The collection / 134 fragments
Explore passages mentioning patience, patient. Topic suggestions use transparent word matching, not scholarly classification. Editorial meanings and lexical matches are discovery aids, not independent authentication of a quotation.
Meaning: A changed habit may not immediately change a settled reputation. Consistent evidence over time can matter more than a single effort to reverse others’ expectations.
Meaning: Using a resource before it has matured can consume the benefit expected later. The young crop represents an anticipated return spent or destroyed too soon.
Meaning: Some unavoidable unpleasant experiences are easier to complete than to prolong. The bitter pill supplies a metaphor for dealing with a difficult but necessary task.
Meaning: A temporary retreat can improve the next attempt. Stepping back may create room to prepare or reconsider rather than amounting to abandonment.
Meaning: Pause before speaking so that the words fit the facts and the situation. The seven turns emphasise deliberate care rather than a literal counting rule.
Meaning: A celebration planned for later should not displace the work or preparation needed now. Anticipation is different from treating an expected occasion as already secured.
Meaning: Do not provoke a threat while you are still exposed to it. Restraint can be a practical way to leave a difficult situation safely.
Meaning: A pause before a decision can allow reconsideration. Returning later may reveal another option, though delay alone does not guarantee a sound answer.
Meaning: Enduring every burden without question is not always a virtue. Distinguish useful patience from submission that allows an avoidable or harmful situation to continue.
Meaning: Weariness can be part of the setting of a quarrel. Consider whether a pause would help people respond more patiently, while keeping fatigue separate from permission to mistreat others.
Meaning: Expecting water from the first stroke of a spade makes an outcome arrive before the necessary work. The image questions premature expectations while leaving room to assess whether further effort is worthwhile.
Meaning: An initial advantage can be overcome through sustained effort. The long pursuit gives persistence a role, without promising that every determined person wins or turning exhaustion into a duty.
Meaning: A hurried demand need not dictate a hurried answer. The contrast gives the responder room to consider what is being asked, without praising delay when a prompt response is necessary.
Meaning: Enjoyment of a result begins before the work producing it has started. The roasting and sops image questions consuming an expected benefit as though it were already available.