Introduction
This is the second part of our alphabetical collection of English proverbs, featuring proverbs from I to Z. These time-honored expressions reflect centuries of wisdom and cultural insight.
Perfect for English learners, teachers, or anyone curious about everyday sayings, this list will help you deepen your understanding of the English language and culture.
Check Part 1 of this English proverb list
List of Proverbs in English (I to Z) with Meanings
🌸Section I
- t takes both rain and sunshine to make rainbows
→ Good and bad times together create beauty. - I think, therefore I am
→ Our ability to think proves we exist. - It is better to die on one’s feet than live on one’s knees
→ Better to stand up for yourself than live in submission. - Idle hands are the devil’s playthings
→ Doing nothing leads to trouble. - If it can’t be cured, it must be endured
→ Accept what you cannot change. - If you’re in a hole, stop digging
→ Stop making a bad situation worse. - If you want to judge a man’s character, give him power
→ True character shows when someone has power. - If you snooze you lose
→ If you hesitate, you miss out. - If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem
→ If you don’t help fix things, you’re contributing to the problem. - In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king
→ Someone with limited ability can dominate among the completely incapable.
🌸Section J
- Jack is as good as his master → Ordinary people can be as good as their leaders.
🌸Section K
- Keep your friends close and your enemies closer
→ Stay alert by keeping an eye on your rivals. - Knowledge is power
→ Being informed gives you strength and influence. - Keep thy shop, and thy shop will keep thee
→ Take care of your business, and it will take care of you.
🌸Section L
- Laughter is the best medicine
→ Humor helps heal emotional pain. - Let him who is without sin cast the first stone
→ Don’t judge others if you’re not perfect. - Lightning never strikes twice in the same place
→ Unlikely events rarely happen again. - Light a man, he shall be warm for a night; light a man on fire, he shall be warm for life
→ (Dark humor) Hurting someone causes lasting harm. - Long absent, soon forgotten
→ People quickly forget those who are gone. - Look after the pennies and the pounds will look after themselves
→ Take care of small things, and big things will follow. - Look before you leap
→ Think before you act. - Loose lips sink ships
→ Careless talk can cause serious damage. - Love is a bridge between two hearts
→ Love connects people deeply. - Love is blind
→ Love makes us overlook flaws. - Love is not finding someone to live with; it’s finding someone you can’t live without
→ True love is essential, not optional.
🌸Section M
- Make hay while the sun shines
→ Do your work when conditions are right. - Man wasn’t born to suffer but to carry on
→ Life is about perseverance. - Many hands make light work
→ Working together makes tasks easier. - Many things are lost for want of asking
→ You miss out if you don’t ask. - Meaning of life is not meaningful
→ Life’s meaning can be elusive. - Measure twice, cut once
→ Double-check to avoid mistakes. - Mind your P’s and Q’s
→ Watch your manners and behavior. - Mirrors do everything we do but cannot think
→ Copying is not the same as thinking. - Missing the wood for the trees
→ Focusing on details and missing the big picture. - Money makes the mare go
→ Money motivates action. - Money makes the world go around
→ Money is essential in life. - Money talks
→ Wealth gives influence. - Money cannot buy happiness
→ Material things don’t guarantee joy. - Money can’t buy everything, but everything needs money
→ You need money to function, even if it’s not all-important. - Monkey see, monkey do
→ People mimic others without thinking. - More haste, less speed
→ Rushing causes delays.
🌸Section N
- Nature, time, and patience are great physicians
→ Healing comes with time and patience. - Necessity is the mother of invention
→ We create solutions when we need them. - Never judge a book by its cover
→ Appearances can be deceiving. - Never put off till tomorrow what you can do today
→ Don’t procrastinate. - Never let the right hand know what the left hand is doing
→ Keep some actions private. - Never say die
→ Never give up. - Never say never
→ Anything is possible. - Never trouble trouble until trouble troubles you
→ Don’t stir up problems unnecessarily. - Noblesse oblige
→ Privilege comes with responsibility. - No man can serve two masters
→ You can’t be loyal to two conflicting authorities. - No man is an island
→ We all need others. - No news is good news
→ Silence often means everything’s fine. - No pain, no gain
→ Effort leads to results. - No time like the present
→ Act now. - Nobody leaves us; we only leave others
→ Relationships end because we walk away. - Nothing ventured, nothing gained
→ You must take risks to achieve success. - Nothing to be feared in life, but understood
→ Understanding reduces fear. - Now we have doors so we can hide
→ We use barriers to avoid openness.
