English For All: 2010

List of Phobias

A phobia (from the Greek: φόβος,phóbos, meaning "fear" or "morbid fear") is an irrational, intense and persistent fear of certain situations, activities, things, animals, or people. The main symptom of this disorder is the excessive and unreasonable desire to avoid the feared stimulus. When the fear is beyond one's control, and if the fear is interfering with daily life, then a diagnosis under one of the anxiety disorders can be made.
This is caused by what are called neutral, unconditioned, and conditioned stimuli, which trigger either conditioned or unconditioned responses. An example would be a person who was attacked by a dog (the unconditioned stimulus) would respond with an unconditioned response. When this happens, the unconditioned stimulus of them being attacked by the dog would become conditioned, and to this now conditioned stimulus, they would develop a conditioned response. If the occurrence had enough of an impact on this certain person then they would develop a fear of that dog, or in some cases, an irrational fear of all dogs.
Phobia lists

Psychological conditions
Ablutophobia – fear of bathing, washing, or cleaning.
Acrophobia, Altophobia – fear of heights.
Agoraphobia, Agoraphobia Without History of Panic Disorder – fear of places or events where escape is impossible or when help is unavailable.
Agraphobia – fear of sexual abuse.
Aichmophobia – fear of sharp or pointed objects (such as a needle or knife).
Algophobia – fear of pain.
Agyrophobia – fear of crossing roads.
Androphobia – fear of men.
Anemomenophobia - fear of windmills.
Anthropophobia – fear of people or being in a company, a form of social phobia.
Anthophobia – fear of flowers.
Aquaphobia – fear of water. Distinct from Hydrophobia, a scientific property that makes chemicals averse to interaction with water, as well as an archaic name for rabies.
Arachnophobia- fear of spiders.
Astraphobia, Astrapophobia, Brontophobia, Keraunophobia – fear of thunder, lightning and storms; especially common in young children.
Atychiphobia, fear of failure
Aviophobia, Aviatophobia – fear of flying.
Bacillophobia, Bacteriophobia, Microbiophobia – fear of microbes and bacteria.
Blood-injection-injury type phobia – a DSM-IV subtype of specific phobias
Chorophobia - fear of dancing.
Cibophobia, Sitophobia – aversion to food, synonymous to Anorexia nervosa.
Claustrophobia – fear of having no escape and being closed in.
Coulrophobia – fear of clowns (not restricted to evil clowns).
Decidophobia – fear of making decisions.
Dental phobia, Dentophobia, Odontophobia – fear of dentists and dental procedures
Dendropophobia, - fear of losing teeth
Dysmorphophobia, or body dysmorphic disorder – a phobic obsession with a real or imaginary body defect.
Emetophobia – fear of vomiting.
Ergasiophobia, Ergophobia – fear of work or functioning, or a surgeon's fear of operating.
Ergophobia – fear of work or functioning.
Eremophobia - fear of being alone
Erotophobia – fear of sexual love or sexual questions.
Erythrophobia – pathological blushing.
Filmophobia - fear of films.
Gelotophobia - fear of being laughed at.
Gephyrophobia – fear of bridges.
Genophobia, Coitophobia – fear of sexual intercourse.
Gerascophobia – fear of growing old or aging.
Gerontophobia – fear of growing old, or a hatred or fear of the elderly
Geterophobia, Bambakophobia - fear of cotton balls, q-tips, or cotton based products
Glossophobia – fear of speaking in public or of trying to speak.
Gymnophobia – fear of nudity.
Gynophobia – fear of women.
Halitophobia - fear of bad breath.
Haptephobia – fear of being touched.
Heliophobia – fear of sunlight.
Hemophobia, Haemophobia – fear of blood.
Hexakosioihexekontahexaphobia – fear of the number 666.
Hoplophobia – fear of weapons, specifically firearms (Generally a political term but the clinical phobia is also documented).
Koumpounophobia - fear of sewing buttons.
Ligyrophobia – fear of loud noises.
Lipophobia – fear/avoidance of fats in food.
Medication phobia - fear of medications.
Megalophobia - fear of large/oversized objects.
Mysophobia – fear of germs, contamination or dirt.
Necrophobia – fear of death and/or the dead.
Neophobia, Cainophobia, Cainotophobia, Cenophobia, Centophobia, Kainolophobia, Kainophobia – fear of newness, novelty.
Nomophobia – fear of being out of mobile phone contact.
Nosophobia – fear of contracting a disease.
Nosocomephobia - fear of hospitals.
Nyctophobia, Achluophobia, Lygophobia, Scotophobia – fear of darkness.
Oikophobia - fear of home surroundings and household appliances
Osmophobia, Olfactophobia – fear of smells.
Paraskavedekatriaphobia, Paraskevidekatriaphobia, Friggatriskaidekaphobia – fear of Friday the 13th.
Panniophobia - fear of sticky objects.
Panphobia – fear of everything or constant fear of an unknown cause.
Phasmophobia - fear of ghosts, spectres or phantasms.
Phagophobia – fear of swallowing.
Pharmacophobia – same as medication phobia.
Phobophobia – fear of having a phobia.
Phonophobia – fear of loud sounds.
Pyrophobia – fear of fire.
Radiophobia – fear of radioactivity or X-rays.
Sociophobia – fear of people or social situations.
Scopophobia – fear of being looked at or stared at.
Somniphobia – fear of sleep.
Spectrophobia – fear of mirrors and one's own reflections.
Taphophobia – fear of the grave, or fear of being placed in a grave while still alive.
Technophobia – fear of technology (see also Luddite).
Telephone phobia, fear or reluctance of making or taking phone calls.
Tetraphobia – fear of the number 4.
Thanatophobia – fear of death.
Tokophobia – fear of childbirth.
Tomophobia – fear or anxiety of surgeries/surgical operations (from the Greek tómos "cutting")
Traumatophobia – a synonym for injury phobia: fear of having an injury.
Triskaidekaphobia, Terdekaphobia – fear of the number 13.
Trypanophobia, Belonephobia, Enetophobia – fear of needles or injections.
Workplace phobia – fear of the workplace.
Xenophobia – fear of strangers, foreigners, or aliens.

Animal phobias
Ailurophobia – fear/dislike of cats.
Apiphobia – fear/dislike of bees (also known as melissophobia, from the Greek melissa "bee").
Arachnophobia – fear/dislike of spiders and other arachnids.
Chiroptophobia – fear/dislike of bats.
Cynophobia – fear/dislike of dogs.
Entomophobia – fear/dislike of insects.
Equinophobia – fear/dislike of horses (also known as hippophobia).
Herpetophobia - fear/dislike of reptiles and/or amphibians.
Katsaridaphobia - fear of cockroaches
Ichthyophobia – fear/dislike of fish.
Lepidopterophobia – fear/dislike of butterflies, moths and related insects.
Musophobia – fear/dislike of mice and/or rats.
Ophidiophobia – fear/dislike of snakes.
Ornithophobia – fear/dislike of birds.
Scoleciphobia – fear of worms.
Scyphozophobia – fear/dislike of jellyfish.

Non-psychological conditions
Hydrophobia – fear of water (a symptom of rabies).
Photophobia – hypersensitivity to light causing aversion to light
Phonophobia – hypersensitivity to sound causing aversion to sounds.
Osmophobia – hypersensitivity to smells causing aversion to odors.

Biology, chemistry
Acidophobia/Acidophobic – preference for non-acidic conditions.
Heliophobia/Heliophobic – aversion to sunlight.
Hydrophobia/Hydrophobic – a property of being repelled by water.
Lipophobicity – a property of fat rejection
Ombrophobia – avoidance of rain
Photophobia (biology) a negative phototaxis or phototropism response, or a tendency to stay out of the light
Superhydrophobe – the property given to materials that are extremely difficult to get wet.
Thermophobia – aversion to heat.

Prejudices and discrimination
The suffix -phobia is used to coin terms that denote a particular anti-ethnic or anti-demographic sentiment, such as Americanophobia, Europhobia, Francophobia, Hispanophobia, and Indophobia. Often a synonym with the prefix "anti-" already exists (e.g., Polonophobia vs. anti-Polonism). Anti-religious sentiments are expressed in terms such as Christianophobia and Islamophobia. Sometimes the terms themselves are racist, such as "Negrophobia."

Other prejudices include:

Biphobia – fear/dislike of bisexuals.
Christianophobia - fear/dislike of Christians
Ephebiphobia – fear/dislike of youth.
Gerontophobia, Gerascophobia – fear/dislike of aging or the elderly.
Heterophobia – fear/dislike of heterosexuals.
Homophobia – fear/dislike of homosexuality or homosexuals.
Islamophobia - fear/dislike of Muslims
Judeophobia – fear/dislike of Jews.
Lesbophobia – fear/dislike of lesbians.
Pedophobia, Pediophobia – fear/dislike of children.
Psychophobia – fear/dislike of mental illness or the mentally ill.
Transphobia – fear/dislike of transgender or transsexual people.
Xenophobia – fear/dislike of foreigners.
Xenoglossophobia – fear/dislike of foreign languages.

