1. A bad
beginning makes a bad ending.
2. A bad corn
promise is better than a good lawsuit.
3. A bad
workman quarrels with his tools.
4. A bargain is
a bargain.
5. A beggar can
never be bankrupt.
6. A bird in
the hand is worth two in the bush.
7. A bird may
be known by its song.
8. A black hen
lays a white egg.
9. A blind
leader of the blind.
10. A blind man
would be glad to see.
11. A broken
friendship may be soldered, but will never be sound.
12. A burden of
one’s own choice is not felt.
13. A burnt
child dreads the fire.
14. A cat in
gloves catches no mice.
15. A city that
parleys is half gotten.
16. A civil
denial is better than a rude grant.
17. A clean
fast is better than a dirty breakfast.
18. A clean
hand wants no washing.
19. A clear
conscience laughs at false accusations.
20. A close
mouth catches no flies.
21. A cock is
valiant on his own dunghill.
22. A cracked
bell can never sound well.
23. A creaking
door hangs long on its hinges.
24. A curst cow
has short horns.
25. A danger foreseen
is half avoided.
26. A drop in
the bucket.
27. A drowning
man will catch at a straw.
28. A fair face
may hide a foul heart.
29. A fault
confessed is half redressed.
30. A fly in
the ointment.
31. A fool
always rushes to the fore.
32. A fool and
his money are soon parted.
33. A fool at
forty is a fool indeed.
34. A fool may
ask more questions in an hour than a wise man can answer in seven years.
35. A fool may
throw a stone into a well which a hundred wise men cannot pull out.
36. A fool’s
tongue runs before his wit.
37. A forced
kindness deserves no thanks.
38. A foul morn
may turn to a fair day.
39. A fox is
not taken twice in the same snare.
40. A friend in
need is a friend indeed.
43. A friend is
never known till needed.
42. A friend to
all is a friend to none.
43. A friend’s
frown is better than a foe’s smile.
44. A good
anvil does not fear the hammer.
45. A good
beginning is half the battle.
46. A good
beginning makes a good ending.
47. A good deed
is never lost.
48. A good dog
deserves a good bone.
49. A good
example is the best sermon.
50. A good face
is a letter of recommendation.
51. A good Jack
makes a good Jill.
52. A good
marksman may miss.
53. A good name
is better than riches.
54. A good name
is sooner lost than won.
55. A good name
keeps its luster in the dark.
56. A good wife
makes a good husband.
57. A great
dowry is a bed full of brambles.
58. A great
fortune is a great slavery.
59. A great
ship asks deep waters.
60. A guilty
conscience needs no accuser.
61. A hard nut
to crack.
62. A heavy
purse makes a light heart.
63. A hedge
between keeps friendship green.
64. A honey
tongue, a heart of gall.
65. A hungry
belly has no ears.
66. A hungry
man is an angry man.
67. A Jack of
all trades is master of none.
68. A Joke
never gains an enemy but often loses a friend.
69. A lawyer
never goes to law himself.
70. A lazy
sheep thinks its wool heavy.
71. A liar is
not believed when he speaks the truth.
72. A lie
begets a lie.
73. A light
purse is a heavy curse.
74. A light
purse makes a heavy heart.
75. A little
body often harbors a great soul.
76. A little
fire is quickly trodden out.
77. A man can
die but once.
78. A man can
do no more than he can.
79. A man is
known by the company he keeps.
80. A man of
words and not of deeds is like a garden full of weeds.
81. A miserly
father makes a prodigal son.
82. A miss is
as good as a mile.
83. A new broom
sweeps clean.
84. A nod from
a lord is a breakfast for a fool.
85. A penny
saved is a penny gained.
86. A penny
soul never came to two pence.
87. A quiet
conscience sleeps in thunder.
88. A rolling
stone gathers no moss.
89. A round peg
in a square hole.
90. A shy cat
makes a proud mouse.
91. A silent
fool is counted wise.
92. A small
leak will sink a great ship.
93. A soft
answer turns away wrath.
94. A sound
mind in a sound body.
95. A stitch in
time saves nine.
96. A storm in
a teacup.
97. A tattler
is worse than a thief.
98. A thief
knows a thief as a wolf knows a wolf.
99. A thief
passes for a gentleman when stealing has made him rich.
100. A
threatened blow is seldom given.
101. A tree is
known by its fruit.
102. A wager is
a fool’s argument.
103. A watched
pot never boils.
104. A wise man
changes his mind, a fool never will.
105. A wolf in
sheep’s clothing.
106. A wonder
lasts but nine days.
107. A word is
enough to the wise.
108. A word
spoken is past recalling.
109. Actions
speak louder than words.
110. Adversity
is a great schoolmaster.
111. Adversity
makes strange bedfellows.
112. After a
storm comes a calm.
113. After
dinner comes the reckoning.
114. After
dinner sit (sleep) a while, after supper walk a mile.
115. After rain
comes fair weather.
116. After us
the deluge.
117. Agues come
on horseback, but go away on foot.
118. All are
good lasses, but whence come the bad wives?
119. All are
not friends that speak us fair.
120. All are
not hunters that blow the horn.
121. All are
not merry that dance lightly.
