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English Proverbs
A proverb (from la, proverbium) is a simple and insightful, traditional saying that expresses a perceived truth based on common sense or experience. Proverbs are often metaphorical and use formulaic language. A proverbial phrase or a proverbial expression is a type of a conventional saying similar to proverbs and transmitted by oral tradition. The difference is that a proverb is a fixed expression, while a proverbial phrase permits alterations to fit the grammar of the context. Collectively, they form a genre of folklore. Some proverbs exist in more than one language because people borrow them from languages and cultures with which they are in contact. In the West, the Bible (including, but not limited to the Book of Proverbs) and medieval Latin (aided by the work of Erasmus) have played a considerable role in distributing proverbs. Not all Biblical proverbs, however, were distributed to the same extent: one scholar has gathered evidence to show that cultures in which the Bibl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Saying
A saying is any concisely written or spoken expression that is especially memorable because of its meaning or style. Sayings are categorized as follows: * Aphorism: a general, observational truth; "a pithy expression of wisdom or truth". ** Adage, proverb, or saw: a widely known or popular aphorism that has gained credibility by long use or tradition. ** Apothegm: "an edgy, more cynical aphorism; such as, 'Men are generally more careful of the breed of their horses and dogs than of their children.'" * Axiom: a proposition that commends itself to general acceptance; a well-established or universally conceded principle; a maxim, rule, or law.''Oxford English Dictionary'' Online, accessed 2012-04-28 * Cliché or bromide: an unoriginal and overused saying. ** Platitude: a cliché that is unsuccessfully presented as though it were meaningful, original, or effective. * Epigram: a clever and often poetic written saying that comments on a specific person, idea, or thing; it especially den ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Saint Martin Aux Bois (60) Abbatiale 1
In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and denomination. In Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, Oriental Orthodox, and Lutheran doctrine, all of their faithful deceased in Heaven are considered to be saints, but some are considered worthy of greater honor or emulation. Official ecclesiastical recognition, and consequently a public cult of veneration, is conferred on some denominational saints through the process of canonization in the Catholic Church or glorification in the Eastern Orthodox Church after their approval. While the English word ''saint'' originated in Christianity, historians of religion tend to use the appellation "in a more general way to refer to the state of special holiness that many religions attribute to certain people", referring to the Jewish tzadik, the Islamic walī, the Hindu rishi or Sikh gur ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Garbage In, Garbage Out
In computer science, garbage in, garbage out (GIGO) is the concept that flawed, or nonsense (garbage) input data produces nonsense output. Rubbish in, rubbish out (RIRO) is an alternate wording. The principle applies to all logical argumentation: soundness implies validity, but validity does not imply soundness. History The expression was popular in the early days of computing. The first known use is in a 1957 syndicated newspaper article about US Army mathematicians and their work with early computers, in which an Army Specialist named William D. Mellin explained that computers cannot think for themselves, and that "sloppily programmed" inputs inevitably lead to incorrect outputs. The underlying principle was noted by the inventor of the first programmable computing device design: More recently, the Marine Accident Investigation Branch comes to a similar conclusion: The term may have been derived from last-in, first-out (LIFO) or first-in, first-out (FIFO). Uses This p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
It Ain't Over Till The Fat Lady Sings
"It ain't over till (''or'' until) the fat lady sings" is a colloquialism which is often used as a proverb. It means that one should not presume to know the outcome of an event which is still in progress. More specifically, the phrase is used when a situation is (or appears to be) nearing its conclusion. It cautions against assuming that the current state of an event is irreversible and clearly determines how or when the event will end. The phrase is most commonly used in association with organized competitions, particularly sports. Definition The phrase is generally understood to be a reference to opera sopranos, who were traditionally amply contoured. The imagery of Wagner's opera cycle ''Der Ring des Nibelungen'' and its last part, ''Götterdämmerung'', is typically used in depictions accompanying uses of the phrase. The "fat lady" is thus the valkyrie Brünnhilde, who was traditionally presented as a very buxom lady. Her farewell scene lasts almost twenty minutes and lea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
A Rolling Stone Gathers No Moss
A rolling stone gathers no moss is a proverb, first credited to Publilius Syrus, who in his ''Sententiae'' states, "''People who are always moving, with no roots in one place or another, avoid responsibilities and cares.''" The phrase spawned a shorter mossless offshoot image, that of the ''rolling stone'', and modern moral meanings have diverged, from similar themes such as used in the popular song "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone", to a more complementary commentary on "freedom" from excessive rootedness, such as in the band The Rolling Stones. Correct attribution The saying may not be authentic to Publilius Syrus, as the Latin form usually given, ''Saxum volutum non obducitur musco'', does not appear in his edited texts. It is first documented in Egbert of Liège collection in Latin "Fecunda Ratis" (The Well-Laden Ship), V. 182, of about 1023: "Assidue non saxa legunt volventia muscum." So the proverb was not invented but made popular 500 years later by Erasmus' ''Adagia'', first pu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
