Proverbs - International List

English

proverb: It's not about the size of the dog in the fight, the the size of the fight in the dog.
meaning: it doesn't matter what the size is physically, but who goes the longest is what really matters.
name: Willie

proverb: Part of knowing who you are is knowing who you aren't.
meaning: You can discover your identity by figuring out what traits you don't possess.
name: SPd14u

proverb: Don't count your chickens before they hatch.
meaning: Don't assume something good is going to happen before it happens. Don't assume you have something good before you actually get it.

proverb: Let bygones be bygones.
meaning: Forgive the past. Forgive and forget.
name: Mohammed Amin

proverb: Bury the hatchet.
Meaning: Forgive the past. Forgive and forget.
Name: Mohammed Amin

proverb: It's better to be pissed off then pissed on.
Meaning: This is saying that whatever you're upset about, it could be
worse.
Name: Tara

proverb: Don't kick a gift horse in its mouth.
Meaning: When someone does something for you, don't complain.
Name: Tara

proverb: We shape our buildings and then our buildings shape
us.
Meaning:... under discussion in the open forum..

Proverb: What goes around comes around.
Meaning: Having to do with Kharma. What ever you do will eventually come back to you, good or bad.
Name: Phil Tayag

proverb: If you speak with big words, know what your talking about.
Meaning: Take the time to have a vocabulary.
Name: Isaiah Robinson

example: Hard head makes a soft ass.
Meaning: If your bad you will get in trouble a lot.
Name: Isaiah Robinson

proverb: Don't count the days, make the days count.
Meaning: Don't dwell on the time, make the time you are spending count.
Name: Kim

proverb: Life is not a dress rehearsal.
Meaning: You only get one shot, so don't mess it up. Make the best of it.
Name: Kim

proverb: If you don't like mustard, don't open a deli.
Meaning: Don't get involved in something if you don't like the details.

Proverb: If you lie with dogs, you get up with fleas.
Meaning: If you hang around with sleazy low-life, you'll end up being one yourself, or having such characteristics.

Proverb: An inch of time is an inch of gold, but you can't buy that inch of time with an inch of gold.
Meaning: It's saying that time is precious, you can't buy time with money!
name: cici


proverb: A fall in a pit, a gain in wit.
Meaning: If you did something wrong, you'll learn something from this experience, so next time you won't make the same mistake.
Name: cici

proverb: The toes you step on today may be connected to the ass you have to kiss tomorrow.
Meaning: Be careful not to offend people because you may be at their mercy later.

Proverb: Time flies when you're having fun.
Meaning: When you are enjoying yourself, you are not conscious of time, so it passes quickly.

Proverb: Scratch my back and I'll scratch yours !
meaning: If you treat me nice, I'll treat you equally, or : Do me a favor or just please me - and I will be delighted to return it to you or please you
name: Lera

proverb: Dressed-up proverbs
meaning: go to the above link and try to guess the meanings of the dressed-up proverbs

proverb: Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
Meaning: Beauty is perceived differently be different people.

Proverb: It's not the float of the boat, it's the motion of the ocean.
Meaning: It's not body size or shape that matters, but how you use it.

Proverb: A penny saved is a penny earned.
Meaning: It takes as much effort to save a penny as it does to make one.

Proverb: Better to be trampled on by asses' hooves than be the thing the ass's mind approves.
Meaning: It's better to be persecuted by evil forces than to be accepted by them, mainly because evil forces suck!
name: Hambone

proverb: Don't count your chickens before they hatch.
Meaning: Don't count of things, anything can happen...
name: Angela

proverb: Don't cry over spilt milk
meaning: Face the consequences of what you do

proverb: "I believe I've found the missing link between animal and civilized man. It is us." Konrad Lorenz
meaning: Human beings are generally lowly evolved.
Name: Hambone

proverb: "If you pay peanuts, you get monkeys." Armand Hammer
meaning: Companies can pay people minimum wage to do work, but they will tend to get people who don't take the job too seriously, because they're being paid low wages. What the company gains in giving low wages it loses in the quality of the employees it attracts.
Name: Hambone

proverb: It ain't over til the fat lady sings.
meaning: It isn't over until it's over. NOTE: I don't know where this comes from. Can anybody out there tell me?

