Significant Sayings from Around the World

This compilation showcases a hundred of the most significant proverbs, adages, aphorisms, and maxims from across different cultures and historical periods.

Proverbs

1. “However long the night, the dawn will break.” – Proverb (African, Unknown)
2. “If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together.” – Proverb (African, Unknown)
3. “It takes a village to raise a child.” – Proverb (African, Unknown)
4. “When elephants fight, it is the grass that suffers.” – Proverb (African, Unknown)
5. “However far the stream flows, it never forgets its source.” – Proverb (Yoruba (Nigeria), Unknown)
6. “Trust in God, but tie your camel.” – Proverb (Arabic, Unknown)
7. “Man plans, God laughs.” – Proverb (Yiddish (Jewish), Unknown)
8. “Fall seven times, stand up eight.” – Proverb (Japanese, Unknown)
9. “The nail that sticks out gets hammered down.” – Proverb (Japanese, Unknown)
10. “If you chase two rabbits, you catch neither.” – Proverb (Russian, Unknown)
11. “The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.” – Proverb (Chinese, Unknown)
12. “The enemy of my enemy is my friend.” – Proverb (Arabic, Unknown)
13. “A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.” – Proverb (English, Unknown)
14. “The early bird catches the worm.” – Proverb (English, 17th century)
15. “A stitch in time saves nine.” – Proverb (English, 18th century)
16. “Don’t count your chickens before they hatch.” – Proverb (English, 16th century)
17. “You reap what you sow.” – Proverb (Biblical, c. 1st millennium BCE)
18. “Time and tide wait for no man.” – Proverb (English, 13th century)
19. “It’s better to light a candle than to curse the darkness.” – Proverb (Chinese, Unknown)
20. “Birds of a feather flock together.” – Proverb (English, 16th century)
21. “The grass is always greener on the other side.” – Proverb (English, Unknown)
22. “When in Rome, do as the Romans do.” – Proverb (Latin, 4th century)
23. “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” – Proverb (Chinese, Unknown)
24. “Familiarity breeds contempt.” – Proverb (English, 14th century)
25. “Two heads are better than one.” – Proverb (English, 16th century)

Adages

26. “This too shall pass.” – Adage (Persian, Medieval period)
27. “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” – Adage (Biblical, c. 1st century)
28. “To thine own self be true.” – Adage (English (William Shakespeare), 1600)
29. “The road to hell is paved with good intentions.” – Adage (English, 12th century)
30. “The ends justify the means.” – Adage (Italian (Niccolò Machiavelli), 16th century)
31. “Where there’s a will, there’s a way.” – Adage (English, 17th century)
32. “All’s fair in love and war.” – Adage (English, 17th century)
33. “You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink.” – Adage (English, 12th century)
34. “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.” – Adage (English, 17th century)
35. “Spare the rod and spoil the child.” – Adage (English, 17th century)
36. “Two wrongs don’t make a right.” – Adage (English, Unknown)
37. “The more things change, the more they stay the same.” – Adage (French (Alphonse Karr), 1849)
38. “Fortune favours the bold.” – Adage (Latin, 1st century BCE)
39. “If you want peace, prepare for war.” – Adage (Latin, 4th century)
40. “The proof of the pudding is in the eating.” – Adage (English, 14th century)
41. “Necessity is the mother of invention.” – Adage (Greek (Plato), 4th century BCE)
42. “What goes around comes around.” – Adage (English, 20th century)
43. “Honesty is the best policy.” – Adage (English, 16th century)
44. “God helps those who help themselves.” – Adage (English (Benjamin Franklin), 1757)
45. “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.” – Adage (English, 19th century)
46. “No man is an island.” – Adage (English (John Donne), 1624)
47. “Carpe diem” (Seize the day). – Adage (Latin (Horace), 23 BCE)
48. “The pen is mightier than the sword.” – Adage (English (Edward Bulwer-Lytton), 1839)
49. “There’s no such thing as a free lunch.” – Adage (English, 20th century)
50. “Blood is thicker than water.” – Adage (English/German, Medieval period)