122. All are
not saints that go to church.
123. All asses
wag their ears.
124. All bread
is not baked in one oven.
125. All cats
are grey in the dark (in the night).
126. All covet,
all lose.
127. All doors
open to courtesy.
128. All is
fish that comes to his net.
129. All is not
lost that is in peril.
130. All is
well that ends well.
131. All lay
load on the willing horse.
132. All men
can’t be first.
133. All men
can’t be masters.
134. All
promises are either broken or kept.
135. All roads
lead to Rome.
136. All sugar
and honey.
137. All that
glitters is not gold.
138. All things
are difficult before they are easy.
139. All truths
are not to be told.
140. All work
and no play makes Jack a dull boy.
141. “Almost”
never killed a fly (was never hanged).
142. Among the
blind the one-eyed man is king.
143. An apple a
day keeps the doctor away.
144. An ass in
a lion’s skin.
145. An ass is
but an ass, though laden with gold.
146. An ass
loaded with gold climbs to the top of the castle.
147. An empty
hand is no lure for a hawk.
148. An empty
sack cannot stand upright.
149. An empty
vessel gives a greater sound than a full barrel.
150. An evil
chance seldom comes alone.
151. An honest
tale speeds best, being plainly told.
152. An hour in
the morning is worth two in the evening.
153. An idle
brain is the devil’s workshop.
154. An ill
wound is cured, not an ill name.
155. An oak is
not felled at one stroke.
156. An old dog
barks not in vain.
157. An open
door may tempt a saint.
158. An ounce
of discretion is worth a pound of learning.
159. An ox is
taken by the horns, and a man by the tongue.
160. An
unfortunate man would be drowned in a teacup.
161. Anger and
haste hinder good counsel.
162. Any port
in a storm.
163.
Appearances are deceitful.
164. Appetite
comes with eating.
165. As drunk
as a lord.
166. As
innocent as a babe unborn.
167. As like as
an apple to an oyster.
168. As like as
two peas.
169. As old as
the hills.
170. As plain
as the nose on a man’s face.
171. As plain
as two and two make four.
172. As snug as
a bug in a rug.
173. As sure as
eggs is eggs.
174. As the
call, so the echo.
175. As the
fool thinks, so the bell clinks.
176. As the old
cock crows, so does the young.
177. As the
tree falls, so shall it lie.
178. As the
tree, so the fruit.
179. As welcome
as flowers in May.
180. As welcome
as water in one’s shoes.
181. As well be
hanged for a sheep as for a lamb.
182. As you
brew, so must you drink.
183. As you
make your bed, so must you lie on it.
184. As you
sow, so shall you reap.
185. Ask no
questions and you will be told no lies.
186. At the
ends of the earth.
187. Bacchus
has drowned more men than Neptune.
188. Bad news
has wings.
189. Barking
does seldom bite.
190. Be slow to
promise and quick to perform.
191. Be swift
to hear, slow to speak.
192. Beauty is
but skin-deep.
193. Beauty
lies in lover’s eyes.
194. Before one
can say Jack Robinson.
195. Before you
make a friend eat a bushel of salt with him.
196. Beggars
cannot be choosers.
197. Believe
not all that you see nor half what you hear.
198. Best
defence is offence.
199. Better a
glorious death than a shameful life.
200. Better a
lean peace than a fat victory.
201. Better a
little fire to warm us, than a great one to burn us.
202. Better an
egg today than a hen tomorrow.
203. Better an
open enemy than a false friend.
204. Better be
alone than in bad company.
205. Better be
born lucky than rich.
206. Better be
envied than pitied.
207. Better be
the head of a dog than the tail of a lion.
208. Better
deny at once than promise long.
209. Better die
standing than live kneeling.
210. Better
early than late.
211. Better
give a shilling than lend a half-crown.
212. Better go
to bed supperless than rise in debt.
213. Better
late than never.
214. Better
lose a jest than a friend.
215. Better
one-eyed than stone-blind.
216. Better the
devil you know than the devil you don’t.
217. Better the
foot slip than the tongue.
218. Better to
do well than to say well.
219. Better to
reign in hell, than serve in heaven.
220. Better
unborn than untaught.
221. Better
untaught than ill-taught.
222. Between
the cup and the lip a morsel may slip.
223. Between
the devil and the deep (blue) sea.
224. Between
two evils ’tis not worth choosing.
225. Between
two stools one goes (falls) to the ground.
226. Between
the upper and nether millstone.
227. Betwixt
and between.
228. Beware of
a silent dog and still water.
229. Bind the
sack before it be full.
230. Birds of a
feather flock together.
231. Blind men
can judge no colours.
232. Blood is
thicker than water.
233. Borrowed
garments never fit well.
234. Brevity is
the soul of wit.
235. Burn not
your house to rid it of the mouse.
236. Business
before pleasure.
237. By doing nothing
we learn to do ill.
238. By hook or
by crook.
239. By the
street of ‘by-and-bye’ one arrives at the house of ‘Never’.
240. Calamity
is man’s true touchstone.
241. Care
killed the cat.
242. Catch the
bear before you sell his skin.
243. Caution is
the parent of safety.
244. Charity
begins at home.
