English Proverbs
Alphabetical lists of commonly-used proverbs in English.
What is a proverb?
Proverbs and sayings are short statements of wisdom or advice
that are transmitted from generation to generation and have passed into general use.
The advice given in proverbs is generally based on experience or a traditionally-held truth.
Proverbs can be found in every language or culture, but it is more difficult to interpret proverbs from other cultures.
500 commonly-used proverbs with their meaning are listed in alphabetical order in the following pages.
Alphabetical lists of Proverbs
The advice given in proverbs is generally based on experience or a traditionally-held truth.
Proverbs can be found in every language or culture, but it is more difficult to interpret proverbs from other cultures.
500 commonly-used proverbs with their meaning are listed in alphabetical order in the following pages.
Alphabetical lists of Proverbs
| Proverbs A list | From:
"A bad excuse is better than none." To: " Ask me no questions, I'll tell you no lies." |
| Proverbs B list | From:
"Bad beginnings lead to bad results." To: " (A) burnt child dreads the fire." |
| Proverbs C list | From:
"(A) calm sea does not make a skilled sailor." To: "No cure no pay." |
| Proverbs D list | From:
"(A) danger foreseen is half avoided." To: "(A) dry March, a wet April and a cool May may fill the barn and cellar..." |
| Proverbs E list | From:
"Early to bed, and
early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise." To: "Experience is the father of wisdom." |
| Proverbs F list | From:
"Facts speak louder than words." To: "Friendship is love with understanding." |
| Proverbs G list | From:
"Gardens are not made by sitting in the shade." To: "(A) guilty conscience needs no accuser." |
| Proverbs H list | From:
"Half a loaf is better than none." To: "(A) hungry wolf is fixed to no place." |
| Proverbs I list | From:
"(An) idle brain is the devil's workshop." To: "It takes all sorts to make a world." |
| Proverbs J-K list | From:
"A jack of all trades is master of none." To: "Knowledge is power." |
| Proverbs L list | From:
"Laughter is the best medicine" To: "(A) loveless life is a living death." |
| Proverbs M list | From:
"Make a silk purse out of a sow's ear." To: "(The) mouse that has but one hole is quickly taken." |
| Proverbs N list | From:
"Necessity is the mother of invention." To: "Nothing ventured nothing gained." |
| Proverbs O list | From:
"Oil and water do not mix." To: "Out of sight, out of mind." |
| Proverbs P-Q list | From:
"Parents are patterns" To: "Put all your eggs in one basket." |
| Proverbs R list | From:
"(All) roads lead to Rome" To: "A rotten apple spoils the barrel." |
| Proverbs S list | From:
"Safe bind, safe find." To: "(A/one) swallow does not make the summer." |
| Proverbs T list | From:
"Tall oaks grow from little acorns" To: "Two wrongs don't make a right." |
| Proverbs U-V list | From:
"Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown." To: "Vision without action is a daydream." |
| Proverbs W list | From:
"Walls have ears" To: "Worry often gives a small thing a big shadow." |
| Proverbs X-Y-Z list | From:
"You are what you eat" To: "(A) young idler, an old beggar." |
Please note that British English spelling is used on this website.