PROVERBS

MEANING

A good carpenter doesn’t need a good work bench.

When you are good at a job you are expected to perform just as well without the necessary tools and support.

A little boy can’t climb a ladder to become a big man.

Only time can make you what you will be.

A sore eye gives you a runny nose.

When one member of the family is in trouble, all suffer.

A wasteful man’s money goes like butter in the sun.

If you waste your money it would be finished very quickly.

All cassava (yucca) has the same skin but all does not have the same taste.

Though people may look alike because of their mode of dress, they are different in their ways.

Don’t put both feet in a river to see how deep it is.

Do not jump into a venture before you make sure that it is worthy.

Every best friend has a next best friend.

Your secrets are spread from best friend to best friend to best friend.

Every bush is a man in the dark.

Things seem worse than they really are when we are afraid.

Every rope has two ends.

Every story has two sides.

If the rooftop is dirty, the rain barrel gets dirty water.

Children learn bad habits from their parents.

If you plant plantain you can't reap cassava.

You reap what you sow.

If your eye doesn’t see it, your mouth shouldn’t talk.

You must see for yourself before you talk.

If your finger gets sore, you don’t throw it away.

A member of your family may turn delinquent but that does not mean that you must disown him or refuse to help him.

It doesn’t matter how long a pumpkin vine is, it has to dry up one day.

Every life comes to an end sooner or later.

Never go to the store at night to buy black cloth.

You must attempt something only when all aspects seem clear.

Not every crab hole has a crab.

Things do not always turn out to be what you expect them to be.

Not everything a scholar knows was taught by a teacher.

In life you learn from everybody and everything in the environment in which you find yourself.

One boil doesn’t cook the peas

Some things take a long time to be completed.

Seven years isn’t long enough to wash a spot off a bird’s neck.

Some people will never change their ways and attitude.

A slow fire boils a hard cow-heel.

If you persevere you can make great accomplishments.

The mouth cuts trousers that don’t fit.

What you boast about yourself may not necessarily be true.

The tongue has no teeth but it bites deep.

You can hurt a person by what you say as if you literally bite him.

The turtle can't walk if he doesn’t push his head out of the shell.

In life you cannot make any kind of progress if you do not take risks and the first steps.

When a big tree falls down, the goats eat its leaves.

When a great man falls, he is no longer feared and respected.

When a coconut falls from the tree, it can’t be put back.

Some happenings cannot be changed or reversed.

When Mother is dead the family is done.

When a mother is around, she keeps the family together, but when she dies the members of the family tend to scatter.

When you’re dead you don’t know, and when you know, you’re dead.

You spend a lifetime trying to acquire knowledge and understanding, and when it seems that all has been grasped, life ends.

You can’t pick up water thrown on the ground.

Don't cry over spilt milk.

You can’t tell how a pudding tastes by its looks.

You can't tell a book by its cover.

You can't chew a bone with your gums.

If you do not have the necessary expertise or tools for a job, it is better not to bother with it.