245. Cheapest
is the dearest.
246. Cheek
brings success.
247. Children
and fools must not play with edged tools.
248. Children
are poor men’s riches.
249. Choose an
author as you choose a friend.
250. Christmas
comes but once a year, (but when it comes it brings good cheer).
251.
Circumstances alter cases.
252. Claw me,
and I will claw thee.
253.
Cleanliness is next to godliness.
254. Company in
distress makes trouble less.
255. Confession
is the first step to repentance.
256. Counsel is
no command.
257. Creditors
have better memories than debtors.
258. Cross the
stream where it is shallowest.
259. Crows do
not pick crow’s eyes.
260. Curiosity
killed a cat.
261. Curses
like chickens come home to roost.
262. Custom is
a second nature.
263. Custom is
the plague of wise men and the idol of fools.
264. Cut your
coat according to your cloth.
265. Death is
the grand leveller.
266. Death pays
all debts.
267. Death when
it comes will have no denial.
268. Debt is
the worst poverty.
269. Deeds, not
words.
270. Delays are
dangerous.
271. Desperate
diseases must have desperate remedies.
272. Diligence
is the mother of success (good luck).
273. Diseases
are the interests of pleasures.
274. Divide and
rule.
275. Do as you
would be done by.
276. Dog does
not eat dog.
277. Dog eats
dog.
278. Dogs that
put up many hares kill none.
279. Doing is
better than saying.
280. Don’t
count your chickens before they are hatched.
281. Don’t
cross the bridges before you come to them.
282. Don’t have
thy cloak to make when it begins to rain.
283. Don’t keep
a dog and bark yourself.
284. Don’t look
a gift horse in the mouth.
285. Don’t put
all your eggs in one basket.
286. Don’t sell
the bear’s skin before you’ve caught it.
287. Don’t
trouble until trouble troubles you.
288. Don’t
whistle (halloo) until you are out of the wood.
289. Dot your
i’s and cross your t’s.
290. Draw not
your bow till your arrow is fixed.
291. Drive the
nail that will go.
292. Drunken
days have all their tomorrow.
293. Drunkenness
reveals what soberness conceals.
294. Dumb dogs
are dangerous.
295. Each bird
loves to hear himself sing.
296. Early to
bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise.
297. Easier
said than done.
298. East or
West? Home is best.
299. Easy come,
easy go.
300. Eat at
pleasure, drink with measure.
301. Empty
vessels make the greatest (the most) sound.
302. Enough is
as good as a feast.
303. Envy
shoots at others and wounds herself.
304. Even
reckoning makes long friends.
305. Every ass
loves to hear himself bray.
306. Every
barber knows that.
307. Every bean
has its black.
308. Every bird
likes its own nest.
309. Every
bullet has its billet.
310. Every
country has its customs.
311. Every dark
cloud has a silver lining.
312. Every day
is not Sunday.
313. Every dog
has his day.
314. Every dog
is a lion at home.
315. Every dog
is valiant at his own door.
316. Every Jack
has his Jill.
317. Every man
has a fool in his sleeve.
318. Every man
has his faults.
319. Every man
has his hobby-horse.
320. Every man
is the architect of his own fortunes.
321. Every man
to his taste.
322. Every
miller draws water to his own mill.
323. Every
mother thinks her own gosling a swan.
324. Every
one’s faults are not written in their foreheads.
325. Every tub
must stand on its own bottom.
326. Every
white has its black, and every sweet its sour.
327. Every why
has a wherefore.
328.
Everybody’s business is nobody’s business.
329. Everything
comes to him who waits.
330. Everything
is good in its season.
331. Evil communications
corrupt good manners.
332. Experience
is the mother of wisdom.
333. Experience
keeps a dear school, but fools learn in no other.
334. Experience
keeps no school, she teaches her pupils singly.
335. Extremes
meet.
336. Facts are
stubborn things.
337. Faint
heart never won fair lady.
338. Fair
without, foul (false) within.
339. Fair words
break no bones.
340. False
friends are worse than open enemies.
341.
Familiarity breeds contempt.
342. Far from
eye, far from heart.
343. Fasting
comes after feasting.
344. Faults are
thick where love is thin.
345. Feast
today and fast tomorrow.
346. Fine
feathers make fine birds.
347. Fine words
butter no parsnips.
348. First
catch your hare.
349. First
come, first served.
350. First
deserve and then desire.
351. First think, then speak.
352. Fish and
company stink in three days.
353. Fish
begins to stink at the head.
354. Follow the
river and you’ll get to the sea.
355. Fool’s
haste is no speed.
356. Fools and
madmen speak the truth.
357. Fools grow
without watering.
358. Fools may
sometimes speak to the purpose.
359. Fools
never know when they are well.
360. Fools rush
in where angels fear to tread.
361. For the
love of the game.
362.
Forbearance is no acquaintance.
363. Forbidden
fruit is sweet.
364. Forewarned
is forearmed.
365. Fortune
favours the brave (the bold).
366. Fortune is
easily found, but hard to be kept.
367. Four eyes
see more (better) than two.
368. Friends
are thieves of time.
369. From bad
to worse.
370. From
pillar to post.
