning: A promised kindness may lose its value to the recipient if it is delayed too long. The saying connects appreciation with timely follow-through, without making gratitude an entitlement or ignoring reasonable limits.

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14Undated
One may think that dares not speak.

Meaning: A person’s silence does not show that they have no thoughts or objections. The saying recognises that speaking can feel difficult, without allowing an observer to know exactly what another person privately thinks.

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15Undated
The horse thinks one thing, and he that rides him another.

Meaning: People involved in the same activity may have different aims or expectations. The horse and rider picture that divergence, without proving that a disagreement is deliberate resistance or that one participant’s purpose should automatically prevail.

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16Undated
Time assuages the greatest grief.

Meaning: Even an intense grief may change with time. The saying offers hope for easing, while its sweeping claim should not impose an outcome or deadline.

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17Undated
To-day me, to-morrow thee.

Meaning: A difficulty affecting one person today may affect someone else later. The saying invites fellow feeling rather than confidence that another person’s trouble is safely distant.

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18Undated
Trade knows neither friends nor kindred.

Meaning: Commercial dealings may need clear terms even between friends or relatives. The saying separates a transaction’s obligations from personal closeness, without suggesting that business removes the need for fairness, care or consideration.

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19Undated
Fall not out with a friend for a trifle.

Meaning: Do not let a small disagreement needlessly destroy a worthwhile friendship. Consider the importance of the issue and seek a proportionate response before turning irritation into a lasting quarrel.

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20Undated
Hidden troubles disquiet most.

Meaning: An unspoken trouble can be especially unsettling when it cannot be understood or addressed. The saying draws attention to the burden of what remains hidden.

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21Undated
There's many a true word spoken in jest.

Meaning: A joke can contain a serious observation or reveal a concern. The saying invites attention beyond the humorous form, without making every joke true or treating humour as reliable evidence of a speaker’s hidden beliefs.

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23Undated
Try your friend before you trust him.

Meaning: Let trust grow from observed conduct rather than assuming complete reliability at once. Begin with appropriate, limited reliance and notice how someone handles it before sharing more responsibility.

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