Jocular and fictional phobias
Aibohphobia – a joke term for the fear of palindromes, which is a palindrome itself. The term is a piece of computer humor entered into the 1981 The Devil's DP Dictionary[3]
Anachrophobia – fear of temporal displacement, from a Doctor Who novel by Jonathan Morris.
Anatidaephobia – fear of being watched by a duck. Comes from Gary Larson's The Far Side.[4]
Anoraknophobia – a portmanteau of "anorak" and "arachnophobia". Used in the Wallace and Gromit comic book Anoraknophobia. Also the title of an album by Marillion.
Arachibutyrophobia – fear of peanut butter sticking to the roof of the mouth. The word is used by Charles M. Schulz in a 1982 installment of his "Peanuts" comic strip[5] and by Peter O'Donnell in his 1985 Modesty Blaise adventure novel Dead Man's Handle.[6] It had circulated, unattributed, in the Internet for some time until it landed at the CTRN Phobia Clinic website: "Working one-on-one with one of our team, with guaranteed lifetime elimination of Sticky Peanut Butter Phobia. From $1497 and up."
Hippopotomonstrosesquipedaliophobia – fear of long words.[7] Hippopoto- "big" due to its allusion to the Greek-derived word hippopotamus (though this is derived as hippo- "horse" compounded with potam-os "river", so originally meaning "river horse"; according to the Oxford English, "hippopotamine" has been construed as large since 1847, so this coinage is reasonable); -monstr- is from Latin words meaning "monstrous", -o- is a noun-compounding vowel; -sesquipedali- comes from "sesquipedalian" meaning a long word (literally "a foot and a half long" in Latin), -o- is a noun-compounding vowel, and -phobia means "fear". Note: This was mentioned on the first episode of Brainiac Series Five as one of Tickle's Teasers.
Keanuphobia - fear of Keanu Reeves, portrayed in the Dean Koontz book, False Memory, where a woman has an irrational fear of Keanu Reeves and has to see her psychiatrist, Mark Ahriman, each week. He calls her the "Keanuphobe" in his head. She eventually ends up killing her psychiatrist because she believes that he is one of the Machine agents trying to control her.
Luposlipaphobia - fear of being pursued by timber wolves around a kitchen table while wearing socks on a newly waxed floor, also from Gary Larson's The Far Side.
Nihilophobia - fear of nothingness, as described by the Doctor in the Star Trek: Voyager episode Night. Voyager's morale officer and chef Neelix suffers from this condition, having panic attacks while the ship was traversing a dark expanse of space known as the Void. It is also the title of a 2008 album by Neuronium. Also, the animated version of George of the Jungle (2007 TV series) is seen suffering in one episode of the cartoon, where they are telling scary stories.
Venustraphobia – fear of beautiful women, according to a 1998 humorous article published by BBC News.[1] The word is a portmanteau of "Venus trap" and "phobia". Venustraphobia is the title of a 2006 album by Casbah Club.

Miscellaneous
Arachnophobia – "fear/dislike of spiders," a film
Chromophobia – "hatred/fear of colors," a film
Choreophobia – hatred of dance, a book by Anthony Shay about Iranian dance and its prohibition after the Iranian Revolution
Entomophobia – a genus of orchids. The word means "fear of insects"
Philophobia, an album by Arab Strap
Robophobia – a novel by Richard Evans

Scottish Proverbs

Proverbs are popularly defined as short expressions of popular wisdom. Efforts to improve on the popular definition have not led to a more precise definition. The wisdom is in the form of a general observation about the world or a bit of advice, sometimes more nearly an attitude toward a situation.

A child may have too much of his mother's tit.
A day to come seems longer than a year that's gone.
A dry Lent, a fertile year.
A penny saved is a penny gained.
A thistle is a fat salad for an ass's mouth.
Be happy while you're living, for you're a long time dead.
Better be ill spoken of by one before all than by all before one.
Better bend than break.
Better keep the devil at the door than turn him out of the house.
Bring a cow into the hall and she'll run the byre.
Confessed faults are half-mended.
Cutting out well is better than sewing up well.
Early to bed early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise.
Every fisher loves best the trout that is of his own tickling.
Finders keepers, losers weepers.
Fools look to tomorrow; wise men use tonight.
Fur coat and nae knickers
He that has one sheep in the flock will like all the rest the better for it.
He that loves law will get his fill of it.
It is ill fishing if the hook is bare.
It's an ill wind that blows naebody any good.
It's sin and not poverty that makes men miserable.
Learn young, learn fair; learn old, learn more.
Many haws, many snows.
Money is flat and was meant to be piled up.
Never go to the devil and a dish-clout in your hand.
Never marry for money. Ye'll borrow it cheaper.
One for sorrow, two for joy,
Three for a girl, four for a boy.
Five for silver, six for gold,
And seven for a secret that must never be told.

- superstition relating to how many magpies one might observe at any given time.

One may ride a free horse to death.
Open confession is good for the soul.
Red sky at night, Shepherds Delight; Red sky in the morning, Shepherds Warning.
The first dish pleaseth all.
They are good that are away.
To marry is to halve your rights and double your duties.
Twelve highlanders and a bagpipe make a rebellion.
What baites one, banes another.
What may be done at any time will be done at no time.
When all fruits fails, welcome haws.
What's for you will not go by you.

American Proverbs (W / Y)

W

Walk softly, but carry a big stick.
We have nothing to fear, but fear itself. (president Roosevelt)
Winners find a way.
Words uttered only causes confusion. Words written only causes.
What comes around goes around.
What goes up must come down.
Whatever floats your boat, sailor. - USMC John Robert Lord
When in Rome, do as the Romans do.
When it rains, it pours.
When you aren't ready you're scared, when you are ready you're nervous.
Where there's a will there's a way.
When the cat's away, the mice will play.---Naveen Kumar c.g
When the going gets tough, the tough get going.
When life hands you lemons make lemonade.
- This quote generally means to make do with what is handed to you in life.
- Variant: When life hands you lemons, make lemonade. Then find someone who's life has given them vodka, and have a party. -Ron White
- Variant: Unless life also gives you water and sugar, your lemonade's gonna suck.
- When life hands you lemons, make apple juice then make people wonder how the hell you did it!
- When life hands you lemons, add vodka and chill.
  - A saying advocating drinking to relax.
Where there's smoke, there's fire.
When you buy quality, you only cry once.
White men can't jump, ... well, sinners can't fly ! (in the Rapture) - John Robert Lord

Y

You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink.
- You can tell people your beliefs, but you can't make them listen.
You can't get there from here.
- You need to find another starting point to reach your destination.
You can't have your cake and eat it, too.
You can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear.
- Something of top quality cannot be produced from something of poor quality.
You can't teach an old dog new tricks.
You catch more flies with honey than vinegar.
You also catch flies with shit.
You cant make a pickle back into a cucumber.
You made your bed, now sleep in it.
You're just a male offspring of a female dog. (SOB) - John Robert Lord

American Proverbs (T / U / V)

T

Talk is cheap.
The apple doesn't fall far from the tree.
The best way to get someone to stop digging his heels in is to dig out the sand around him.
- The best way to deal with a stubborn person, is to take away his reasons for being stubborn.
The cream rises to the top.
- Outperform your peers, and you'll go further in life.
The early bird gets the worm.
The early bird may get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.
- There are situations in which it is better not to be the first.
The fastest way to make money is to stop losing it.
The grass is always greener on the other side.
- We tend to want the opposite of what we have, while those who have the opposite want what you have.
The hand that rocks the cradle rules the world.
The nail that sticks out gets hammered down.
The pen is mightier than the sword.
The pot calling the kettle black.
- A rebuke to someone who is criticizing flaws in others that they themselves have.
The road to hell is paved with good intentions.
The squeaky wheel gets the grease.
The spouting whale is harpooned.
The straw that broke the camel's back.
- There comes a point when just a little more pressure will cause one to fail.
The tongue is the enemy of the neck.
The way to a man's heart is through his stomach.
There ain't no such thing as a free lunch.
- No one offers something without expecting something in return. (This proverb or its acronym "TANSTAAFL" are often attributed to the author Robert A. Heinlein who used them in his novel The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress (1966), but the expression has been dated to the late 1930s, and the acronym to at least as early as October 1949. Another common variant is: There's no such thing as a free lunch.)
There's no place like home. - Dorothy, in the 1939 movie The Wizard of Oz.
There's more than one way to skin a cat.
- There's more than one way to do something.
There's plenty of fish in the sea.
- There are plenty of men or women to choose from, in regard to marriage.
Time flies when you're having fun.
- Time passes quickly when you're enjoying yourself.
Time shall tell.
There are no shortcuts to life's greatest achievements.
To each his own.
- Variant: Different strokes for different folks.
- Meaning: Different people have different preferences.
There is nothing as powerful as truth.
Two heads are better than one.
Two's company, three's a crowd.

