RUSSIAN PROVERB

MEANING

PROVERBIO CASTELLANO PARECIDO

 (One does not regret giving) one's own earring to one's dear friend

(One does not regret giving the best to one's friend)

 A bird may be known by its flight

(A person is know and judged by his actions or behavior)

 A drop hollows out a stone

(Persistence will achieve a difficult objective)

La gota horada la piedra.

 A drowning man clutches at a straw

(Anyone in desperate circumstances will try every possible means to escape from danger or difficulty even though he knows it is unlikely to be successful)

 A fly will not get into a closed mouth

(It is desirable, and may be more effective, remain silent in some circumstances)

A boca cerrada, no entra mosca.
El pez muere por su boca.

 A man is judged by his deeds, not by his words

(People can say many things, because talking is easy, but it is more important what person does than what he says he will do)

 A man should not be struck when he is down

(Never hit an opponent who has fallen, do not attack or hurt a person in misfortune who cannot "fight back")

 A sparrow in the hand is better than a cock on the roof

(It is better to be content with what we have or can easily get than to lose it by trying to get something better, as this may never happen)

Más vale pájaro en la mano que cien volando.

 A wolf won't eat wolf

People of the same group, occupation, interests live, or should live, together in amity.

 After a storm (comes) fair weather, after sorrow (comes) joy

(There must be something better after every piece of unpleasantness)

Después de la tormenta viene la calma.

 All are not cooks that walk with long knives

(Good looks do not always go with virtue, and ugliness does not always go with sin)

Las aparencias engañan

 All cats are grey at night

(All shapes, all colors are alike in the dark. The night obscures all distinguishing features)

 De noche todos los gatos son pardos.

 All is not gold that glitters

(A person or thing may not be as good, valuable, etc., as he or it first appears; appearances can be deceptive)

Todo lo que brilla no es oro.

 All roads lead to Rome

(A number of persons arrive at one common objective by different means. All ways or methods of fulfilling a certain intention end in the same results.)

 An empty barrel makes the greatest sound

(Ignorant stupid people talk more often and more loudly than wise ones; just as an empty pot makes a loud noise when it is struck, while a full pot makes little noise)

 Any fish is good if it is on the hook

(The fisherman can make use of every kind of fish that he catches, large and small. One should make use of every opportunity that comes one's way)

 Any sandpiper is great in his own swamp

(It is easy to brag of your deeds in familiar surroundings where you are safe from danger and not likely to be put to proof)

 All is well that ends well

(If the final result is good, previous failures are forgotten and there is no need to complain, since the end result is the most importance thing)

 As you cooked the porridge, so must you eat it

(Every must take consequences of his own actions)

 As you make your bed, so you will sleep

(A person must take the responsibility for the results of his own unwise actions; just as a man who makes his bed badly will certainly sleep uncomfortably.)

 Better a dove on the plate than a wood grouse in the mating place

(It is better to accept something small than to reject it and hope to get more later on)

A falta de pan , las chimas son buenas.

 Better late than never

(It is better to come (to repent, to do something, etc) late than never to come (to repent, to do something, etc.) at all)

Mejor tarde que nunca

 Better to stumble than make a slip of the tongue

(It is better to do something wrong that to say something wrong, because it is sometimes more difficult to improve something said than something done)

 Beware of a quiet dog and still water

(You should not afraid of people who make threats and shout in a loud voice; it is the people who are quiet and say little that must really be feared)

 Chickens are counted in autumn

(Do not be sure of success, victory, etc., until all difficulties have been overcome; make sure that a thing is actually yours before you speak or act as if it were already yours)

 Curious Varvara's nose was torn off

(A person who tries to find out too much about other people's affairs is likely to suffer injury or harm; a warning to mind one's own business)

 Cut down the tree that you are able to

(Do not undertake more than you are able to perform or something that is too difficult)

El que mu;cho abarca poco aprieta.

 Do not carry rubbish out of your hut

(Do not discuss your faults, mistakes, private, and especially family, grievances, troubles, quarrels, scandals, etc., in public)

 Do not cut the bough you are sitting on

(Do not act in such a way as to do yourself harm)

 Do not dig a hole for somebody else; you yourself will fall into it

(Mistakes, misdeeds, etc., come back as an unpleasant effect on the person who originally made the mistakes, did the misdeeds, etc)

Nunca hay que escupir para arriba porque te puede caer a la cara.

 Do not look at gift horse's mouth

(Never criticize or express displeasure when you receive a gift; be thankful that you have it at all.(examination of a horse's mouth reveals a lot about its age and condition)

No mires los dientes al caballo regalado

 Do not make an elephant out of a fly

(Do not worry or become excited about matters that are not really important at all. Do not exaggerate the importance of matters)

No te ahogues en un vaso de agua.

 Do not measure (others) by your own arshin (=28 inches).

(Do not judge others by yourself; do not apply your own standard to other)

 Do not plant a tree with its root upward

(Do not do or say things in the wrong order; do not reverse the right or natural order of things)

 Do not play with fire - you will burn yourself

(Do not take risks with dangerous articles, especially when it is foolish and unnecessary; do not put yourself into a position that may be dangerous)

 Do not praise yourself while going into battle; praise yourself coming out of battle

(Do not rejoice till you are sure that your difficulties are at an end)

No hay que cantar gloria antes de la victoria

 Do not teach a pike to swim, a pike knows his own science

(Do not tell or show somebody how to do something that he can do perfectly well and probably better than you yourself)

 Eggs cannot teach a hen

(Do not give advice to someone who is more experienced than you; do not teach a person who is wiser and more knowledgeable)

 Every sandpiper praises its own swamp

(Every man praises what is familiar and dear to him)

Todo panadero alaba su pan.

