Proverb Examples from around the world

Proverbs Starting with letter O - part 1
Full list:
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O daughter, I'm telling you. O daughter-in-law, listen to it.
O eggs, never fight with stones!.
O foolish world, why are you scratching around in the dark?.
O man, you who do not live a hundred years, why fret a thousand minutes?.

O New Sleeve, eat pilau!.
O sacred simplicity' (attributed to as he was burned at the stake).
Obedience comes before leadership.
Obedience is the mother of happiness.
Obedience to a woman leads to hell.
Obey orders, if you break owners.
Obscurity envelops truth.
Observe decorum even in your sport.
Observe your enemies, for they first find your faults.
Obstinately to justify a fault is a second fault.
Occupy yourself, and you will be out of harm's way.
Of a compliment only a third is meant.
Of a dead leopard we keep the skin, of man his reputation.
Of a good beginning cometh a good end.
Of a stupid head the whole body has to suffer.
Of all meat in the world drink goes down the best.
Of all the female qualities a warm heart is the most valuable.
Of all the thirty-six alternatives, running away is best.
Of all the thirty-six alternatives, running away is the best.
Of all weights, old age is the heaviest.
Of bad debtors you make take spoilt herrings.
Of big words and feathers may go to the pound.
Of brothers-in-law and red dogs few are good.
Of everything else the newest; of friends, the oldest.
Of evil grain no good seed can come.
Of evils, choose the least.
Of evils, the least.
Of genius and crazy, we all have a little.
Of hasty counsel take good heed, for haste is very rarely speed.
Of judgment every one has a stock on hand for sale.
Of listening children have your fears, for little pitchers have great ears.
Of little cloth but a short cloak.
Of no sort of good to himself, or to anybody else.
Of no worldly good can the joy be perfect, unless it is shared by a friend.
Of oil, wine, and friends, the oldest.
Of other men's leather large thongs.
Of soup and love, the first is the best.
Of soups and loves the first are the best.
Of that which is/you have done, (take it on the) chest.
Of the dead speak well or not at all.

Of the dead, nothing but good.' i.e., 'Say only good things about the dead.' Probably a translation from a Greek sentence by Chilon.
Of the good we have an understanding, for fools we keep a stick upstairs.
Of the great and of the dead either speak will or say nothing.
Of the malady a man fears, he dies.
Of the wealth of the world each has as much as they take.
Of this world each man has as much as he takes.
Of three things the devil makes a salad: lawyers' tongues, notaries' fingers, and a third that shall be nameless.
Of two cowards, the one who attacks conquers the other.
Of two cowards, the one who finds the other out first has the advantage.
Of two evils choose the less.
Of two evils one must choose the lesser.
Of two evils the least is always to be chosen.
Of two evils, it is always best to vote for the least hypocritical.
Of two lookers on one is sure to become a player.
Of war all can tattle, away from the battle.
Of what does not concern you say nothing good or bad.
Of what does not concern you say nothing, good or bad.
Of what use is a torch at midday?.
Of what use is the veil if you are going to dance.
Of what you see, believe very little, of what you are told, nothing.
Of wine the middle, of oil the top, and of honey the bottom is best.
Of words and feathers, it takes many to make a pound.
Offences to the gods are the concern of the gods.
Offenders never pardon.
Offer a clown your finger, and he'll take your fist.
Offer not the right hand of friendship to every one.
Offer some to save many.
Offer the lazy an egg, and they'll want you to peel it for them.
Offer the lazy man an egg, and he'll want you to peel it for him.
Office tests the man.
Office without pay makes thieves.
Often a branch is broken off the tree by the one who has rested in its shadow.
Often a silent face has voice and words.
Often attributed to sportscaster Dan Cook (1978).
Often corrupted to: All that glitters is not gold.
Often he who does too much does too little.
Often mistakenly referred to as a misquote. In reality, the Latin 'probate' may mean either to probe or to prove. The key is that prove in this case carries the older meaning of to test, as in the phrases proving (testing) ground or the proof (test) of the pudding is in the eating.
Often one finds one's destiny just where one hides to avoid it.
Often shooting hits the mark.
Often there is eloquence in a silent gaze.
Often there is eloquence in a silent look.
Oh fortunate farmers i.e., non-mariners, if only they would see their luck' (, Georgica 2, 458ff.).
Oh what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive.
Oh you bad persons, stop envying me!.
Oh you getting in between the onion and its peel, you.
Oh, misfortune, I forgive you when you come alone.
Oh, the times! Oh, the morals! (Spoken by during his denunciation of the in 63 BC).
Oil and truth will get uppermost at last.
Old age and poverty are wounds that can't be healed.
Old age and treachery will overcome youth and skill.
Old age comes not on its own.
Old age cures us of our youth.