U

Ugliness goes all the way down to the soul. - John Robert Lord

V

victroy means hardwoks

American Proverbs (N / O / P / Q / R / S)

N

Neither a borrower nor a lender be.
Never approach a bull from the front, never approach a horse from the rear and never approach a fool from any direction
Never enter a mud fight with a pig.
- "You'll both get dirty, but the pig likes it." Don't argue with someone who enjoys it.
Never look a gift horse in the mouth, you might get bit.

Explanation: Do not judge the quality of something that is given to you.

Never pick a fight with someone who buys ink by the barrel.
Never pick a fight with a fat guy, cause at the end of the day you'll be tired and he'll still be fat.

Nice guys finish last - Leo "the Lip" Durocher, major league baseball manager.
No good deed goes unpunished.
No honor among thieves.
Nobody leaves us, we only leave others.

Explanation: A memory will stay forever

All that glitters, is not gold!
Nice guy is every girl's friend, but to no girl a boyfriend!

O

Old habits die hard.
One bad apple can spoil the whole barrel.
One fly makes a summer - Mark Twain
- One person can make a difference.

One never truly feels the breeze until it blows him away. - Ken Kesey
One man's trash is another man's treasure.
One can only hope.

P

Practice makes perfect
- Variation: Practice makes permanent.
- Variation: Perfect practice makes perfect.
"Procrastination is the key to failure."
People who don't talk are thought to be stupid; people who do prove it.
People in glass houses shouldn't throw stones.
Pretty is as pretty does.

Q

Quitters never win and winners never quit.
- Those who give up never succeed, and those who succeed never give up.

R

Rome wasn't built in a day
- Great things take time
Rolling stone gathers no moss...

S

Silence is golden.
- Variant: Silence is golden, but duck tape is silver.
Six of one, half a dozen of the other.
Second place just means first loser. -Kevin Costner
Some things just take time. You can't have a baby in one month by getting nine women pregnant. -Warren Buffet
Sometimes you eat the bear and sometimes the bear, well, he eats you. - The Big Lebowski
Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.
Stupid is as stupid does.

American Proverbs (J / K / L / M)

J

Jack of all trades, Master of none.
Just because you can, doesn't mean you should.
- Be humble and earnest in your actions.

K

Kill them with kindness.
- Maintain integrity and honor; it will accomplish more than retaliation.
Kill two birds with one stone.
- To accomplish two objectives with a single action.
Keep it simple, stupid (or otherwise known as "K.I.S.S.")
- (Variant) Keep it simple and stupid.
- (Variant) Keep it short and simple.
  - The more details one is forced to keep track of, the higher the chance of failure.
Knowledge is like manure, it's only good when spread.
- It's best to spread information, or good word, of any kind.

L

Leave well enough alone
Let sleeping dogs lie.
- Don't disturb a situation that would result in trouble or complications.
Life is a journey, not a destination.
Life is like a box of chocolate; it's full of surprises
- Variant: Life is like a box of chocolates; You never know what you're gonna get. - Forest Gump
Like father, like son.
Listen and silent are spelled using the same letters
Loose lips sink ships.
Looks like the shoe's on the other foot.
- Meaning: the situation has completely reversed.

M

Many hands make light work.
Many roads lead to Rome. Note: not all roads.
- Working together can get the job done easier, and more efficiently
Misery loves company.
Misery plus time equals humor.
Money is like manure, it does no good until it is spread.
Money talks, BS walks.
- In business, "show me the money" is the rule of thumb, papers must be signed, collateral promised, not much trust is placed on "good faith."

American Proverbs (F / G / H / I)

F

Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Fool me thrice, shame on both of us.
Fortune favors the bold.
Fly by the seat of your pants.
Failing to plan is planning to fail.

G

Good fences make good neighbors.
Good enough for Government work.

H

Haste makes waste. - Ben Franklin
- Doing things too fast is inefficient.
Hay is for horses.
- Play on words. A gentle rebuke that one shouldn't greet another with the expression "Hey, you!"
He who has the gold makes the rules.

Variant: He who taxes the gold makes the rules. - Robert Kiyosaki, author of "Rich Dad, Poor Dad"

He who laughs last laughs the loudest.

Variant: He who laughs last, thinks slowest.

Ben Franklin said as Poor Richard, "He who teaches himself hath a fool for a teacher", but I must tell you that he who does not teach himself has no teachers at all
- Without teachers we are nowhere. [Christopher Berkeley, Professor of History]
Hesitation is a killer.
- Act quickly, or suffer consequence.
Hindsight is 20/20.

I

I don't know how cloud's are formed, but the clouds do, and that's the important thing.
If at first you don't succeed, try, try again.
If it ain't broke, don't fix it.
- Don't meddle with things just for the sake of change, if they're working fine already.
If it seems too good to be true then it probably is.
If it's free, it's for me!
If three people tell you that you are drunk, you better lie down.
- If many people tell you that you're acting inapproprately, you must act appropriately.
If wishes were horses, then beggars would ride.
- Variant: Yeah, and if wishes were horses, we'd all be eatin' steak. -Jayne Cobb
If you can't beat them, join them.
If you can't stand the heat, get out of the Kitchen.
If you can't walk, why bother tying your shoes. - Doc Michaels
If you wait till the last minute, it'll only take a minute.
- Procrastinators' credo; also credo of subordinate workers who are given a task by their boss with a deadline completely inadequate to allow for a well-researched response or product.
If you want it bad, you'll get it bad.
- Credo of subordinate workers who are given a task by their boss with a deadline and/or budget/manpower resources completely inadequate to allow for a well-researched response or product.
Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.
In God we trust, all others pay cash.
It is better to say nothing and be thought a fool than to open your mouth and remove all doubt. - Abraham Lincoln
It's always darkest before the dawn.
It is easier said than done.
It takes a village to raise a child.
It takes two to tango.
If knowledge of all is power, then knowledge of self is divine. - Carlos Lugo II
I'd be a failure if it weren't for all the mistakes I've made.
- Success is achieved through an iterative process of learning from mistakes.
It's not over till the fat lady sings.
It's never too late to be what you might have been. - George Eliot
It's nice to be at the end of a journey but it's the journey that matters in the end.
It's nice to be important, but it's more important to be nice.
It will all come out in the wash.

American proverbs (B / C / D)

B

Beauty is skin deep, but ugly goes to the bone - W.C. Fields
Be careful what you wish for.

Variant: Be careful what you wish for, you might get it.

Be the best that you can be.
Be yourself in every situation.
Beggars can't be choosers.
Begin where you end.
- Plan with a desired outcome in mind.
Better late than never.
Better safe than sorry.
Be useful better than beautiful.
Back to square one.
Butter would not melt in her mouth.

C

Can't see it from my house
Curiosity killed the cat

Variant: Curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction brought it back.

Close, but no cigar.
Close is nice, but it isn't enough.
Clothes make the man, naked people have little or no influence in society. - Mark Twain
Close enough for government work.
Chase two rabbits and they'll both get away.
- Don't overextend yourself.
Character is what you are in the dark.
- Public image is not as important as true character.

D

Different strokes for different folks.
- Different people have different opinions on things. [From the chorus of "Everyday People" by Sly and the Family Stone]
Do as I say, not as I do.
Don't do the crime if you can't do the time.
- If you are going to do something you are not supposed to, be ready to accept the consequences.
Don't remove a fly from your friend's head with a hatchet.
Don't bite the hand that feeds you.
Don't get high on your own supply.
- Don't get greedy or don't get so much stuff that most of it is useless.
- Explanation: From drug dealers using their own drugs, which severely cuts into one's profit.
Don't let your mouth write checks your ass can't cash.
Don't look a gift horse in the mouth.
- You look in the mouth of a horse to see if it's healthy; it means you shouldn't be concerned about how nice the gift is, but rather that they are being given you a gift
Don't make your monster so big that you can't feed it. Jamie Matthews
- Don't make your project so ambitious that you won't be able to keep up with it day to day.
Don't take any wooden nickels
- Don't get cheated.
Don't count your chickens before they hatch.
- Don’t assume that you’ll get the things you want until you have them.
Don't say it, do it.
Don't walk around with your butt on your shoulders.
- Don't be overly proud based on your achievements. The quote refers to a star athlete (or hero) being carried off the field on the shoulders of praising fans or teammates. This quote may also refer to walking around with ones head up their butt, which would result in one not knowing what is going on around them because they are focusing on themselves.
Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
Don't be sorry, be different!
Don't ever let school get in the way of your education. [Mark Twain]

American proverbs (A)

American Proverbs (A)

A

A handful of gold is a heart of iron.
- Material wealth and prosperity in no way denotes honest labor or ethical practices.