proverb: It is'nt over untill the fat lady sings.
meaning: In old opras, the writer liked to have a grand finale with a loud saprano singer. Unfortunatly, the only women who could sing loud enough for the entire concert hall to hear (before the time of electronics) were rather large women. Large women large lungs.
name: Stefani

proverb: "Man is God Playing Fool" Emerson
meaning: Humankind has an amazing, even divine, capacity, but usually acts like monkies.
name: Shawn

proverb: If it isn't broken, don't fix it.
meaning: If something is working properly, leave it alone.

proverb: " I give you an inch, and you take a mile."
meaning: dont take more than is offered.
name: Jenny Damon

proverb: "A stitch in time saves nine"
meaning: Deal with a problem while it's small and it will save you more trouble in the long run.
name: Shawn

proverb: Bad news travels fast.
meaning: Bad news is spread quickly. People hear bad news sooner than good news.

proverb: "Conformity is the ape of harmony." Emerson
meaning: It's easy to get along if we're all the same, but surviving our differences is the challenge. Emerson is saying that conformity is a low level of harmonious human relationships.
name: Shawn

proverb: A rolling stone gathers no moss.
meaning: Activity keeps one from getting all slimy.
name: Goober

proverb: "Those who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones."
meaning: Don't be a hypocrite
name: shawn

proverb: The squeaky wheel gets the grease.
meaning: Those who protest the loudest or who are most outspoken are paid more attention.

Danish

proverb: You can't blow with your mouth and keep flour in it at the same time !
meaning: In some circumstances you have to choose between two incompatible things instead of doing both (for instance, both stay away and interfere at the same time).
language: danish
name: Lera

 

Chinese

proverb: "Shan bu4 zhuan3 lu4 zhuan3"
meaning: If the mountain doesn't move, move the route around the mountain.

proverb: "Yi4 xing4 xiang xi"

meaning: Different personalities attract each other.


Dutch

proverb: "One sprinkles the most sugar where the tart is burnt."
meaning: People will try to mask something negative by overdoing the positive, like when government offcials use lots of grand language in concealing or downplaying criminal activity.
name: Shawn

Ilocano

proverb: NO saan nga makaammo a mangtaliaw iti naggapuanna Saan a makadanon iti papananna.
meaning: He who does not look back at his past (where he came from) will not be able to reach his destination
name: Carl Rubino

proverb: Uray kukua a tawiden, no adda la ket naimbag a nakem
meaning: One need not inherit wealth if he inherits good manners (Ilocano proverb)
name: Carl Rubino

proverb: Ti kamatis, di agbunga't mangga
meaning: The tomato plant doesn't grow mangos (a good person doesn't come from a bad family) Ilocano proverb
name: Carl Rubino

proverb: Uray kukua a tawiden, no adda la ket naimbag a nakem
meaning: One need not inherit wealth if he inherits good manners (Ilocano proverb)
name: Carl Rubino

 

Portuguese

proverb: "Who plays with fire pees on the bed."
translation: "Quem mexe com fogo faz xixi na cama."
language: Portuguese
note: This is an old proverb used for parents to keep children far from fire.
name: Ricardo

proverb: Tirar a barriga de misérias.
meaning: To do something for the first time in a long time- means u get to do it in such a way as never before...
email: j@iol.pt

Russian

proverb: To be afraid of wolves means not to go to the wood!
meaning: You should takes risks if you want to get something. Obstacles are natural.
language: russian
name: Lera

proverb: "The wolf will hire himself out very cheaply as a sheperd."
meaning: I'm finding it difficult to put the meaning of this one into words. I'll post it later in the discussion forum.
name: Hambone

Spanish

slang: De tal palo tal astilla
meaning: Sometimes You see your son acting the same particular behavior that his father has, you say that he has learned it from his father
usage: Omar tiene muy buenas calificaciones en matematica, igual que su padre , de tal palo tal astilla

Tagalog

proverb: Ang hindi marunong lumingon sa nakaraan, ay hindi makakarating sa patutunguhan
meaning: He who does not look back at his past (where he came from) will not be able to reach his destination
name: Carl Rubino

Ukrainian

proverb: Hey girl, if you eat cabbage, you will have a pretty face. (the proverb rhymes in old Ukrainian)
meaning: Cabbage is good for your health and looks
language: Ukrainian
name: Lera