Old age devours your youth.
Old age does not announce itself.
Old age is a disease that you die from.
Old age is a hundred disorders.
Old age is cruel for prostitutes and magicians.
Old age is in itself a disease.
Old age is no fun.
Old age is no protection against foolishness.
Old age is not a blessing.
Old age is not a joy, but death is not a gain.
Old age is ripeness.
Old age though despised, is coveted by all.
Old age will not come alone.
Old as is the boat it may cross the ferry once.
Old bachelors and old maids are either too good or too bad.
Old birds are hard to pluck.
Old birds are not caught with cats.
Old birds are not caught with chaff.
Old birds are not caught with new nets.
Old bread isn't hard, no bread, that is hard.
Old canoes can be restored, but youth and beauty cannot.
Old cats love young mice.
Old churches have dark windows.
Old countries don't disappear overnight; they stay for breakfast.
Old crows are hard to catch.
Old debts are never paid, and the new ones get old easily.
Old donkeys do not learn languages.
Old foxes are hard to catch.
Old foxes go with difficulty into the trap.
Old foxes want no tutor.
Old foxes want no tutors.
Old friends and new reckonings.
Old friends and old ways ought not to be disdained.
Old friends and old wine are best.
Old friends are always new.
Old habits die hard.
Old horse doesn't learn how to walk.
Old horses don't forget the way.
Old is Gold.
Old love and old brands kindle at all seasons.
Old love and wood will burn as soon as they get the chance.
Old love does not rust.
Old men are twice children.
Old men's children are rarely of good constitution.
Old mistakes need more friends than new truths.
Old oxen have stiff horns.
Old oxen like soft grass.
Old oxen tread hard.
Old people see best in the distance.
Old pigs have hard snouts.
Old pottage is sooner heated than new made.
Old praise dies unless you feed it.
Old reckonings breed new disputes.
Old reckonings, new disputes.
Old saints don't get incense anymore.
Old Satan couldn't get along without plenty of help.
Old signs do not deceive.
Old sins cast long shadows.
Old sins, new shame.
Old soldiers never die, they simply fade away.
Old soldiers never die.
Old swine have hard snouts, old oxen hard horns.
Old thanks are not for new gifts.
Old thieves make good jailers.
Old trees are not to be bent.
Old truths, old laws, old friends, old books, and old wine are best.
Old wine and friends improve with age.
Old wine in new bags.
Old wine is good for the stomach.
Old wounds easily bleed.
Older than you by a day, wiser than you by a year.
On a dead tree there are no monkeys.
On a fishing lull, even a crayfish is fish.
On a fool's beard all learn to shave.
On a fool's beard the barber learns to shave.
On a given horse one doesn't look at the teeth / bridle (the bit in the horse's mouth).
On a hot day muffle yourself more.

On a long journey even a straw is heavy.
On a long journey even a straw weighs heavy.
On a long journey, even a straw weighs heavy.
On a rainy day many offer to water the chickens.
On a small pretence the wolf devours the sheep.
On a steep road, let your horse set the pace.
On a thief, the hat's on fire.
On an empty belly every burden is heavy.
On an uphill road, give your horse his reins.
On dry land even brackish water is good.
On earth it's hard and heaven is far away.
On every small pretext the wolf seizes the sheep.
On old horses you learn how to ride.
On old pots you learn cooking.
On poor people's beards the young barber learns his trade.
On Saint Lucia's Day, the days grow by the jump of a flea.
On Saint Thomas the Divine kill all turkeys, geese and swine.
On the belly there is silk, and in the belly - just a click.
On the day of victory no fatigue is felt.
On the day of victory no one is tired.
On the first of March, the crows begin to search.
On the hook of truth only small carp will bite; in the net of falsehood the big salmon are caught.
On the ladder to success there is always somebody on the rung above you and who uses your head to steady himself.
On the road between the homes of friends, grass does not grow.
On the tongue there's honey, and on the heart there's ice.
On the way out, the road is rough; returning, it is smooth.
On your feet loose your seat.
On your own donkey it is quicker than on someone else's racehorse.
Once a buffoon, never a good father of a family.
Once a drunkard, always a drunkard.
Once a friend, always a friend.
Once a handmaid never a lady.
Once a man has been bitten by a lion, he buys a dog.
Once a parson always a parson.
Once a priest, always a priest.
Once a thief, always a thief.
Once a prostitute, always a prostitute.
Once a word has been uttered it belongs to those who hear it.
Once bit, twice shy.
Once bitten by a snake, he is scared all his life at the mere sight of a rope.
Once bitten by an adder, you will never walk through the high grass again.
Once bitten, twice shy.
Once burned by milk you will blow on cold water.
Once conquered -- always a traitor.