A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.
- It's better to keep what little you have, than to risk it for something more.

Absence makes the heart grow fonder.

Act your age, not your shoe size. (Also, "Act your age, not your IQ")
- Act maturely.

Actions speak louder than words, but words of action speak proudly.
- Actions will inspire people to do what they believe, but words will inspire people to believe what they do.

A good friend is someone who will bail you out of jail, but your best friend is the one sitting next to you saying "Man, that was fun!"
- A close friend will help you out of a dark situation, but your best friend will always be with you even in the darkest of days.

A fool and his money are soon parted
- Spend wisely
A friend in need, is a friend indeed!
- Friends who benefit from you are easily had

A horse with two heads wins no races. (another variant: Too many chiefs, and not enough Indians)
- A situation has too many people trying to lead, with no unified direction.

All hat, no cattle
- used to describe someone who is pretending to be something they're not (such as wearing a cowboy hat and acting like a cowboy, when you don't have any cows).

All's fair in love and war.

All's fair in love, war and journalism.

Almost only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades.

Variant: Close only counts with horseshoes, hand grenades, and tactical nuclear weapons

Variant: Close only counts with horseshoes, hand grenades, and carpet bombings

Variant: Close only counts with horseshoes, hand grenades, and government work.

Variant: Close only counts with horseshoes, hand grenades, and drive-in movies!

Explanation: In the game of horseshoes, if the horseshoe lands within a certain distance of the target, it gets a point. Grenades only need to be thrown within a certain distance of a person to work, and with nuclear weapons and carpet bombings, accuracy is only moderately necessary.

A man who acts as his own attorney has a fool for a client.

An apple a day keeps the doctor away.
- Originated in the 1900s as a marketing slogan dreamed up by American growers concerned that the temperance movement would cut into sales of apple cider. (Michael Pollan, The Botany of Desire, Random House, 2001, ISBN 0375501290, p. 22, cf. p. 9 & 50)

An idle mind is the devil's workshop/playground
- The more lazy or less productive you are, the more prone you are to bad temptation and ideas.

An ounce of prevention beats a pound of cure. - Unknown

A penny saved is a twopence earned.

Variant: A penny saved is a penny earned.

Saving is another form of earning. - Ben Franklin

As California goes, so goes the nation.
- If one person does something interesting, people will soon follow. [Referring to fads or bandwagon appeals]

As the crow flies
- A statement-ending expression meaning, "if you could go in a straight line to your destination." Often used when referring to the location of a destination in terms of time or distance. For instance, "It is six miles away as the crow flies" or, "It takes two hours as the crow flies but the creek is flooded so you'll have to take the long way around."

As the twig is bent, so inclines the tree.

A bad guy is another man's good guy
- Meaning: Everyone has his or her own opinion

A watched cat or dog always walks away. (from observation) - John Robert Lord

A watched pot never boils.

Variant: Watched (name of food) never cooks (or toasts, boils, fries, bakes, etc.).

A watched clock moves more slowly (quantum science paradigm) - John Robert Lord

A wise man admits his ignorance; an ignorant man admits he's wise.

All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.

A stitch in time saves nine.

English proverbs (Y)

Y

You can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink.
You reap what you sow.
The younger brother the better gentleman.
- Divers Proverbs, Nathan Bailey, 1721

English proverbs (W)

W

Walk softly, carry a big stick.
- Variant of an African proverb that was made famous in the U.S. by Teddy Roosevelt, "Speak softly and carry a big stick; you will go far".
Walk the walk and talk the talk.
Waste not, want not.
A watched pot never boils.
- Main interpretation: Time seems to pass quicker when you aren't consciously waiting for something
- Possible interpretation: Worrying over something can make the task seem to take longer than it should.
The way to a man's heart is through his stomach.
We are all on this earth, we can't get off so get on.
We can't always build the future for our youth, but we can build our youth for the future.
- By: Franklin D. Roosevelt
We have nothing to fear but fear itself.
- By: Franklin D. Roosevelt
We must take the bad with the good.
- Variant: We must take the bitter with the sweet.
We ourselves feel that what we are doing is just a drop in the ocean,but the ocean would be less without that drop.
We tend to be perfect. That’s why when we make mistakes we are hard on ourselves.
We've qualified for the World Cup, Go and compete.
The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.
- Attributed to Mahatma Gandhi
Well begun is half done.
- Variant: Well begun is half ended. - Divers Proverbs, Nathan Bailey, 1721
"Well done" is better than "well said".
What a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive. (A lie will always spawn a bigger lie.)
What goes around comes around.
- You will eventually have to face the consequences of your actions towards others as people tend to behave towards you as you have behaved towards others.
What goes up must come down.
What you see is what you get.
What you sow is what you reap.
What's good for the goose is good for the gander.
- In marriage: the standard that applies to the husband applies also for the wife.
- In general: Double standards are not allowed - the same standard governs all.
When a thing is done advice comes too late.
When in Rome, do as the Romans do.
When one door closes, another door opens.
When the cat is away, the mice will play.
- Without enforcement lawlessness always results
When the going gets tough, the tough get going.
When you lie on roses while young, you'll lie on thorns while you're old.
Where ignorance is bliss, 'tis folly to be wise.
- Thomas Gray, "Ode on a Distant Prospect of Eton College"
Where there's a will, there's a way.
Where vice goes before, vengeance follows after. - Divers Proverbs, Nathan Bailey, 1721
The whole dignity of man lies in the power of thought.
- - B. Pascal
The whole is greater than its parts.

Those whom the gods wish to destroy they first make mad.
- Anonymous ancient proverb, often wrongly attributed to Euripides. The version here is quoted as a "heathen proverb" in Daniel, a Model for Young Men (1854) by William Anderson Scott. The origin of the misattribution to Euripides is unknown. Several variants are quoted in ancient texts, as follows.
- Variants and derived paraphrases:
  - For cunningly of old
    was the celebrated saying revealed:
    evil sometimes seems good
    to a man whose mind
    a god leads to destruction.
    - Sophocles, Antigone 620-3, a play pre-dating any of Euripides' surviving plays. An ancient commentary explains the passage as a paraphrase of the following, from another, earlier poet.
  - When a god plans harm against a man,
    he first damages the mind of the man he is plotting against.
    - Quoted in the scholia vetera to Sophocles' Antigone 620ff., without attribution. The meter (iambic trimeter) suggests that the source of the quotation is a tragic play.
  - For whenever the anger of divine spirits harms someone,
    it first does this: it steals away his mind
    and good sense, and turns his thought to foolishness,
    so that he should know nothing of his mistakes.
    - Attributed to "some of the old poets" by Lycurgus of Athens in his Oratio In Leocratem [Oration Against Leocrates], section 92. Again, the meter suggests that the source is a tragic play. These lines are misattributed to the much earlier semi-mythical statesman Lycurgus of Sparta in a footnote of recent editions of Bartlett's Familiar Quotations and other works.
  - The gods do nothing until they have blinded the minds of the wicked.
    - Variant in ''Dictionary of Quotations (Classical) (1906), compiled by Thomas Benfield Harbottle, p. 433.
  - Whom Fortune wishes to destroy she first makes mad.
    - Publilius Syrus, Maxim 911
  - The devil when he purports any evil against man, first perverts his mind.
    - As quoted by Athenagoras of Athens
  - quem Iuppiter vult perdere, dementat prius.
    - "Whom Jupiter wishes to destroy, he first sends mad"; neo-Latin version. "A maxim of obscure origin which may have been invented in Cambridge about 1640" -- Taylor, The Proverb (1931). Probably a variant of the line "He whom the gods love dies young", derived from Menander's play The Double Deceiver via Plautus (Bacchides 816-7).
  - quem (or quos) Deus perdere vult, dementat prius.
    - "Whom God wishes to destroy, he first sends mad." -- A Christianised version of the above.
  - Whom the gods would destroy, they first make mad.
    - This variant is spoken by Prometheus, in The Masque of Pandora (1875) by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
  - Those whom the gods would destroy, they first make mad.
    - As quoted in George Fox Interpreted: The Religion, Revelations, Motives and Mission of George Fox (1881) by Thomas Ellwood Longshore, p. 154
  - Those whom God wishes to destroy, he first makes mad.
    - As quoted in Bartlett's Familiar Quotations 16th edition (1992)
  - Nor do the gods appear in warrior's armour clad
    To strike them down with sword and spear
    Those whom they would destroy
    They first make mad.
    - Bhartṛhari, 7th c. AD; as quoted in John Brough,Poems from the Sanskrit, (1968), p, 67
- Modern derivatives:
  The proverb's meaning is changed in many English versions from the 20th and 21st centuries that start with the proverb's first half (through "they") and then end with a phrase that replaces "first make mad" or "make mad." Such versions can be found at Internet search engines by using either of the two keyword phrases that are on Page 2 and Page 4 of the webpage "Pick any Wrong Card." The rest of that webpage is frameworks that induce a reader to compose new variations on this proverb.