An Essay On Criticism
''An Essay on Criticism'' is one of the first major poems written by the English writer Alexander Pope (1688–1744), published in 1711. It is the source of the famous quotations "To err is human; to forgive, divine", "A little learning is a dang'rous thing" (frequently misquoted as "A little knowledge is a dang'rous thing"), and "Fools rush in where angels fear to tread". Composition The first fragmentary drafts of the work were written in Abberley in 1707. It was first published in May 1711. Many of the poem's ideas had existed in prose form since at least 1706. Composed in heroic couplets (pairs of adjacent rhyming lines of iambic pentameter) and written in the Horatian mode of satire, it is a verse essay primarily concerned with how writers and critics behave in the new literary commerce of Pope's contemporary age. The poem covers a range of good criticism and advice, and represents many of the chief literary ideals of Pope's age. Structure and themes The verse "essay" ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Well Begun Is Half Done
A well is an excavation or structure created in the ground by digging, driving, or drilling to access liquid resources, usually water. The oldest and most common kind of well is a water well, to access groundwater in underground aquifers. The well water is drawn up by a pump, or using containers, such as buckets or large water bags that are raised mechanically or by hand. Water can also be injected back into the aquifer through the well. Wells were first constructed at least eight thousand years ago and historically vary in construction from a simple scoop in the sediment of a dry watercourse to the qanats of Iran, and the stepwells and sakiehs of India. Placing a lining in the well shaft helps create stability, and linings of wood or wickerwork date back at least as far as the Iron Age. Wells have traditionally been sunk by hand digging, as is still the case in rural areas of the developing world. These wells are inexpensive and low-tech as they use mostly manual labour, an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fortune Favours The Bold
"Fortune favours the bold", "Fortune favours the brave" and "Fortune favours the strong" are common translations of a Latin proverb. The slogan has been used historically by people in the military in the Anglosphere, and it is used up to the present on the coats of arms of individual families and clans. Background ''Fortune favours the bold'' is the translation of a Latin proverb, which exists in several forms with slightly different wording but effectively identical meaning, such as la, audentes Fortuna iuvat, label=none, ''audentes Fortuna adiuvat'', ''Fortuna audaces iuvat'', and ''audentis Fortuna iuvat''. This last form is used by Turnus, an antagonist in the ''Aeneid'' by Virgil. ''Fortuna'' refers to luck or its personification, a Roman goddess. Another version of the proverb, la, fortes Fortuna adiuvat , label=none , translation=fortune favours the strong/brave, was used in Terence's 151 BC comedy play ''Phormio'', line 203. Ovid further parodies the phrase at I.60 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Don't Cross The Bridge Until You Come To It
Don't cross the bridge until you come to it is an English language idiom cliché. Though the history of where the phrase came from is unclear, it is believed to have originated from a proverb by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (February 27, 1807 – March 24, 1882) was an American poet and educator. His original works include "Paul Revere's Ride", ''The Song of Hiawatha'', and ''Evangeline''. He was the first American to completely transl .... References {{reflist English proverbs ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mustn't Cry Over Spilled Milk
The English modal verbs are a subset of the English auxiliary verbs used mostly to express modality (properties such as possibility, obligation, etc.). They can be distinguished from other verbs by their defectiveness (they do not have participle or infinitive forms) and by their neutralizationQuirk, Randolph, Sidney Greenbaum, Jan Svartvik, & Geoffrey Leech. 1985. A comprehensive grammar of the English language. London: Longman. (that they do not take the ending ''-(e)s'' in the third-person singular). The principal English modal verbs are ''can'', ''could'', ''may'', ''might'', ''shall'', ''should'', ''will'', ''would'', and ''must''. Certain other verbs are sometimes classed as modals; these include ''ought'', ''had better'', and (in certain uses) ''dare'' and ''need''. Verbs which share only some of the characteristics of the principal modals are sometimes called "quasi-modals", "semi-modals", or "pseudo-modals". Modal verbs and their features The verbs customarily classed as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ignorance Is Bliss
"Ignorance is bliss" is a phrase coined by Thomas Gray in his 1768 "Ode on a Distant Prospect of Eton College". The sentiment was already expressed by Publilius Syrus: In nil sapiendo vita iucundissima est. (In knowing nothing, life is most delightful.) Ignorance Is Bliss may also refer to: Music * ''Ignorance Is Bliss'' (Face to Face album), a 1999 album by Face to Face * ''Ignorance Is Bliss'' (Skepta album), a 2019 album by Skepta * "Ignorance Is Bliss" (Tiddas song), a 1996 song by Tiddas * "Ignorance Is Bliss", a song by punk rock band Ramones, from their Brain Drain (album) (1989) * "Ignorance Is Bliss", a song by San Francisco '90s rock band Jellyfish, from the compilation album '' Nintendo: White Knuckle Scorin''' (1991) * "Ignorance Is Bliss", a song by American rock band Living Colour, from their Stain (album) (1992) * "Ignorance Is Bliss", a song by Swedish death metal band Defleshed, from their album ''Reclaim the Beat'' (2005) * "Ignorance Is Bliss", a song by hip ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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