Once dead the good and the bad are covered by the same moss.
Once deep pools, now a crossing place.
Once fire spreads, the damp and the dry burn.
Once I had the strength but no wisdom; now I have the wisdom but no strength.
Once in a lifetime comes often, so be prepared.
Once in each man's life fortune smiles.
Once is never, but twice is once too often.
Once is never, but twice is thrice. It all rhymes in German, as you can see.
Once is no custom.
Once is no time, twice is once too much. (Thrice is a habit/custom.).
Once is people's mouths, 'tis hard to get well out of them.
Once it was the parents who taught their children to talk; now the children teach their parents to keep quiet.
Once on a tiger's back it is hard to alight.
Once out of the throat it spreads over the world.
Once resolved, the trouble is over.
Once the cattle have been split up, then the tiger strikes.
Once the game is over, the king and the pawn go back into the same box.
Once the last tree is cut and the last river poisoned, you will find you cannot eat your money.
Once the rice is pudding, it's too late to reclaim the rice.
Once upon a time, no time.
Once water goes over your head, may it be one 'zar' or hundred 'zars', may it be one 'nay' or a hundred 'nays'.
Once we give shoulder to shoulder, we can turn mountains.
Once you are tired, you still can go far.
Once you have been tossed by a buffalo, a black ox looks like a buffalo.
Once you have decided to hit someone, then hit them hard because the retribution will be the same whether you hit hard or not.
Once you have fallen into the water, you're not scared of water any more.
Once you have found your rhythm, you will then know your God.
Once you have locked your door you are the emperor in your own domain.
Once you say something hurtful, provocative, etc., you can't take it back.
Once you've cut the bread, you cannot put it together again.
Once you've told a lie, you become a liar forever.
One against whom accusations when made are easily believed.
One always knocks oneself in the sore place.
One always returns to one's first love.
One and one are sometimes eleven.
One and one sometimes make eleven.
One armpit cannot hold two watermelons.
One arrow does not bring down two birds.
One mule among many monkeys is grinned at by all.
One mule calls the other a pack animal.
One mule nicknames another 'Long-ears.'.
One bad apple spoils the bunch.
One bad experience is worth more than a thousand threats.
One bad eye spoils the other.
One bad general is better than two good ones.
One bag of money is stronger than two bags of truth.
One bamboo does not make a forest.
One barber shears another.
One basket of grapes does not make a vintage.
One beast easily recognizes another.
One beats one's breast who does not beat one's child.
One beats the bush, and another catches the bird.
One beats the bush, another catches the bird.
One bee is as good as a handful of flies.
One bee is better than a thousand flies.
One beetle recognises another.
One beetle recognizes another.
One beggar likes not that another has two wallets.
One bell serves a parish.
One bird in the dish is better than a hundred in the air.
One bird in the hand is better than ten on the roof.
One bird in the hand is better than two flying.
One bird in the hand is better than two on the roof.
One bird in the hand is better than two on the tree.
One bird in the hand is worth four in the air.
One bird in the hand is worth two flying.
One bite brings another.

One blind man followed the other and they both fell into the ditch.
One blind man leads another into the ditch.
One body cannot perform two services.

These are Proverb Examples from around the world, some have been translated from their original language to english.


Full list:
A  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  11  12  13  14  15  B  2  3  4  C  2  D  2  3  E  2  3  4  F  2  3  G  2  H  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  I  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  J  K  L  2  M  2  3  N  2  3  4  O  2  3  4  P  2  Q  R  S  2  3  T  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  11  12  13  14  15  16  17  18  19  20  U  V  W  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  Y  2  Z