Whom thy care to tamper pots in an abandoned house
Willful waste makes woeful want.
Winners don't quit, thats why they win.
Winners never quit and quitters never win.
Winning is earning. Losing is learning.
Winning isn't everything... It's the only thing.
The wish is father to the thought.
A woman is like a cup of tea; you'll never know how strong she is until she boils
- Meaning: Never underestimate people; they could be stronger than you think
- Possible interpretation: Don't pester your wife too often, unless you want her to never cook for you again.
A woman's work is never done.
- From a folk rhyme - "A man may work from sun to sun, but woman's work is never done", meaning that a man's traditional role as breadwinner may keep him occupied from sun-up to sundown, but the traditional roles of a woman demand even longer hours of work.
Women need men like a fish needs a bicycle.
A word spoken is past recalling.
- Alternative: What's done is done (so think before doing).
- Interpretation: Once you say something hurtful, provocative, etc., you can't take it back.
Words uttered only causes confusion. Words written only causes history.
Working hard or hardly working?
The world is your oyster.
Worship the Creator not His creation.
The worst good day is always better than the best bad day.
The worst way to miss someone is to be sitting right beside them knowing you can't have them.
Write injuries in the sand, kindnesses in marble.

English proverbs (U - V)

U

An unasked question is the most futile thing in the world
Unprepare to prepare, be prepared to be unprepared
- supposedly said by W.B.Govo in 1916
Use it or lose it
Use it up, wear it out, make do with, or do without
- Great depression era proverb.

V

The value is determined by the agreement of two people.
Variety is the spice of life.
- An early version is found in William Cowper, The Task (1785), Book II, "The Timepiece", lines 606–7:
  - Variety's the very spice of life,
    That gives it all its flavour.
Vengeance is mine, thus saith the Lord.
Virtue which parleys is near a surrender. - Divers Proverbs, Nathan Bailey, 1721
Vision without action is a daydream. Action without vision is a nightmare. (Japanese proverb)

English proverbs (T)

T

Take an old dirty, hungry, mangy, sick and wet dog and feed him and wash him and nurse him back to health, and he will never turn on you and bite you. This is how man and dog differ.
- (Possibly Lord Byron)
Take care of the pennies and the pounds will take care of themselves.
Take it with a grain of salt.
- Meaning: Regard it with a copious measure scepticism.
Taking care of business.
Talk of the devil and he's sure to appear.
Talk the hind legs off a donkey.
- Possible interpretation: Someone who never shuts up - often used in reference to London cab drivers
Talking a mile a minute.
Talking nineteen to the dozen.
That which does not kill you, makes you stronger.
- Friedrich Nietzsche, The Twilight of the Idols (1888)
The worth of a thing is what it will bring.
There is luck in odd numbers.
The teacher has not taught, until the student has learned.
There are no endings: only new beginnings.
There are no facts; only interpretations of facts.
There are no small parts, only small actors.
There are so many things to say that are better left unsaid.
There are three types of lies - lies, damned lies, and statistics.
There's a method in his madness.
There is a thin line between love and hate
There's always a calm before a storm.
- or The calm before the storm.
There's many a slip 'twixt cup and lip.
- This comes from a Greek legend, as follows: One of the Argonauts returned from his voyage, and went home to his winery. He called for the local soothsayer, who had predicted before his voyage that he would die before he tasted another drop of his wine, from his vinery. As he finished saying this, he raised a cup filled with wine to his lips, in toast to the soothsayer, who said something in reply. Just then, he was called away to hunt a wild boar that was approaching, and died in his attempt to kill it. The phrase that the soothsayer said is translated best as, There's many a slip 'twixt the cup and the lip.
There's money in muck.
- or Where there's muck there's brass.
There's more than one way to skin a cat.
There's no accounting for taste.
- From the Latin: De gustibus non est disputandum.
There's no arguing with the barrel of a gun.
There is no god except God.
There's no peace for the wicked
There's no place like home.
There is no point of knowledge or wisdom if not dotted.
There's no point in washing clean things.
- Meaning: Don't fix things that are fine, just the bad things!
There's no such thing as a free lunch.
There's no time like the present.
There is only eight years between success and failure in politics.
- Jim Brown, Louisiana statesman
There is something rotten in the state of Denmark.
- or There's something rotten in Denmark.
- Expresses strong suspicion.
- Shakespeare's Hamlet (Marcellus in act 1, scene 4).

A thief thinks everyone steals.
Think before you speak.
Thinking the worst always prepares you for the worst.
This, too, shall pass.
Those who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones.
Those who run with pigs, smell like pigs.
Time and tide wait for none.
Time flies.
- Latin: Tempus fugit!
Time is gold.
Tit for Tat.
To burn the candle at both ends.
To each, his own.
To err is human; to forgive, divine. (Pope, Essay on Criticism)
To have the fulfilled life, you must question the unanswerable and learn nothing.
- Meaning: you must build your own opinions, but life is too short to waste trying to understand life
To know the road ahead ask those coming back.
To put something in a new jacket.
Tomorrow is another day.
Too many Chiefs and not enough Indians.
- Implies that an organization is top-heavy, too many different directions to go and not enough ability to go along them.
Too many cooks spoil the broth.
Too much of one thing, good for nothing.
- Meaning: Don't overspecialize
Trapped between a rock and a hard place.
Tread on a worm and it will turn.
- This Proverb is generally used by Persons who have received gross insults and
  Injuries from others (which they have for some time bore with Patience) to excuse their
  being at last transported to some Warmth of Resentment and Passion. - Divers Proverbs, Nathan Bailey, 1721
Trouble shared is trouble halved.
The truth is in the wine.
- Possible interpretation: A person will more freely divulge a secret when plied with alcohol.
- A drunken man's words are a sober man's thoughts.
Truth is stranger than fiction.
The truth shall set you free, or The truth will set you free.
- In the Bible, John 8:32.
Truth will out.
- Meaning: The truth will eventually come out, no matter how well it is hidden.
Try not to become a man of success but a man of value.
Try try but don't cry.
- Meaning: Never give up in life.
- Try and try until you suceed
Two heads are better than one.
- In a multitude of counselors there is more wisdom (than in few)
Two things prolong your life: A quiet heart and a loving wife.
Two wrongs don't make a right.
- Also jocularly formed from above: Two wrongs don't make a right - but three lefts make a right.
Two's company; three's a crowd.

English proverbs (S)

S

Same meat, different gravy.
Same shit, with different flies on it.
Same trouble, different day.
Say something nice or say nothing at all.
Seek and ye shall find.
- Christian New Testament
Seek water in the sea.
Self trust is the first secret of success.
Sell a man a fish, he eats for a day, teach a man how to fish, you ruin a wonderful business opportunity.
- Karl Marx
Set a thief to catch a thief.
Shallow graves for shallow people.
Ships happen. -Navy saying.
Shit or get off the pot
silence is golden
- Meaning: sometimes it is better not to say anything.
Simple minds think alike. (William Truong)
- Simple things please/amuse simple minds.
- Alternative: Simple minds, simple pleasures.
Six of one, and half a dozen the other.
- Meaning: Describes two actions with the same result, or two things that are essentially the same.
Slow and steady wins the race.
- Variant: Slow but sure.
Smile, and the world smiles with you; cry, and you cry alone.
So close, yet so far.
Some days you get the bear, other days the bear gets you.
Someone who gossips to you will gossip about you.
Something is better than nothing.
Something worth doing is worth doing well.
A son is a son 'till he gets him a wife; a daughter's a daughter all her life.
- Interpretation: the relationship between a daughter and her parents is enduring; the relationship with a son is attenuated after he marries.
Spare the rod, spoil the child.
- Meaning: Lack of deserved discipline develops undesired behavior in a child.
Speak the truth, but leave immediately
The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.
- Gospel of Matthew 26:41
The squeaky wheel gets the grease.
- or The squeaky wheel gets replaced.
- If you speak up, you will go farther in life.
- Those who complain, will attract more attention (for good or ill) than those who are content.
The start of a journey should never be mistaken for success.
S tart small; T hink tall; R each over the wall; I nvest your all; V isualize the mall; E xpect you may fall; but, if you fall, that's not all; get up and STRIVE again.
- Dr. Robert Schuller
Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me.
- Contrast: "A blow with a word strikes deeper than a blow with a sword."
A still tongue makes a wise head.
- From Lewis the (Black) Barber; Lake Charles, LA; who always told people, "Never let the right hand know what the left hand is doing; a still tongue makes a wise head; still water runs deep."
Still waters run deep.
- Possible interpretation: Looks can be deceiving, quiet people are often the most deep.
A stitch in time saves nine.
- Fix the small problem now before it becomes larger and harder to fix.
Stolen fruit is the sweetest.
- Possible interpretation: forbidden things are the most tempting
Straightn not the dog's tail even in the bamboo hollow.
The straw that broke the camel's back.
- The last of a number of little things which led to something major.
Strike while the iron is hot.
- Possible interpretation: Seize the moment. Take the opportunity now; don't waste it.
Success grows out of struggles to overcome difficulties.
Success is a journey not a destination.
Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