🌸Section O
- One good turn deserves another
→ Return kindness with kindness. - One man’s junk is another man’s treasure
→ Value is subjective. - One man’s meat is another man’s poison
→ What’s good for one may be bad for another. - Only losers say “Winning isn’t everything”
→ People dismiss what they can’t achieve. - 182. Opportunity is waiting; you need but to open the door
→ Take initiative. - Our greatest glory is in rising every time we fall
→ Success comes from perseverance. - Our costliest expenditure is time
→ Time is the most valuable resource. - Out of sight, out of mind
→ We forget what’s not in front of us.
🌸Section P
- Pain is only weakness leaving the body
→ Hardship makes you stronger. - Patience is a virtue
→ Waiting calmly is a strength. - People who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones
→ Don’t criticize if you’re not perfect. - Politics makes strange bedfellows
→ Politics creates unlikely alliances. - Power corrupts; absolute power corrupts absolutely
→ Power often leads to corruption. - Practice makes perfect
→ Repetition leads to skill. - Put a beggar on horseback, and he’ll ride to the devil
→ Giving too much too fast can spoil people. - Prevention is better than cure
→ Stop problems before they start. - Proverbs are life experiences told in one sentence
→ Proverbs sum up wisdom. - Politeness costs nothing and gains everything
→ Being kind is free but valuable.
🌸Section S
- Say something nice or say nothing at all
→ Don’t speak if you can’t be kind. - Self-trust is the first secret of success
→ Confidence leads to achievement. - Set a thief to catch a thief
→ Use a wrongdoer to deal with another. - Slow and steady wins the race
→ Patience and persistence succeed. - Smile, and the world smiles with you; cry, and you cry alone
→ People share joy but not sorrow. - Speak of the devil, and he appears
→ Talking about someone often makes them show up. - Stolen fruit is the sweetest
→ Forbidden things are tempting. - Still waters run deep
→ Quiet people often have deep thoughts. - Strike while the iron is hot
→ Act while the opportunity lasts. - Success is a journey, not a destination
→ Enjoy the process, not just the outcome. - Spare the rod, spoil the child
→ Lack of discipline spoils children. - Success grows out of struggles
→ Hardship builds success.
🌸Section T
- Talk of the devil, and he’s sure to appear
→ Mention someone, and they appear. - That which does not kill you makes you stronger
→ Hardships build resilience. - The belly has no ears
→ Hunger doesn’t listen to reason. - The calm comes before the storm
→ Trouble often follows peace. - The early bird gets the worm
→ Acting early brings rewards. - The longest mile is the last mile home
→ The end feels hardest. - The more you know, the more you know you don’t know
→ Learning reveals our ignorance. - The only free cheese is in the mousetrap
→ Free things often have hidden costs. - The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach
→ Cooking wins affection. - The weak can never forgive
→ Forgiveness shows strength. - The whole is greater than its parts
→ Unity creates more. - The exception proves the rule
→ Exceptions highlight general rules. - The first step to health is knowing you are sick
→ Awareness leads to improvement. - The grass is always greener on the other side
→ Others’ situations look better. - The key to action is belief
→ Confidence drives action. - The only stupid question is the one not asked
→ Always ask if you don’t know. - The proof of the pudding is in the eating
→ Results show true quality. - The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak
→ Intentions fail without strength. - The teacher has not taught until the student has learned
→ Teaching is about results, not effort. - There are no endings, only new beginnings
→ Life constantly renews. - There are no facts, only interpretations
→ Perspective shapes reality. - Some things are better left unsaid
→ Silence is sometimes best. - There’s no place like home
→ Home is the best place. - There’s no time like the present
→ Start now. - Think before you speak
→ Be careful with words. - Thinking the worst prepares you for the worst
→ Expecting problems helps you cope. - To err is human; to forgive, divine
→ Forgiveness is a noble act. - Tomorrow is another day
→ There’s always another chance. - Too many cooks spoil the broth
→ Too many people ruin a task. - Too much of one thing is good for nothing
→ Balance is key. - Trouble shared is trouble halved
→ Sharing burdens lightens them. - Try to become a man of value, not just success
→ Character matters more than status. - Two’s company, three’s a crowd
→ Pairs work better than groups. - A quiet heart and a loving wife prolong life
→ Peace and love lead to longevity. - The whole dignity of man lies in thought
→ Thinking defines humanity.
