All's fish that comes the net | When something comes our way we should consider how it might be useful or benefit us. | |
An apple a day keeps the doctor away | It means that apples are so nutritious they keep you in the peak of health. | |
Be on the safe side | To take special precautions to avoid making a mistake | |
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder | What is beautiful to one person may not be beautiful to others. | |
Beggars can't be choosers | Someone in need should be grateful for what is given to him -- even if it's not what he wants or expects | |
The blind leading the blind | A person helping or advising someone knows as little about the subject as the person who is being advised. | |
The buck stops here | It means final decision or total responsibility for an action | |
Burn the candle at both ends | Those who are always busy and seem to get little rest | |
Buy a pig in a poke | Buy something without examining it for faults or checking to see if they are really getting what they believe they have purchased | |
Catch as catch can | To do anything or use any means to achieve an aim or reach a goal. | |
Children should be seen and not heard | To stop a child from asking questions, talking, or making unnecessary noise. | |
Christmas comes but once each year | An excuse to indulge in food and drink and spend money during the Christmas season. | |
Cry over spilled milk | It's pointless to get upset or feel regret about a loss or mistake that can't be undone | |
Curiosity killed the cat | To warn people not to show too much interest in affairs that don't concern them. | |
Cut off your nose to spite your face | When people are dissatisfied or angry, they sometimes react by doing foolish things that prove harmful to themselves. | |
The devil finds work for idle hands | Unless one keeps busy doing useful or constructive things he could be tempted into mischief or evil. | |
The devil has the best tunes | To do something unworthy because it gives you pleasure | |
Dog eat dog | In competitive situations where each person has his own interests at heart, it is usually the strong and the determined who succeed. | |
An exception to the rule | Something does not conform to or agree with a rule | |
Fling/throw mud at someone | To say evil or bad things about someone and in doing so, to damage his or her reputation. | |
A fool and his money are soon parted | A person who spends his money foolishly will soon be penniless | |
Forgive and forget | Excusing or pardoning someone for doing something | |
Give someone enough rope and he will hang himself | If we allow someone to continue in his bad ways he'll eventually bring about his own downfall or ruin. | |
Grin and bear it | To put up with discomfort or a bad situation without complaining. | |
He who pays the piper calls the tune | The person who pays for something has the right to do as he wants. | |
Hide your light under a bushel | Concealing your talents, skills or abilities | |
Hitch one's wagon to a star | To Move forward in a way to improve your chances of achieving success. | |
Home is where the heart is | No matter where you are, 'home' is where you feel most comfortable and content. | |
If wishes were horses, beggars would ride | If we could get all the things we wanted just by making a wish, everyone would have all he ever wanted. | |
If you can't lick them, join them | If you cannot defeat an opponent or get him to change his ideas, plans or way of doing things, the best thing is to change your ideas, plans, etc. | |
In for a penny, in for a pound | If we decide to do something, we should commit ourselves to it boldly and completely. | |
A job worth doing is a job worth doing well | When you do something you should do it as well as you can. | |
Keep the wolf from the door | To avoid hunger and poverty | |
Laugh and the world laughs with you | When someone is in a happy, cheerful mood, people like being with him. | |
Least said, soonest forgotten | The less we say about it the sooner the incident will be forgotten. | |
A chicken and egg question | A mysterious question which can't be answered | |
You can lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink | We can help, show or encourage someone to do something but we can't make him do what he is unwilling or unable to do | |
Monday, April 18, 2011
ENGLISH PROVERBS
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ENGLISH PROVERS IV
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