English proverbs (R)

R

Rather be a dog in peace, than to be a man in chaos.-Chinese Origin-宁为太平犬，莫为乱世人
- Rather be a dog in a peaceful land, instead of being a man in a land of war.
Reality is not only stranger than we imagine, it is stranger than we can imagine.
Reality is often stranger than fiction
Repetition is the mother of memory.
- Latin: REPETITIO MATER MEMORIAE
- equivalent to: Eternal repetition is the price of knowledge.
Revenge is a dish best served cold.
A rising tide lifts all boats
- This traditional proverb is sometimes attributed to John F. Kennedy because he repeated it several times, but he disclaimed originality in his address in the Assembly Hall at the Paulskirche in Frankfurt, West Germany, 25 June 1963:
  - As they say on my own Cape Cod, a rising tide lifts all the boats.
The road to hell is paved with good intentions.
- Earlier variants of this proverb are recorded as Hell is paved with good intentions. recorded as early as 1670, and an even earlier variant by Saint Bernard of Clairvaux Hell is full of good intentions or desires.
- Similar from Latin: "The gates of hell are open night and day; Smooth the descent, and easy is the way" — Virgil, the Aeneid Book VI line 126
Robbing Peter to pay Paul
A rolling stone gathers no moss.
- Interpretation: A person who is active will not grow stale.
- Alternative interpretation: A person who does not stay in one place very long will not develop roots or meaningful connections with others.
- Philip K. Dick in We Can Build You (1972) conceives a world where the latter interpretation has become the norm and the former indicative of a mental disorder.
Rome wasn't built in a day
- meaning: great things take time to build/accomplish
The rotten apple injures its neighbors.
Rules were meant to be broken.

English proverbs (P)

P

Paddle your own canoe.
Pain is only weakness leaving the body.
- U.S. Marines proverb
The pain of the little finger is felt by the entire body.
A paragraph should be like a lady's skirt: long enough to cover the essentials but short enough to keep it interesting.
A Pasoly in the eye is worth several in the shins.
- A good shot is worth many bad ones
Patience is a virtue.
Peace Sells, but who's Buying?
The pen is mightier than the sword.
A penny earned is a penny lost; a penny shared is a penny well-spent.
A penny saved is a penny earned.
- Attributed to Benjamin Franklin, Poor Richard's Almanac, but actually 17th c. English
A penny spent is a penny earned.
- In contrast to spending on the poor people.
- Interpretation: capitalist alteration of Ben Franklin's original saying ["A penny saved is a penny earned"]. The concentration on spending rather than saving promotes the contemporary capitalist economic theory of putting money back into the economy (rather than hoarding it) to create more wealth.
Penny wise, pound foolish.

People who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones.
- Variation: Whose house is of glasse, must not throw stones at another.
  - George Herbert, Outlandish Proverbs, 1640; cited in "Proverbs 120". The Yale Book of Quotations. 2006. pp. p. 613. ISBN 0-300-10798-6. *** George Herbert, Jacula Prudentum, 1651, number 196
- Meaning: Don't criticize other people when you yourself have faults and weaknesses.
Perfect Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance. (a.k.a The six P's)
Persistence becomes Reality.
"A person who laughs may not be happy, but he's hide the sadness in his heart". (Al Sagheer, Suhail)
A picture is worth a thousand words.
- An instant sight may save a thousand words.
- A snap of sight may describe much more than a thousand words.
A pint of plain is yer only man.
The pitcher which goes too often to the well gets broken.
Please don’t retouch my wrinkles. It took me so long to earn them.
POETIS MENTIRI LICET. - Latin for "Poets are allowed to lie." Has to do with rhetoric (hyperbole) and poetic and/or litarary license.
- Meaning: You need to make the initial step if you are ever to complete a task.
Politeness cost nothing and gains everything.
Politics makes strange bedfellows.
Power tends to corrupt; absolute power corrupts absolutely.
- Attributed to Lord Acton
Practice before you preach.
- Meaning: Before asking others to do something, make sure you are following it yourself.
Practice make man perfect.
Prevention is better than cure.
- Variation: An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
Pride comes before a fall
Prior preparation prevents poor performance.
The proof of the pudding is in the eating.
Procrastination is the thief of time.
Proverbs are long life experiences, told in one short sentence.
Proverbs run in pairs.
- Meaning: Every proverb seems to be contradicted by another proverb with an opposed message, such as "too many cooks spoil the broth" and "many hands make light work."
Put a beggar on horseback and he'll ride it to death.
Put a beggar on horseback and he'll ride to the devil.
Put a cat amongst the pigeons.
Put it in song, put it in drink; but never, ever put it in ink!
- Reportedly said by Earl K. Long, Governor of Louisiana

English proverbs (O)

O

An old dog will learn no tricks. - Divers Proverbs, Nathan Bailey, 1721
Old is Gold
On your feet lose your seat.
One good turn deserves another. - Divers Proverbs, Nathan Bailey, 1721
- Meaning: You should return a favour done to you.
One grain of sand can tip the scale.
- Meaning: Any advantage, no matter how slight, can turn a hopeless situation into a fighting chance if used properly.
One hand washes the other. From the Latin MANUS MANAM LAVAT, meaning "Hand washes hand," or "One hand washes the other"; or impliedly, "You scratch my back, and I'll scratch yours."
One man's junk is another man's treasure.
One man's meat is another man's poison.
- Meaning: What is liked by one person is disliked by another.
One man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter. - Ronald Reagan
One might as well be hanged for a sheep as a lamb. - English, 17th century
- meaning: If you are going to incur a cost/risk, make sure to maximize the benefit for the cost/risk incurred.
One murder makes a villain, millions a hero.
One rotten apple will spoil the whole barrel.
- Meaning: Corruption must be rooted out or else it will spread.
- Cf. Dan Michael of Northgate, Ayenbite of Inwyt (1340): "A rotten apple will spoil a great many sound ones." (Middle English: "A roted eppel amang þe holen: makeþ rotie þe yzounde.")
One scabbed sheep mars the whole flock.
- This Proverb is apply'd to such Persons who being vicious themselves,
  labour to debauch those with whom they converse. - Divers Proverbs, Nathan Bailey, 1721
One should not think, when one is not equipped for the job.
One swallow doesn't make a summer.
Once bitten, twice shy
- William Caxton, the first English printer, gave the earliest version of this saying in 'Aesope' (1484), his translation of Aesop's fables: 'He that hath ben ones begyled by somme other ought to kepe hym wel fro(m) the same.' Centuries later, the English novelist Robert Surtees referred to the saying in 'Mr. Sponge's Sporting Tour' (1853) with '(He) had been bit once, and he was not going to give Mr. Sponge a second chance.' The exact wording of the saying was recorded later that century in 'Folk Phrases of Four Counties' (1894) by G.G. Northall and was repeated by, among others, the English novelist Joseph Conrad (1920, 'The Rescue'), the novelist Aldous Huxley (1928, 'Point Counter Point'), and the novelist Wyndham Lewis (1930, 'The Apes of God'). 'Once bitten, twice shy' has been a familiar saying in the twentieth century. From Wise Words and Wives' Tales by Stuart Flexner and Doris Flexner (Avon Books, New York, 1993).
- A variation, once burned, twice shy, is also traced back to Mr. Sponge's Sporting Tour. Once burned was First attested in the United States in 'Dead Sure' (1949) by S. Sterling. The meaning of the saying is One who had an unpleasant experience is especially cautious. From the Random House Dictionary of Popular Proverbs and Sayings by Gregory Y. Titelman (Random House, New York, 1996).
Once in a lifetime comes often, so be prepared.
Only a coward will write an anonymous letter. -President Franklin D. Roosevelt
Only bad drivers cut corners.
The only free cheese is in the mouse trap.
- Russian saying.
Only losers say "Winning isn't everything."
The only stupid question is the one that is not asked.
Only the good die young
The only thing you get from picking bottoms (ie. of the stock market) is a smelly finger.
Opinions are like assholes: everyone has them and they usually stink.
Opportunity knocks only once.
- Meaning: Do not waste time while grabbing opportunities.
Opportunity is waiting, you need but to open the door.
An ounce of discretion is worth a pound of wit.
- Meaning: it is better to be careful and discreet than to be clever.
An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
- Possible interpretation: Similar to that of A stitch in time saves nine. Preventing something in advance is better than fixing it later on.
Our costliest expenditure is time.
Our greatest glory is not in never falling but in rising every time we fall.
- Confucius
Out of sight... Out of mind
- Cf. Fulke Greville's sonnet "And out of minds as soons as out of sight"
Out of small acorns grow mighty oaks.
Owt for Nowt
- Northern English, Anything for nothing...