371. Gentility
without ability is worse than plain beggary.
372. Get a name
to rise early, and you may lie all day.
373. Gifts from
enemies are dangerous.
374. Give a
fool rope enough, and he will hang himself.
375. Give every
man thy ear, but few thy voice.
376. Give him
an inch and he’ll take an ell.
377. Give never
the wolf the weather to keep.
378. Gluttony
kills more men than the sword.
379. Go to bed
with the lamb and rise with the lark.
380. Good
clothes open all doors.
381. Good
counsel does no harm.
382. Good
health is above wealth.
383. Good
masters make good servants.
384. Good words
and no deeds.
385. Good words
without deeds are rushes and reeds.
386. Gossiping
and lying go hand in hand.
387. Grasp all,
lose all.
388. Great
barkers are no biters.
389. Great
boast, small roast.
390. Great cry
and little wool.
391. Great
spenders are bad lenders.
392. Great
talkers are great liars.
393. Great
talkers are little doers.
394. Greedy
folk have long arms.
395. Habit
cures habit.
396. Half a
loaf is better than no bread.
397. “Hamlet”
without the Prince of Denmark.
398. Handsome
is that handsome does.
399. Happiness
takes no account of time.
400. Happy is
he that is happy in his children.
401. Hard words
break no bones.
402. Hares may
pull dead lions by the beard.
403. Harm watch,
harm catch.
404. Haste
makes waste.
405. Hasty
climbers have sudden falls.
406. Hate not
at the first harm.
407. Hatred is
blind, as well as love.
408. Hawks will
not pick hawks’ eyes.
409. He begins
to die that quits his desires.
410. He cannot
speak well that cannot hold his tongue.
411. He carries
fire in one hand and water in the other.
412. He dances
well to whom fortune pipes.
413. He gives
twice who gives in a trice.
414. He goes
long barefoot that waits for dead man’s shoes.
415. He is a
fool that forgets himself.
416. He is a
good friend that speaks well of us behind our backs.
417. He is
happy that thinks himself so.
418. He is
lifeless that is faultless.
419. He is not
fit to command others that cannot command himself.
420. He is not
laughed at that laughs at himself first.
421. He is not
poor that has little, but he that desires much.
422. He jests
at scars that never felt a wound.
423. He knows
best what good is that has endured evil.
424. He knows
how many beans make five.
425. He knows
much who knows how to hold his tongue.
426. He laughs
best who laughs last.
427. He lives
long that lives well.
428. He must need
swim that is held up by the chin.
429. He should
have a long spoon that sups with the devil.
430. He smells
best that smells of nothing.
431. He that
comes first to the hill may sit where he will.
432. He that
commits a fault thinks everyone speaks of it.
433. He that
does you an ill turn will never forgive you.
434. He that
fears every bush must never go a-birding.
435. He that fears
you present will hate you absent.
436. He that
goes a borrowing, goes a sorrowing.
437. He that
goes barefoot must not plant thorns.
438. He that
has a full purse never wanted a friend.
439. He that
has a great nose thinks everybody is speaking of it.
440. He that
has an ill name is half hanged.
441. He that
has no children knows not what love is.
442. He that
has He head needs no hat.
443. He that
has no money needs no purse.
444. He that is
born to be hanged shall never be drowned.
445. He that is
full of himself is very empty.
446. He that is
ill to himself will be good to nobody.
447. He that is
warm thinks all so.
448. He that
knows nothing doubts nothing.
449. He that
lies down with dogs must rise up with fleas.
450. He that
lives with cripples learns to limp.
451. He that
mischief hatches, mischief catches.
452. He that
never climbed never fell.
453. He that
once deceives is ever suspected.
454. He that
promises too much means nothing.
455. He that
respects not is not respected.
456. He that
seeks trouble never misses.
457. He that
serves everybody is paid by nobody.
458. He that
serves God for money will serve the devil for better wages.
459. He that
spares the bad injures the good.
460. He that
talks much errs much.
461. He that
talks much lies much.
462. He that
will eat the kernel must crack the nut.
463. He that
will not when he may, when he will he shall have nay.
464. He that
will steal an egg will steal an ox.
465. He that
will thrive, must rise at five.
466. He that
would eat the fruit must climb the tree.
467. He that
would have eggs must endure the cackling of hens.
468. He who is
born a fool is never cured.
469. He who
hesitates is lost.
470. He who
likes borrowing dislikes paying.
471. He who
makes no mistakes, makes nothing.
472. He who pleased
everybody died before he was born.
473. He who
says what he likes, shall hear what he doesn’t like.
474. He who
would catch fish must not mind getting wet.
475. He who
would eat the nut must first crack the shell.
476. He who
would search for pearls must dive below.
477. He will
never set the Thames on fire.
478. He works
best who knows his trade.
479. Head cook
and bottle-washer.
480. Health is
not valued till sickness comes.
481. His money
burns a hole in his pocket.
482. Honesty is
the best policy.
483. Honey is
not for the ass’s mouth.
484. Honey is
sweet, but the bee stings.
485. Honour and
profit lie not in one sack.
486. Honours
change manners.
487. Hope is a
good breakfast, but a bad supper.