Aphorisms

51. “The unexamined life is not worth living.” – Aphorism (Socrates (Greek), c. 399 BCE)
52. “It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop.” – Aphorism (Confucius (Chinese), c. 5th century BCE)
53. “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” – Aphorism (Laozi (Chinese), c. 6th century BCE)
54. “Hatred does not cease by hatred, but only by love; this is the eternal rule.” – Aphorism (Gautama Buddha (Indian), c. 5th century BCE)
55. “I think, therefore I am.” – Aphorism (René Descartes (French), 1637)
56. “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” – Aphorism (Franklin D. Roosevelt (American), 1933)
57. “Be the change you wish to see in the world.” – Aphorism (Mahatma Gandhi (Indian), 20th century)
58. “That which does not kill us makes us stronger.” – Aphorism (Friedrich Nietzsche (German), 1888)
59. “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” – Aphorism (Lord Acton (British), 1887)
60. “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” – Aphorism (George Santayana (Spanish-American), 1905)
61. “Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself.” – Aphorism (Jalāl ad-Dīn Rumi (Persian), 13th century)
62. “Imagination is more important than knowledge.” – Aphorism (Albert Einstein (German-American), 1929)
63. “It’s not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters.” – Aphorism (Epictetus (Greek), c. 100 CE)
64. “Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.” – Aphorism (Seneca (Roman), c. 65 CE)
65. “It is better to be feared than loved, if you cannot be both.” – Aphorism (Niccolò Machiavelli (Italian), 1532)
66. “Knowledge is power.” – Aphorism (Sir Francis Bacon (English), 1597)
67. “The heart has its reasons, of which reason knows nothing.” – Aphorism (Blaise Pascal (French), 1670)
68. “No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” – Aphorism (Eleanor Roosevelt (American), 1930s)
69. “There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.” – Aphorism (William Shakespeare (English), 1602)
70. “An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind.” – Aphorism (Mahatma Gandhi (Indian), 20th century)
71. “If you’re going through hell, keep going.” – Aphorism (Winston Churchill (British), c. 1940)
72. “Common sense is not so common.” – Aphorism (Voltaire (French), 1764)
73. “To err is human; to forgive, divine.” – Aphorism (Alexander Pope (English), 1711)
74. “He who has a why to live can bear almost any how.” – Aphorism (Friedrich Nietzsche (German), 1889)
75. “The truth will set you free.” – Aphorism (Biblical (Jesus), c. 1st century)

Maxims

76. “Know thyself.” – Maxim (Ancient Greek (Delphi), c. 6th century BCE)
77. “Nothing in excess.” – Maxim (Ancient Greek (Delphi), c. 6th century BCE)
78. “First, do no harm.” – Maxim (Latin (Hippocratic Oath), c. 5th century BCE)
79. “Turn the other cheek.” – Maxim (Biblical (Jesus), 1st century)
80. “The ends do not justify the means.” – Maxim (Unknown, Modern era)
81. “Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer.” – Maxim (Unknown, 20th century)
82. “Memento mori” (Remember that you must die). – Maxim (Latin (Roman), Ancient)
83. “Practise what you preach.” – Maxim (English, Unknown)
84. “All that glitters is not gold.” – Maxim (English, 1596)
85. “Time is money.” – Maxim (English (Benjamin Franklin), 1748)
86. “No pain, no gain.” – Maxim (English (Benjamin Franklin), 1734)
87. “United we stand, divided we fall.” – Maxim (Greek (Aesop), c. 6th century BCE)
88. “Live and let live.” – Maxim (English/Dutch, 17th century)
89. “He who hesitates is lost.” – Maxim (English, 1712)
90. “Better safe than sorry.” – Maxim (English, 19th century)
91. “Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth.” – Maxim (Attributed to Buddha, c. 5th century BCE)
92. “Justice delayed is justice denied.” – Maxim (William E. Gladstone (British), 1868)
93. “Perfect is the enemy of good.” – Maxim (Voltaire (French), 1770)
94. “An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.” – Maxim (Babylonian/Biblical, c. 1750 BCE)
95. “If you want something done right, do it yourself.” – Maxim (French, 1820)
96. “Don’t put off until tomorrow what you can do today.” – Maxim (English, 14th century)
97. “If it isn’t broken, don’t fix it.” – Maxim (American, 1977)
98. “Don’t bite the hand that feeds you.” – Maxim (English, 18th century)
99. “A chain is only as strong as its weakest link.” – Maxim (English, 18th century)
100. “A house divided against itself cannot stand.” – Maxim (Biblical (Jesus), 1st century)