English proverbs (N)

N

The nail that sticks up will be hammered down.
Nature never did betray the heart. that loved her.
Nature, time, and patience are three great physicians.
Necessity is the mother of all invention.
Necessity is the mother of all invention, but Laziness is the father. -[Benjamin Franklin]
Ne'er cast a clout till May be out. (Not known if 'May' relates to the month of May or may blossom).
- Don't remove winter vests (undergarments) until summer arrives.
Never change, for the sake of others. There will be no one like you if you change. (GPL)
Never judge the book by its cover.
- meaning: Do not let a quick/superficial evaluation pass for a deep/quality one. Be willing to recheck. Measure twice, cut once.
Never leave a woman to do a man's work.
- alternate version, Never let a monkey to do a man's job, Never send a woman to do a man's job
- Meaning: Leaving\employing someone less qualified to do your work will produce undesired results.
Never let a man do a woman's job.
- Feminist phrase; Men are poorer than women, skill-wise.
Never let the right hand know what the left hand is doing.
- Possible interpretation: Do not boast in giving to the poor- anonymous is best.
- Possible interpretation: Secrecy insures security
Never lie to your doctor.
Never lie to your lawyer.
Never look a gift horse in the mouth.
Never put off till (until) tomorrow what you can do today.
Never say die.
- interpretation: Never give up.
Never say never.
Never smash a glass over a brick donkey.
Never trouble trouble 'til trouble troubles you.
A new broom sweeps clean.
A night with Venus and a life with mercury.
- Anti-promiscuity adage, alluding to a 18th-century mercury-based folk treatment for syphilis
- Cited in Bartz, Diane, "Har, me hearties! Excavating Blackbeard's ship", Reuters (via Yahoo! News), 30 October 2006. URL accessed on 2006-11-01.
No man can serve two masters.
- Christian New Testament
No man is an island
- interpretation: Everybody needs other people.
No man is content with his lot.
No money, no justice.
No need to cry over spilled milk.
No news is good news.
No pain, no gain.
No time like the present.
Noblesse oblige.
- French expression: To be a member of the nobility carries obligations to care for the lower classes.
Nobody leaves us, we only leave others.
Not enough room to swing a cat
Nothing exceeds like excess.
Nothing to be feared in life, but understood.
Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
- Variant: Nothing ventured, nothing have. - Divers Proverbs, Nathan Bailey, 1721
Now the shit has really hit the fan.
Now we have doors so we can hide.

English proverbs (M)

M

Make a Friend when you don't need One (from Urim)
- Possible interpretations: Do the task while it is possible. Don't wait until you need help to ask for it.
Make hay while the sun shines.
Making a rod for your own back.
Make the best of a bad bargain.
A man is known by the company he keeps.
Man is truly himself when he's alone.
Man wasn't born to suffer but to carry on.
A man's home is his castle.
- William Blackstone refers to this traditional proverb in Commentaries on the Laws of England (1765–1769), Book 4, Chapter 16:
  - And the law of England has so particular and tender a regard to the immunity of a man's house, that it stiles it his castle, and will never suffer it to be violated with immunity: agreeing herein with the sentiments of ancient Rome, as expressed in the works of Tully; quid enim sanctius, quid omni religione munitius, quam domus unusquisque civium?
    - Translation: What more sacred, what more strongly guarded by every holy feeling, than a man's own home?
Manners maketh the man.
- From 'Manners makyth man' - the motto of William of Wykeham(1320 - 1404)
Many a true word is spoken in jest
Many hands make light work
Many things are lost for want of asking.
Many words will not fill a bushel.
- This Proverb is a severe Taunt upon much Talking. - Divers Proverbs, Nathan Bailey, 1721
Marriage equals hell and bankruptcy.
Marry in haste, and repent at leisure.
Meaner than a junk-yard dog.
Meaning of life is not meaningful -- Allen Zimama
Measure twice, cut once.
- Perform verifying operations that have no cost (measure) before performing an operation that is irreversible and has significant consequences (cut).
Mind your P's and Q's.
- British: Mind your manners (origin theories)
Mirrors do everything we do, but they cannot think for themselves.
Misery loves company.
- interpretation: When one person is miserable they tend to act to make others as miserable as themselves.
Misfortunes never come singly.
A miss by an inch is a miss by a mile.
- Meaning: A miss is a miss regardless the distance
Missing the wood for the trees.
- Overlooking the more important issue.

Money can't buy everything, but everything needs money
Money cannot buy happiness.
Money for old rope.
- In the days of wooden-hulled sailing ships, ropes that were worn could be sold for use as caulking (pressed between the planks and often covered with tar to prevent seepage), or as filling for fenders, and so the ship's owner was paid even for old rope.
The money is burning a hole in my pocket.
(love of)Money is the root of all evil.
Money makes the mare go.
Money makes the world go around.
Money talks; mine always says, "Good-bye!"
Money talks.
- Variant: Money talks, bullshit walks.
- Related: Talk is cheap.
- Related: Actions speak louder than words.
- meaning: It's easy to say you believe something, but people are more likely to risk cash or possessions on something they truly believe.
- meaning: its time to stop living in the fantasy world, and live in the real world.
Monkey see, monkey do.
Morals are for others to follow.
More haste, less speed.
- More haste at a task will lead to the task being completed less speedily. As with many English proverbs, it describes consequences rather than giving an order.
The more things change, the more they stay the same.
- From the French: Plus ça change, c'est la même chose.
The more you know, the more you know you don't know.
The more you study, the more you know. The more you know, the more you forget. The more you forget, the less you know. The less you know the more you study.

English proverbs (L)

L

Laugh and the world laughs with you .. Cry and you will find no one with tears.
Laugh when you're happy, cry when you're sad, and do both when you're the happiest you've ever been.
Laughter is the best medicine for them who do not know how to laugh.
Laughter is the shortest distance between two people.
The law is a jealous mistress.
- - Professor Ferdinand Fairfax Stone, Tulane Law School, early and mid 1960s.
Law is the solemn expression of legislative will.
Lead to Success, Follow to Failure
Learn to walk before you run.
- Possible interpretation: Do not rush into what you do not know.
- Alt. interpretation: Learn the basics before you start using more complex tools or methods
Least said sooner mended.
- meaning: those who speak less get more done
- Alt. Interpretation: dwelling on the problem/blame makes it worse and delays the ability to get on and fix things
Leave it alone and it will grow on its own.
Let him who is without sin cast the first stone.
- Jesus Christ
Let sleeping dogs lie.
- Agatha Christie's Sleeping Murder
Let the cobbler stick to his last.
Let us go hand in hand,not one before another.
A lie can be halfway around the world before the truth gets its boots on.
- Charles Spurgeon. A great lie may be widely accepted before the truth comes to light.
Lie down with dogs, wake up with fleas.
- meaning: When you get revenge, you will be punished in some way or other
Life begins at forty.
Life does not come with any guarantees
Life imitates art
Life imitates chess -Kasparov
Life is a perception of your own reality.
Life is just a bowl of cherries.
Life is like a box of chocolate, you never know what you're gonna get
Life is too short to drink bad wine.
Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans.
- Attributed to John Lennon
Life is what you do while you're waiting to die.
- Quote from song sung by Zorba from the musical 'Zorba' by Kander and Ebb
Life is what you make of it.
- meaning: Nothing's going to change unless you do something about it
Life's battle don't always go to the stronger or faster man, but sooner or later the man who wins is the one who thinks he can.
Lightning never strikes twice in the same place.
Like cures like.
- Meaning: A person can better help another if they have something in common.
Like father, like son.
Like water off a duck's back.
- interpretation: Do not let this impact you, but let it pass off you like water rolls off of a ducks back.
Little bean comes around his little salary
Little by little and bit by bit.
- Meaning: Do things slowly and carefully
Little enemies and little wounds must not be despised.
A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.
- A little Learning is a dangerous Thing;
  Drink deep, or taste not the Pierian Spring:
  There shallow Draughts intoxicate the Brain,
  And drinking largely sobers us again. ~ Alexander Pope
A little pot is easily hot.
Live and let live.
- Alternative: Live simply to let others simply live.
A loaded wagon makes no noise.
- People with real wealth don't talk about it.
Long absent, soon forgotten.
The longest mile is the last mile home.
Look after the pennies and the pounds will look after themselves.
- Possible interpretation: Take care of the details. (12 pence to the shilling, 20 shillings to the pound.)
- Alt. interpretation: Save every penny you can and it will build up into a significant amount of money.
Look before you leap.
Look on the sunny side of life.
Loose lips sink ships.
- World Wartime mantra encouraging people to avoid talking about things which could have been overheard by spies
Love is a bridge between two hearts.
Love is anger disappointed.
Love is blind.
Love is like war, Easy to start, Hard to end, Impossible to forget.
Love is not finding someone to live with; it's finding someone whom you can't live without.
Love laughs at locksmiths.
Luck favors the prepared - Louis Pasteur
Luck is a mirror of hard work - Beslin