488. Hope is
the poor man’s bread.
489. Hunger
breaks stone walls.
490. Hunger
finds no fault with cookery.
491. Hunger is
the best sauce.
492. Hungry
bellies have no ears.
493. Idle folks
lack no excuses.
494. Idleness
is the mother of all evil.
495. Idleness
rusts the mind.
496. If an ass
(donkey) bray at you, don’t bray at him.
497. If ifs and
ans were pots and pans…
498. If my aunt
had been a man, she’d have been my uncle.
499. If the
blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.
500. If the sky
falls, we shall catch larks.
501. If there
were no clouds, we should not enjoy the sun.
502. If things
were to be done twice all would be wise.
503. If we
can’t as we would, we must do as we can.
504. If wishes
were horses, beggars might ride.
505. If you
agree to carry the calf, they’ll make you carry the cow.
506. If you
cannot bite, never show your teeth.
507. If you
cannot have the best, make the best of what you have.
508. If you
dance you must pay the fiddler.
509. If you
laugh before breakfast you’ll cry before supper.
510. If you run
after two hares, you will catch neither.
511. If you
sell the cow, you sell her milk too.
512. If you
throw mud enough, some of it will stick.
513. If you try
to please all you will please none.
514. If you
want a thing well done, do it yourself.
515. Ill-gotten
gains never prosper.
516.
Ill-gotten, ill-spent.
517. In every
beginning think of the end.
518. In for a
penny, in for a pound.
519. In the
country of the blind one-eyed man is a king.
520. In the end
things will mend.
521. In the
evening one may praise the day.
522. Iron hand
(fist) in a velvet glove.
523. It is a
good horse that never stumbles.
524. It is a
long lane that has no turning.
525. It is a
poor mouse that has only one hole.
526. It is an
ill bird that fouls its own nest.
527. It is an
ill wind that blows nobody good.
528. It is a
silly fish, that is caught twice with the same bait.
529. It is easy
to swim if another hoids up your chin (head).
530. It is
enough to make a cat laugh.
531. It is good
fishing in troubled waters.
532. It is
never too late to learn.
533. It is no
use crying over spilt milk.
534. It is the
first step that costs.
535. It never
rains but it pours.
536. It’s as
broad as it’s long.
537. It’s no
use pumping a dry well.
538. It’s one
thing to flourish and another to fight.
539. It takes
all sorts to make a world.
540. Jackdaw in
peacock’s feathers.
541. Jest with
an ass and he will flap you in the face with his tail.
542. Judge not
of men and things at first sight.
543. Just as
the twig is bent, the tree is inclined.
544. Keep a
thing seven years and you will find a use for it.
545. Keep your
mouth shut and your ears open.
546. Keep your
mouth shut and your eyes open.
547. Last, but
not least.
548. Laws catch
flies, but let hornets go free.
549. Learn to
creep before you leap.
550. Learn to
say before you sing.
551. Learn
wisdom by the follies of others.
552. Least
said, soonest mended.
553. Leaves
without figs.
554. Let
bygones be bygones.
555. Let every
man praise the bridge he goes over.
556. Let
sleeping dogs lie.
557. Let well
(enough) alone.
558. Liars need
good memories.
559. Lies have
short legs.
560. Life is
but a span.
561. Life is
not a bed of roses.
562. Life is
not all cakes and ale (beer and skittles).
563. Like a cat
on hot bricks.
564. Like a
needle in a haystack.
565. Like
begets like.
566. Like cures
like.
567. Like
father, like son.
568. Like draws
to like.
569. Like
master, like man.
570. Like
mother, like daughter.
571. Like
parents, like children.
572. Like
priest, like people.
573. Like
teacher, like pupil.
574. Little
chips light great fires.
575. Little
knowledge is a dangerous thing.
576. Little
pigeons can carry great messages.
577. Little
pitchers have long ears.
578. Little
strokes fell great oaks.
579. Little
thieves are hanged, but great ones escape.
580. Little
things amuse little minds.
581. Live and
learn.
582. Live and
let live.
583. Live not
to eat, but eat to live.
584. Long
absent, soon forgotten.
585. Look
before you leap.
586. Look
before you leap, but having leapt never look back.
587. Lookers-on
see more than players.
588. Lord (God,
Heaven) helps those (them) who help themselves.
589. Lost time
is never found again.
590. Love
cannot be forced.
591. Love in a
cottage.
592. Love is
blind, as well as hatred.
593. Love me,
love my dog.
594. Love will
creep where it may not go.
595. Make haste
slowly.
596. Make hay
while the sun shines.
597. Make or
mar.
598. Man
proposes but God disposes.
599. Many a
fine dish has nothing on it.
600. Many a
good cow has a bad calf.
601. Many a
good father has but a bad son.
602. Many a
little makes a mickle.
603. Many a
true word is spoken in jest.
604. Many hands
make light work.
605. Many men,
many minds.
606. Many words
hurt more than swords.
607. Many words
will not fill a bushel.
608. Marriages
are made in heaven.
609. Measure
for measure.
610. Measure
thrice and cut once.
611. Men may
meet but mountains never.
612. Mend or
end (end or mend).
613. Might goes
before right.
614.
