Moderation in all things
Moderation means avoidance of excess. Do not go to extremes.
A miss as a good as a mile
Whether you have missed your objective by a narrow margin or a wide one, you have still failed. Suppose that you and your friend Douglas are... Read more →
Misfortunes never come singly
One misfortunes is generally followed closely by another. As Robert Herrick wrote in his poem Sorrows Succeed: When one is past, another care we... Read more →
The mills of God grind slowly
This is a warning of divine retribution, which may take time but will overtake us in the end. There are various of it, perhaps the best known... Read more →
A mill cannot grind with the water that is past
This has two meanings: (a) The mill can be turned only by the water that is passing through it now. The water that turned it yesterday cannot... Read more →
Might is right
The argument put forward by those who are strong. 'It is said ', wrote Voltaire, 'that God is always on the side of the big... Read more →
Men strain at gnats and swallow camels
This is hypocrisy, the behaviour of those who speak loudly against small offences while committing, much greater offences at the same time.... Read more →
Men make houses, women make homes
The husband may bay, or even build, the house, but it only becomes a real home when it is made warm and comfortable by the wife.
Men leap over where the hedge is lowest
It is natural in human beings to take the easiest course. There is no sense in doing things the hard way, in making difficulties for oneself.
Men are not to be measured in inches
The greatness of a man does not depend on his physical stature. Napoleon Bonaparte, for example, was barely five feet inches in height.