Discontent is the first step in progress
Were we all completely satisfied with the existing state of affairs, there would be no progress. It is only when we are not content wit the... Read more →
Diamond cut diamond
This is more usual than 'Diamond cuts diamond'. Diamond is the hardest substance known; a diamond can be cut only by another diamond. The... Read more →
The devil was sick …
The devil was sick, the devil a monk would be; The devil was well, the devil a monk was he. People who make pious resolutions in time of... Read more →
The devil take the hindmost
This is the short version of EVERY MAN FOR HIMSELF, AND THE DEVIL TAKE THE HINDMOST.
Cut your coat according to your cloth
Adjust your expenditure according to your resources. 'I asked the dealer the price of the tennis racket I had set my heart on, but it was too... Read more →
Custom reconciles us to everything
In modern parlance, we can get used to anything. The longer we have to put up with it, however irksome or unpleasant it may be, the more able... Read more →
Custom makes all things easy
This means the same as practice makes perfect.
Curses, like chickens, come home to roost
Here 'come home to roost' means 'recoil upon the originator', just as when a stone thrown up into the air comes down on the head of the thrower.... Read more →
Cross the stream where it is shallowest
Don’t make difficulties for yourself by doing things the hard way. Find the simplest means of achieving your object.
A creaking gate hangs long
The proverb suggests that persons seemingly weak or in poor health often live a long time. This is mostly used for very sick people that are... Read more →