Misfortunes never come alone (singly).
615.
Misfortunes tell us what fortune is.
616. Money begets
money.
617. Money has
no smell.
618. Money is a
good servant but a bad master.
619. Money
often unmakes the men who make it.
620. Money
spent on the brain is never spent in vain.
621. More
haste, less speed.
622. Much ado
about nothing.
623. Much will
have more.
624. Muck and
money go together.
625. Murder
will out.
626. My house
is my castle.
627. Name not a
rope in his house that was hanged.
628. Necessity
is the mother of invention.
629. Necessity
knows no law.
630. Neck or
nothing.
631. Need makes
the old wife trot.
632. Needs must
when the devil drives.
633. Neither
fish nor flesh.
634. Neither
here nor there.
635. Neither
rhyme nor reason.
636. Never
cackle till your egg is laid.
637. Never cast
dirt into that fountain of which you have sometime drunk.
638. Never do
things by halves.
639. Never fry
a fish till it’s caught.
640. Never
offer to teach fish to swim.
641. Never put
off till tomorrow what you can do (can be done) today.
642. Never quit
certainty for hope.
643. Never too
much of a good thing.
644. Never try
to prove what nobody doubts.
645. Never
write what you dare not sign.
646. New brooms
sweep clean.
647. New lords,
new laws.
648.
Nightingales will not sing in a cage.
649. No flying
from fate.
650. No garden
without its weeds.
651. No great
loss without some small gain.
652. No herb
will cure love.
653. No joy
without alloy.
654. No living
man all things can.
655. No longer
pipe, no longer dance.
656. No man is
wise at all times.
657. No man
loves his fetters, be they made of gold.
658. No news
(is) good news.
659. No pains,
no gains.
660. No song,
no supper.
661. No sweet
without (some) sweat.
662. No wisdom
like silence.
663. None but
the brave deserve the fair.
664. None so
blind as those who won’t see.
665. None so
deaf as those that won’t hear.
666. Nothing
comes out of the sack but what was in it.
667. Nothing is
impossible to a willing heart.
668. Nothing
must be done hastily but killing of fleas.
669. Nothing so
bad, as not to be good for something.
670. Nothing
succeeds like success.
671. Nothing
venture, nothing have.
672. Oaks may
fall when reeds stand the storm.
673. Of two
evils choose the least.
674. Old birds
are not caught with chaff.
675. Old
friends and old wine are best.
676. On Shank’s
mare.
677. Once
bitten, twice shy.
678. Once is no
rule (custom).
679. One beats
the bush, and another catches the bird.
680. One chick
keeps a hen busy.
681. One drop
of poison infects the whole tun of wine.
682. One fire
drives out another.
683. One good
turn deserves another.
684. One law
for the rich, and another for the poor.
685. One lie
makes many.
686. One link
broken, the whole chain is broken.
687. One man,
no man.
688. One man’s
meat is another man’s poison.
689. One scabby
sheep will mar a whole flock.
690. One
swallow does not make a summer.
691. One today
is worth two tomorrow.
692. Open not
your door when the devil knocks.
693. Opinions
differ.
694.
Opportunity makes the thief.
695. Out of
sight, out of mind.
696. Out of the
frying-pan into the fire.
697. Packed
like herrings.
698. Patience
is a plaster for all sores.
699. Penny-wise
and pound-foolish.
700. Pleasure
has a sting in its tail.
701. Plenty is
no plague.
702. Politeness
costs little (nothing), but yields much.
703. Poverty is
no sin.
704. Poverty is
not a shame, but the being ashamed of it is.
705. Practise
what you preach.
706. Praise is
not pudding.
707. Pride goes
before a fall.
708.
Procrastination is the thief of time.
709. Promise is
debt.
710. Promise
little, but do much.
711. Prosperity
makes friends, and adversity tries them.
712. Put not
your hand between the bark and the tree.
713. Rain at
seven, fine at eleven.
714. Rats
desert a sinking ship.
715. Repentance
is good, but innocence is better.
716. Respect
yourself, or no one else will respect you.
717. Roll my
log and I will roll yours.
718. Rome was
not built in a day.
719. Salt water
and absence wash away love.
720. Saying and
doing are two things.
721. Score
twice before you cut once.
722. Scornful
dogs will eat dirty puddings.
723. Scratch my
back and I’ll scratch yours.
724. Self done
is soon done.
725. Self done
is well done.
726. Self is a
bad counsellor.
727.
Self-praise is no recommendation.
728. Set a
beggar on horseback and he’ll ride to the devil.
729. Set a
thief to catch a thief.
730. Shallow
streams make most din.
731. Short
debts (accounts) make long friends.
732. Silence
gives consent.
733. Since Adam
was a boy.
734. Sink or
swim!
735. Six of one
and half a dozen of the other.
736. Slow and
steady wins the race.
737. Slow but
sure.
738. Small rain
lays great dust.
739. So many
countries, so many customs.
740. So many
men, so many minds.
741. Soft fire
makes sweet malt.
742. Something
is rotten in the state of Denmark.
743. Soon
learnt, soon forgotten.
744. Soon ripe,
soon rotten.
745. Speak (talk)
of the devil and he will appear (is sure to appear).
