A ‘definition’ or concise statement of a principle in any science (OED) This is essentially used to refer to a definition in science or any other technical education. Adage: A maxim handed down from antiquity (OED) Any principle bequeathed from the past is an adage. Proverb: A short pithy saying in common and recognized use (OED)

2011年9月30日 · A proverb is a widely used concise statement of a generally acknowledged truth, whether using a literal or metaphorical approach. So 'There's no smoke without fire' is obviously a proverb. proverb n. A short pithy saying in frequent and widespread use that expresses a basic truth or practical precept.

2011年8月5日 · Technically, it means "as heard in a proverb". Sometimes this meaning is stretched a bit to mean something like "this kind of thing happens all the time". But generally, if you see something like "proverbial frog and scorpion", that means you should go looking for a proverb involving a frog and a scorpion to understand what they are getting at.

2011年3月22日 · The aphorism is very different from a maxim or proverb. As the Cambridge English Dictionary defines, it is "a short clever saying that is intended to express a general truth". It only becomes a proverb when it passes into general public use. The aphorism is a kind of witty remark, which some may wish to copy in order to impress others.

There is a similar proverb in China which is " 枪打出头鸟“ means " the bird that flys up fist from a group of birds gets shot easier than the other ones." however, according to the western cultures, they do not treasure conformity as much as the Asians. There is a very small chance that they will have a similar proverb.

2017年5月3日 · The OED’s definition of a proverb is ‘a short, traditional, and pithy saying; a concise sentence, typically metaphorical or alliterative in form, stating a general truth or piece of advice; an adage or maxim’, so you might say that that makes the Donne quotation a proverb.

2017年11月28日 · @Robusto Those are all very apt for the second one, which is also a "truism". However the first does not in my view qualify as a proverb, nor any of the other things you mention. A "proverb" states a generally accepted principle, often moral e.g. "a stitch in time saves nine", or "the early bird catches the worm".

2018年7月20日 · Variants of this proverb: third time lucky; the third time pays for all. Proverbs expressing similar meaning: if at first you don't succeed, try, try again; there's luck in odd numbers. Interestingly, the expression "third is a charm" shows up in John Kelly, The Scottish Proverbs Collected, Explain'd and Made Intelligible to the English (1721 ...

2013年12月5日 · Chiefly in proverb: many a little (also pickle) makes a mickle (now freq. in the garbled form many a mickle makes a muckle). The form many a mickle makes a muckle (earliest recorded in quot. 1793) arises from a misapprehension that, rather than being variants of the same word, mickle and muckle have opposite meanings, the former representing ...

2018年3月23日 · So that proverb doesn’t quite match what you’re looking for. “Everyone’s responsible” isn’t a proverb A less elegant phrase, perhaps lacking in the necessary use of metaphor to make it count as a proverb, but nonetheless a good English saying, is when everyone is responsible, no one is responsible or everyone’s responsibility/job ...