English proverbs (J - K)

J

Jack of all trades and master of none. (18th Century)
- Literal meaning: Anyone who's good at everything is not a master of anything.
Joan is as good as my lady in the dark. (17th Century)
A journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step.
- Laozi, Tao Te Ching, Ch. 64, line 12. 千里之行，始于足下
Justice delayed is justice denied.(Legal Proverb, India)
Justice pleaseth few in their own house.
- Meaning: No one ever blames themselves for anything.

K

Keep some till more come.
- Interpretation: Save something until the next stock comes.
Keep your mouth shut and your eyes open. (18th Century)
Keep your mouth shut and your ears open.
The key to all action lies in belief.
Kindness, like grain, increase by sowing.
A kingdom is lost for want of a shoe.
- See: "For want of a nail the shoe is lost, ..."
Knaves and fools divide the world.
Knowledge creates mysteries.
Knowledge is power. (17th Century)

English proverbs (I)

I

I came, I saw, I conquered
- Said by Julius Caesar, spoken as Veni, Vidi, Vici during a message to the Roman senate
I complained I had no shoes until I met a man who had no feet.
I have the whole world against me, I show my back and the whole world is following me.
I know I know nothing
- From Socrates defence speech
I think, therefore I am
- Descartes' most famous statement (Cogito Ergo Sum in Latin)
I wants, don't gets.
- An alternative used in the black British community is: "Ask it, Ask it don't get... Get it, get it don't want."
I was born on a Friday, but not last Friday.
- Alternative: I wasn't born yesterday.
Idle hands are the devil's playthings. 'Alt.' The devil makes work for idle hands.

If a job is worth doing, it is worth doing well.
If a thing's worth doing, it's worth doing badly.
If all else fails, try the obvious.
If at first you don't succeed, try, try again.
- Cf. William Edward Hickson's Try and Try again
  "Tis a lesson you should heed:
  Try, try, try again.
  If at first you don't succeed,
  Try, try, try again"
If God had wanted man to fly, he would have given him wings.
If in doubt go left.
If in doubt, pick "C"
If it ain't broke, don't fix it.
- Variation: If it isn't broken, don't fix it.
If it can't be cured, it must be endured.
- From Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie
If it's too good to be true, then it probably is.
If it's worth doing, it's worth over-doing.
If life gives you lemons, make lemonade.
If something can go wrong, it will.
- Murphy's Law
If the mountain won't come to Muhammad, Muhammad must go to the mountain.
- "If the mountain won't come to Muhammad, Muhammad must go to the mountain", Answers.com
If the shoe fits, wear it.
If wishes were fishes, we'd all cast nets.
If wishes were horses, beggars would ride.
If you believe that dreams can come true be prepared for the occasional nightmare.
If you buy cheaply, you pay dearly.
- Alternatively: You get what you pay for
If you buy quality, you only cry once.
If you can't be good, be careful.
If you can't be good, be good at it.
If you can't beat them, arrange to have them beaten.
If you can't beat them, join them.
If you can't take the heat, get out of the kitchen.
If you cross your bridges before you come to them, you will have to pay the toll twice.
If you don't buy a ticket, you can't win the raffle.
If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all
If you don't know where you're going, any train will get you there.
If you fake it, you can't make it.
If you fall off a cliff, you might as well try to fly. After all, you got nothing to lose.
If you keep your mouth shut, you won't put your foot in it.
If you love somebody, let them go, for if they return, they were always yours. And if they don't, they never were.
If you snooze you lose
If you trust before you try, you may repent before you die. - Divers Proverbs, Nathan Bailey, 1721
If you want a thing done right, do it yourself.
If you want breakfast in bed, sleep in the kitchen.
If you want to judge a man's character, give him power.
If you were born to be shot, you'll never be hanged.
If you're in a hole, stop digging.
If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem.
If you're prepared to be confused, be prepared for a sore bum
Ignorance is bliss.
- Common mal-shortening of "Where ignorance is bliss, 'tis folly to be wise.
- Thomas Gray, "Ode on a Distant Prospect of Eton College"
- The more you know, you more you want to know / The more you learn about things, the more you learn about your ignorance of things
Impossible itself says I'm Possible

In for a penny, in for a pound.
- Alternate version: In for a dime, in for a dollar.
In one ear and out the other.
- Cf. Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales: "One eare it heard, at the other out it went"
In order to get where you want to go, you first have to leave where you are.
- From Sandy Elsberg's Bread Winner, Bread Baker; Upline Press, Charlottesville, VA; 1977, p. 80
In the end, a man's motives are second to his accomplishments.
In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king.
In the law there are no small cases, only small lawyers.
- Ben Harlow
In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity
- Emerson
In the mind of thieves the moon is always shining.
- Marathi proverb, meaning: dishonest persons have to be always on the alert to avoid getting caught.
Infatuations are a plenty. Love is rare. - Pashi
Insanity is doing the same thing over and over, expecting different results.
- Alternatively "Stupidity is doing the same thing over and over, and expecting different results"
Is the Pope a Catholic?
- Do bears shit in the woods?
- Used in response to what is considered to be a question with an extremely obvious answer.
It ain't over till the fat lady sings.
- Variation: Church ain't over until the fat lady sings.
- Attributed as an old Southern saying in Smith & Smith, Southern Words and Sayings (1976), according to Quinion, Michael (21 August 1999). "It Ain't Over Till the Fat Lady Sings". World Wide Words. Retrieved on 2007-01-23.
It's a blessing in disguise.
It's a cracked pitcher that goes longest to the well.
It's a good horse that never stumbles.
It's a long lane that has no turning.
It's a poor job that can't stand at least one supervisor.
It's always darkest before the dawn
It's always the baker's children who have no bread.
It's an ill wind that blows no good.
It's better to be safe than sorry.
It's better to be silent and thought a fool, than to speak up and remove all doubt.
It is better to die on one's feet than live on one's knees.
It's better to give than to receive.
It's better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.
It's better to have something you don't need than to need something you don't have.
It's better to want something you can't have than have something you don't want.
It's cheaper to keep her.
It's easier to ask forgiveness than permission.
- Attributed to Grace Hopper
It's easy to be wise after the event.
It's never too late to mend.
It's no use crying over spilt milk.
It's not over till it's over.
- Yogi Berra
- Often attributed to sportscaster Dan Cook (1978)
It is not so much the gift that is given but the way in which the gift is driven.
It's not the size of the boat, it's the motion of the ocean.
It's often a person's mouth broke their nose.
- Meaning: People talk themselves into trouble.
It's the early bird that gets the worm.
It's the empty can that makes the most noise.
It's the squeaky wheel that gets the grease.
It is through the small things we do that we learn, not the big things

It never rains, but it pours.
- Alternatively: When it rains, it pours.
It pays to pay attention.
- Rewards come to those who are attentive, or wary of events in the past/present/future.
It takes all sorts to make a world.
- Alternatively: It takes all sorts to make the world go round.
- Alternatively: It takes all kinds to make the world go round.
It takes both rain and sunshine to make rainbows
- It takes good and bad to make good things in the future, or make them stand out.
It takes two to lie — one to lie and one to listen.
It takes two to make a quarrel.
It takes two to tango.