746. Speech is
silver but silence is gold.
747.
Standers-by see more than gamesters.
748. Still
waters run deep.
749. Stolen
pleasures are sweetest.
750. Stretch
your arm no further than your sleeve will reach.
751. Stretch
your legs according to the coverlet.
752. Strike
while the iron is hot.
753. Stuff
today and starve tomorrow.
754. Success is
never blamed.
755. Such
carpenters, such chips.
756. Sweep
before your own door.
757. Take care
of the pence and the pounds will take care of themselves.
758. Take us as
you find us.
759. Tarred
with the same brush.
760. Tastes
differ.
761. Tell that
to the marines.
762. That cock
won’t fight.
763. That which
one least anticipates soonest comes to pass.
764. That’s a
horse of another colour.
765. That’s
where the shoe pinches!
766. The beggar
may sing before the thief (before a footpad).
767. The best
fish smell when they are three days old.
768. The best
fish swim near the bottom.
769. The best
is oftentimes the enemy of the good.
770. The
busiest man finds the most leisure.
771. The camel
going to seek horns lost his ears.
772. The cap
fits.
773. The cask
savours of the first fill.
774. The cat
shuts its eyes when stealing cream.
775. The cat
would eat fish and would not wet her paws.
776. The chain
is no stronger than its weakest link.
777. The
cobbler should stick to his last.
778. The
cobbler’s wife is the worst shod.
779. The
darkest hour is that before the dawn.
780. The
darkest place is under the candlestick.
781. The devil
is not so black as he is painted.
782. The devil
knows many things because he is old.
783. The devil
lurks behind the cross.
784. The devil
rebuking sin.
785. The dogs
bark, but the caravan goes on.
786. The Dutch
have taken Holland!
787. The early
bird catches the worm.
788. The end
crowns the work.
789. The end
justifies the means.
790. The evils
we bring on ourselves are hardest to bear.
791. The
exception proves the rule.
792. The face
is the index of the mind.
793. The
falling out of lovers is the renewing of love.
794. The fat is
in the fire.
795. The first
blow is half the battle.
796. The
furthest way about is the nearest way home.
797. The game
is not worth the candle.
798. The heart
that once truly loves never forgets.
799. The higher
the ape goes, the more he shows his tail.
800. The last
drop makes the cup run over.
801. The last
straw breaks the camel’s back.
802. The
leopard cannot change its spots.
803. The
longest day has an end.
804. The mill
cannot grind with the water that is past.
805. The moon
does not heed the barking of dogs.
806. The more
haste, the less speed.
807. The more
the merrier.
808. The
morning sun never lasts a day.
809. The
mountain has brought forth a mouse.
810. The nearer
the bone, the sweeter the flesh.
811. The
pitcher goes often to the well but is broken at last.
812. The pot
calls the kettle black.
813. The proof
of the pudding is in the eating.
814. The
receiver is as bad as the thief.
815. The remedy
is worse than the disease.
816. The rotten
apple injures its neighbours.
817. The
scalded dog fears cold water.
818. The tailor
makes the man.
819. The tongue
of idle persons is never idle.
820. The voice
of one man is the voice of no one.
821. The way
(the road) to hell is paved with good intentions.
822. The wind
cannot be caught in a net.
823. The work
shows the workman.
824. There are
lees to every wine.
825. There are
more ways to the wood than one.
826. There is a
place for everything, and everything in its place.
827. There is
more than one way to kill a cat.
828. There is
no fire without smoke.
829. There is
no place like home.
830. There is
no rose without a thorn.
831. There is
no rule without an exception.
832. There is
no smoke without fire.
833. There’s
many a slip ‘tween (between) the cup and the lip.
834. There’s no
use crying over spilt milk.
835. They are
hand and glove.
836. They must
hunger in winter that will not work in summer.
837. Things
past cannot be recalled.
838. Think
today and speak tomorrow.
839. Those who
live in glass houses should not throw stones.
840. Time and
tide wait for no man.
841. Time cures
all things.
842. Time is
money.
843. Time is
the great healer.
844. Time works
wonders.
845. To add
fuel (oil) to the fire (flames).
846. To angle
with a silver hook.
847. To be born
with a silver spoon in one’s mouth.
848. To be head
over ears in debt.
849. To be in
one’s birthday suit.
850. To be up
to the ears in love.
851. To be wise
behind the hand.
852. To beat
about the bush.
853. To beat
the air.
854. To bring
grist to somebody’s mill.
855. To build a
fire under oneself.
856. To buy a
pig in a poke.
857. To call a
spade a spade.
858. To call
off the dogs.
859. To carry
coals to Newcastle.
860. To cast
pearls before swine.
861. To cast
prudence to the winds.
862. To come
away none the wiser.
863. To come
off cheap.
864. To come
off with a whole skin.
865. To come
off with flying colours.
866. To come
out dry.
867. To come
out with clean hands.
868. To cook a
hare before catching him.
869. To cry
with one eye and laugh with the other.
870. To cut
one’s throat with a feather.
871. To draw
(pull) in one’s horns.
872. To drop a
bucket into an empty well.
873. To draw
water in a sieve.
