English Proverbs
Alphabetical lists of commonly-used proverbs in English.
What is a proverb?
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.