🌸Section U
- United we stand, divided we fall
→ Together we are stronger.
🌸Section V
- Variety is the spice of life
→ Change makes life interesting. - Vision without action is a daydream; action without vision is a nightmare
→ Planning and doing must go together
🌸Section W
- Waste not, want not
→ Don’t waste, and you won’t lack. - We can’t build the future for our youth, but we can build our youth for the future
→ Prepare young people for challenges. - We have nothing to fear but fear itself
→ Fear is our biggest enemy. - Well begun is half done
→ A good start makes things easier. - What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger
→ Hardship toughens you. - What goes up must come down
→ Everything that rises will fall. - What you sow is what you reap
→ Your actions bring results. - When in Rome, do as the Romans do
→ Adapt to local customs. - When one door closes, another opens
→ New opportunities follow setbacks. - Where there’s a will, there’s a way
→ Determination finds solutions. - Where vice goes before, vengeance follows
→ Bad behavior leads to punishment. - Why buy the cow when you can get the milk for free?
→ Why commit when you already have the benefits? - Willful waste makes woeful want
→ Waste leads to need. - Winning is earning; losing is learning
→ Wins bring rewards, losses bring lessons.
🌸Section Y
- You are what you eat.
→ Your diet has a significant impact on your health and well-being. - You are never too old to learn.
→ Learning is a lifelong process; age should not be a barrier to acquiring new knowledge or skills. - You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink.
→ You can offer someone an opportunity, but you can’t force them to take it. - You can’t make an omelette without breaking eggs.
→ Achieving something often requires making sacrifices or causing some disruption - You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.
→ It’s challenging to change someone’s established habits or ways. - You reap what you sow.
→ Your actions determine your outcomes; good deeds lead to good results, and vice versa. - You scratch my back, and I’ll scratch yours.
→ Mutual assistance; if you help me, I’ll help you in return. - You snooze, you lose.
→ Delaying or hesitating can result in missed opportunities. - Youth is wasted on the young.
→ Young people often don’t appreciate or make the most of their youth. - You can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.
→ Being kind and gentle is more effective than being harsh or confrontational. - You can’t have your cake and eat it too.
→ You can’t enjoy two desirable but mutually exclusive options simultaneously. - You cannot make a silk purse from a sow’s ear.
→ It’s impossible to create something refined or valuable from poor-quality materials. - You never know what you can do until you try.
→ Attempting something is the only way to discover your capabilities. - You can’t get blood out of a stone.
→ You can’t obtain something from someone who doesn’t have it, especially money. - You must lose a fly to catch a trout.
→ Sometimes, small sacrifices are necessary to achieve a greater gain. - You cannot push a rope.
→ Some tasks are impossible or futile; you can’t force things that aren’t meant to be. - You cannot unscramble eggs.
→ Some actions are irreversible; once done, they can’t be undone. - You can’t win them all.
→ It’s unrealistic to expect success in every endeavor; losses are part of life. - Youth and age will never agree.
→ Generational differences often lead to disagreements in perspectives and values. - You only live once.
→ Life is short; make the most of it by embracing opportunities.
🌸Section Z
- Zeal without knowledge is fire without light.
→ Enthusiasm without understanding can lead to misguided actions. - Zeal without prudence is frenzy.
→ Passion lacking caution can result in reckless behavior. - Zeal, when it is a virtue, is a dangerous one.
→ Even virtuous enthusiasm can be perilous if not tempered with wisdom. - Zeal is fit only for wise men, but is found mostly in fools.
→ True passion should be guided by wisdom, yet it’s often exhibited by the unwise. - Zebra cannot change its stripes.
→ One cannot change their inherent nature or character. - Zero hour is the most perilous hour.
→ The beginning of an event or undertaking is often the most critical and dangerous time. - Zig when others zag.
→ Taking a different approach or path than the majority can lead to success. - Zones of tranquility are the breeding grounds of greatness.
→ A calm and peaceful environment fosters significant achievements and outstanding qualities.