874. To eat the
calf in the cow’s belly.
875. To err is
human.
876. To fiddle
while Rome is burning.
877. To fight
with one’s own shadow.
878. To find a
mare’s nest.
879. To fish in
troubled waters.
880. To fit
like a glove.
881. To flog a
dead horse.
882. To get out
of bed on the wrong side.
883. To give a
lark to catch a kite.
884. To go for
wool and come home shorn.
885. To go
through fire and water (through thick and thin).
886. To have a
finger in the pie.
887. To have
rats in the attic.
888. To hit the
nail on the head.
889. To kick
against the pricks.
890. To kill
two birds with one stone.
891. To know
everything is to know nothing.
892. To know on
which side one’s bread is buttered.
893. To know
what’s what.
894. To lay by
for a rainy day.
895. To live
from hand to mouth.
896. To lock
the stable-door after the horse is stolen.
897. To look for
a needle in a haystack.
898. To love
somebody (something) as the devil loves holy water.
899. To make a
mountain out of a molehill.
900. To make
both ends meet.
901. To make
the cup run over.
902. To make
(to turn) the air blue.
903. To measure
another man’s foot by one’s own last.
904. To measure
other people’s corn by one’s own bushel.
905. To pay one
back in one’s own coin.
906. To plough
the sand.
907. To pour
water into a sieve.
908. To pull
the chestnuts out of the fire for somebody.
909. To pull the
devil by the tail.
910. To put a
spoke in somebody’s wheel.
911. To put off
till Doomsday.
912. To put
(set) the cart before the horse.
913. To rob
one’s belly to cover one’s back.
914. To roll in
money.
915. To run
with the hare and hunt with the hounds.
916. To save
one’s bacon.
917. To send
(carry) owls to Athens.
918. To set the
wolf to keep the sheep.
919. To stick
to somebody like a leech.
920. To strain
at a gnat and swallow a camel.
921. To take
counsel of one’s pillow.
922. To take
the bull by the horns.
923. To teach
the dog to bark.
924. To tell
tales out of school.
925. To throw a
stone in one’s own garden.
926. To throw
dust in somebody’s eyes.
927. To throw
straws against the wind.
928. To treat
somebody with a dose of his own medicine.
929. To use a
steam-hammer to crack nuts.
930. To wash
one’s dirty linen in public.
931. To wear
one’s heart upon one’s sleeve.
932. To weep
over an onion.
933. To work
with the left hand.
934. Tomorrow
come never.
935. Too many
cooks spoil the broth.
936. Too much
knowledge makes the head bald.
937. Too much
of a good thing is good for nothing.
938. Too much
water drowned the miller.
939. Too swift
arrives as tardy as too slow.
940. True blue
will never stain.
941. True coral
needs no painter’s brush.
942. Truth
comes out of the mouths of babes and sucklings.
943. Truth is
stranger than fiction.
944. Truth lies
at the bottom of a well.
945. Two blacks
do not make a white.
946. Two heads
are better than one.
947. Two is
company, but three is none.
948. Velvet paws
hide sharp claws.
949. Virtue is
its own reward.
950. Wait for
the cat to jump.
951. Walls have
ears.
952. Wash your
dirty linen at home.
953. Waste not,
want not.
954. We know
not what is good until we have lost it.
955. We never
know the value of water till the well is dry.
956. We shall
see what we shall see.
957. We soon
believe what we desire.
958. Wealth is
nothing without health.
959. Well begun
is half done.
960. What can’t
be cured, must be endured.
961. What is
bred in the bone will not go out of the flesh.
962. What is
done by night appears by day.
963. What is
done cannot be undone.
964. What is
got over the devil’s back is spent under his belly.
965. What is
lost is lost.
966. What is
sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander.
967. What is
worth doing at alt is worth doing well.
968. What must
be, must be.
969. What the
heart thinks the tongue speaks.
970. What we do
willingly is easy.
971. When
angry, count a hundred.
972. When at
Rome, do as the Romans do.
973. When
children stand quiet, they have done some harm.
974. When
flatterers meet, the devil goes to dinner.
975. When guns
speak it is too late to argue.
976. When pigs
fly.
977. When Queen
Anne was alive.
978. When the
cat is away, the mice will play.
979. When the
devil is blind.
980. When the
fox preaches, take care of your geese.
981. When the
pinch comes, you remember the old shoe.
982. When three
know it, alt know it.
983. When wine
is in wit is out.
984. Where
there’s a will, there’s a way.
985. While the
grass grows the horse starves.
986. While
there is life there is hope.
987. Who
breaks, pays.
988. Who has
never tasted bitter, knows not what is sweet.
989. Who keeps
company with the wolf, will learn to howl.
990. Wise after
the event.
991. With time
and patience the leaf of the mulberry becomes satin.
992. Words pay
no debts.
993. You can
take a horse to the water but you cannot make him drink.
994. You cannot
eat your cake and have it.
995. You cannot
flay the same ox twice.
996. You cannot
judge a tree by it bark.
997. You cannot
teach old dogs new tricks.
998. You cannot
wash charcoal white.
999. You made
your bed, now lie in it.
1000. Zeal
without knowledge is a runaway horse.
