Care killed a cat
Care is the load on the mind. If it killed a cat, which has nine lives - or so 'tis said - it will kill you, who have only one life. So, don't... Read more →
Call no man happy till he is dead
This cynical proverb suggests that life is bound to be so bad that no living person can ever be happy.
Call a spade a spade
Speaking plainly and to the point, saying exactly what you mean and using the simplest terms. In Arnold Bennet's novel, The Card, published in... Read more →
A bad workman always blames his tools
Good workmanship depends no more on the quality of the tools than it does on the way in which they are used, so to blame the tools for the bad... Read more →
A bad shearer never had a good sickle
Good workmanship depends no more on the quality of the tools than it does on the way in which they are used, so to blame the tools for the bad... Read more →
A bad penny always comes back
If we try to get rid of a counterfeit coin by passing it off upon somebody else, sooner or later it will find the way back into our pocket.... Read more →
Bad news travels fast
Bad news nearly always reaches us more quickly than good news. News about trouble and misfortune circulates fast because people have the... Read more →
Actions speak louder than words
It is what we do that really matters, not just what we say. In Longfellow's The Song of Hiawatha, Hiawatha answers the mighty and bragging... Read more →
Accidents will happen in the best-regulated families
Used by Sir Walter Scott in 1823 and still in common use in modern times, this proverb has a general application and means that even the most... Read more →
Absence makes the heart grow fonder
We feel more affection for our relatives and friends when we are parted from them. A proverb that says just the opposite is Out of sight, out of... Read more →