 Every seed knows its time.

(All in good time. One should not be impatient and hasten events; everything will work out after some time, but not immediately)

Darle tiempo al tiempo.

 God does not give to cow that butts

(Example: Angry men cannot do the mischief they wish)

 God gives to those who get up early

(The person who gets up early to work will be successful; those that arrive early at a place have the advantage over the latecomers)

Al que madruga Dios ayuda.

 He would exclaim "Ah" looking at himself

(People are inclined to shut their eyes to their own sins and vices.)

 Idleness is the mother of all vices

(There is no excuse for doing nothing - when people do not have enough work to do, they get into trouble)

La ociosidad es madre de todos los vicios.

 It is a bad workman that has a bad saw

(A careless or unskilled person blames his tools to excuse himself for bad work, while it is his own carelessness or lack of skill which is really to blame)

 It is good to be visiting, but it is better at home

(Your home (i.e. your house, your home town, etc.) is where you are likely to be happiest, especially in comparison with other places you may be at the time)

 No money is taken for just looking (at somebody or something)

(There is nothing to prevent an ordinary person from l looking at a person of great importance so long as he tries to do no harm)

No se cobra por mirar.

 Not everyone who has a cowl on is a monk

(Do not judge people by what they appear to be)

El hábito no hace el monje.

 Once burned by milk you will blow on cold water

(After some bitter or painful experience you will be on your guard against similar troubles our sufferings)

 One does not go to Tula with one's own samovar

(Tula,a Russia city) (Do not do anything that is completely unnecessary; do not take supplies, articles, etc., to a place where are plenty of them already)

No se lleva leña al monte.

 One does not look for good from good

(By continually striving for the best one way waste good opportunities)

 One does not sharpen the axes after the right time; after the time they are needed

(It is useless to have something when there is no use for it)

 One fisherman sees another from afar

(People of similar interests, tastes or characters are attracted to each other and stay close together)

 One is one's own master on one's own stove

(You can do as you like in your own home and nobody may enter it without your permissions)

 One may make up a soft bed (for somebody), but still it will be hard to sleep in

(One should beware of an attractive offer, for there is very likely something wrong.)

 One who sits between two chairs may easily fall down

(A person who cannot decide which of two courses to follow, who tries to follow two courses at the same time, may fail to follow either)

 One would like to eat fish, but would not like to get into the water

(Said of a person who is anxious to obtain something valuable but does not want to take the necessary trouble or risk)

 Onion treats seven ailments

(If person eats an onion every day, he will remain healthy and not need a doctor)

 Stretch your legs according to your clothes

(One should remain within the limits of what one has or what one can afford)

 Take the bull by the horns

(You should deal with something difficult boldly without delay)

Agarrar el toro por las astas.

 The appetite comes during a meal

(Desire or facility increases as an activity proceeds)

El camino se hace caminando;
La carga se acomoda en el cammino.

 The devil is not so frightful as he is painted

(Any person of bad character is not so bad as people say he is )

 The end is the crown of any work

(It is the final result than completes all that went before and is its culmination; it is the final result than matters)

 The one who draws (a cart) is urged on

(A man willing to work is always given more work to do than a lazy one, because the work which given to willing man will be done well and quickly)

 The peasant will not cross himself before it begins to thunder

(Do not do at the last moment anything that was to be done long before. Do not put things off until the last moment)

 The scythe ran into a stone

(Said of meeting of two persons who are a match for each other in cunning or power)

Se encontró con la suela de sus zapatos.

 The sun will shine into our yard too

(Neither the weather nor people can remain disturbed for long; the calm(sun) must follow)

 The tongue speaks, but the head doesn't know

(Foolish and vain people are very fond of expressing their own opinions and talking too much)

 There is no evil without good

(In every trouble and difficulty there is hope or expectation of an improvement in the circumstances; a misfortune may turn into a benefit)

No hay mal que por bien no venga.

 There will be trouble if the cobbler starts making pies

(A person should concern himself with his own trade or occupation and should not engage in, or give advice about, other trades or occupations)

 There will come a time when the seed will sprout

(Do not trouble yourself about future problems and difficulties, but wait till you have to deal with them; then will be the time to worry about them, not now)

 We do not care of what we have, but we cry when it is lost

(We do not appreciate the value of a thing until we have lost it)

 Where something is thin, that's where it tears

(Each person or feature in an enterprise or process must be equally reliable; an enterprise or process may fail because of a single weakness or fault)

 You cannot break through a wall with your forehead

(It is often wise to give way to the wishes off others; for to oppose them might bring ruin upon oneself)

 You cannot pull a fish out of a pond without labor

(Restraint and caution achieve nothing; if you want to get something, you should immediately start working for it)

 You do not need a whip to urge on an obedient horse

(A worker who is doing his best should be left alone and not urged to work harder)

 You do not swap horses while crossing the ford

(Do not change arrangements while you are in the middle of a difficult task or till a crisis is past)

 You need a sharp axe for a tough bough

(Serious evils need drastic remedies)

 You needn't be afraid of a barking dog, but you should be afraid of a silent dog

(People who often lose their temper and make many loud threats seldom carry them out. Dogs that bark most bite least)

 You will reap what you will sow

(You will be rewarded or punished in accordance with what you have done to deserve it)