|
Proverb (horse)
A proverb (from la, proverbium) or an adage is a simple, traditional saying that expresses a perceived truth based on common sense or experience. Proverbs are often metaphorical and are an example of formulaic language. A proverbial phrase or a proverbial expression is a type of a conventional saying similar to proverbs and transmitted by oral tradition. The difference is that a proverb is a fixed expression, while a proverbial phrase permits alterations to fit the grammar of the context. Collectively, they form a genre of folklore. Some proverbs exist in more than one language because people borrow them from languages and cultures with which they are in contact. In the West, the Bible (including, but not limited to the Book of Proverbs) and medieval Latin (aided by the work of Erasmus) have played a considerable role in distributing proverbs. Not all Biblical proverbs, however, were distributed to the same extent: one scholar has gathered evidence to show that cultures in whi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Saying
A saying is any concisely written or spoken expression that is especially memorable because of its meaning or style. Sayings are categorized as follows: * Aphorism: a general, observational truth; "a pithy expression of wisdom or truth". ** Adage, proverb, or saw: a widely known or popular aphorism that has gained credibility by long use or tradition. ** Apothegm: "an edgy, more cynical aphorism; such as, 'Men are generally more careful of the breed of their horses and dogs than of their children.'" * Axiom: a proposition that commends itself to general acceptance; a well-established or universally conceded principle; a maxim, rule, or law.''Oxford English Dictionary'' Online, accessed 2012-04-28 * Cliché or bromide: an unoriginal and overused saying. ** Platitude: a cliché that is unsuccessfully presented as though it were meaningful, original, or effective. * Epigram: a clever and often poetic written saying that comments on a specific person, idea, or thing; it espec ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Idiom
An idiom is a phrase or expression that typically presents a figurative, non-literal meaning attached to the phrase; but some phrases become figurative idioms while retaining the literal meaning of the phrase. Categorized as formulaic language, an idiom's figurative meaning is different from the literal meaning. Idioms occur frequently in all languages; in English alone there are an estimated twenty-five million idiomatic expressions. Derivations Many idiomatic expressions were meant literally in their original use, but sometimes the attribution of the literal meaning changed and the phrase itself grew away from its original roots—typically leading to a folk etymology. For instance, the phrase "spill the beans" (meaning to reveal a secret) is first attested in 1919, but has been said to originate from an ancient method of voting by depositing beans in jars, which could be spilled, prematurely revealing the results. Other idioms are deliberately figurative. For example, " brea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Garbage In, Garbage Out
In computer science, garbage in, garbage out (GIGO) is the concept that flawed, or nonsense (garbage) input data produces nonsense output. Rubbish in, rubbish out (RIRO) is an alternate wording. The principle applies to all logical argumentation: soundness implies validity, but validity does not imply soundness. History The expression was popular in the early days of computing. The first known use is in a 1957 syndicated newspaper article about US Army mathematicians and their work with early computers, in which an Army Specialist named William D. Mellin explained that computers cannot think for themselves, and that "sloppily programmed" inputs inevitably lead to incorrect outputs. The underlying principle was noted by the inventor of the first programmable computing device design: More recently, the Marine Accident Investigation Branch comes to a similar conclusion: The term may have been derived from last-in, first-out (LIFO) or first-in, first-out (FIFO). Uses Thi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fortune Favours The Bold
"Fortune favours the bold", "Fortune favours the brave" and "Fortune favours the strong" are common translations of a Latin proverb. The slogan has been used historically by people in the military in the Anglosphere, and it is used up to the present on the coats of arms of individual families and clans. Background ''Fortune favours the bold'' is the translation of a Latin proverb, which exists in several forms with slightly different wording but effectively identical meaning, such as la, audentes Fortuna iuvat, label=none, ''audentes Fortuna adiuvat'', ''Fortuna audaces iuvat'', and ''audentis Fortuna iuvat''. This last form is used by Turnus, an antagonist in the ''Aeneid'' by Virgil. ''Fortuna'' refers to luck or its personification, a Roman goddess. Another version of the proverb, la, fortes Fortuna adiuvat , label=none , translation=fortune favours the strong/brave, was used in Terence's 151 BC comedy play '' Phormio'', line 203. Ovid further parodies the phrase at I.6 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Don't Put All Your Eggs In One Basket
In finance, diversification is the process of allocating capital in a way that reduces the exposure to any one particular asset or risk. A common path towards diversification is to reduce risk or volatility by investing in a variety of assets. If asset prices do not change in perfect synchrony, a diversified portfolio will have less variance than the weighted average variance of its constituent assets, and often less volatility than the least volatile of its constituents. Diversification is one of two general techniques for reducing investment risk. The other is hedging. Examples The simplest example of diversification is provided by the proverb "Don't put all your eggs in one basket". Dropping the basket will break all the eggs. Placing each egg in a different basket is more diversified. There is more risk of losing one egg, but less risk of losing all of them. On the other hand, having a lot of baskets may increase costs. In finance, an example of an undiversified portfo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Don't Count Your Chickens Before They Hatch
The Milkmaid and Her Pail is a folktale of Aarne-Thompson-Uther type 1430 about interrupted daydreams of wealth and fame. Ancient tales of this type exist in the East but Western variants are not found before the Middle Ages. It was only in the 18th century that the story about the daydreaming milkmaid began to be attributed to Aesop, although it was included in none of the main collections, and it does not appear in the Perry Index. The stories In the East There is a theme common to the many different stories of this type that involves poor persons daydreaming of future wealth arising from a temporary possession. When they get carried away by their fantasy and start acting it out, they break the container on which their dream is founded and find themselves worse off. One of the earliest is included in the Indian Panchatantra as "The brahman who built air-castles". There a man speculates about the wealth that will flow from selling a pot of grain that he has been given, pro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Don't Cross The Bridge Until You Come To It
Don't cross the bridge until you come to it is an English language idiom cliché. Though the history of where the phrase came from is unclear, it is believed to have originated from a proverb by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (February 27, 1807 – March 24, 1882) was an American poet and educator. His original works include " Paul Revere's Ride", '' The Song of Hiawatha'', and '' Evangeline''. He was the first American to completely tra .... References {{reflist English proverbs ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
An Apple A Day Keeps The Doctor Away
"An apple a day keeps the doctor away" is a common English-language proverb that appeared in the 19th century, advocating for the consumption of apples, and by extension, "if one eats healthful foods, one will remain in good health and will not need to see the doctor often." Origin A variant of the proverb, "Eat an apple on going to bed, and you'll keep the doctor from earning his bread" was recorded as a Pembrokeshire saying in 1866. The modern phrasing, "An apple a day keeps the doctor away", began usage at the end of the 19th century, with early print examples found as early as 1887. Scientific background A 2013 study using computer modelling compared eating apples with taking a common daily cholesterol-lowering drug to estimate risk of cardiovascular diseases. The computer model estimated that eating an apple a day was generally comparable for people over age 50 years to using a statin drug to reduce low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, concluding that eating an apple a d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
A Stitch In Time Saves Nine
A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, and others worldwide. Its name in English is '' a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes''. It is similar in shape to the Ancient Greek letter alpha, from which it derives. The uppercase version consists of the two slanting sides of a triangle, crossed in the middle by a horizontal bar. The lowercase version is often written in one of two forms: the double-storey and single-storey . The latter is commonly used in handwriting and fonts based on it, especially fonts intended to be read by children, and is also found in italic type. In English, '' a'' is the indefinite article, with the alternative form ''an''. Name In English, the name of the letter is the ''long A'' sound, pronounced . Its name in most other languages matches the letter's pronunciation in open syllables. History The earliest known ancestor of A is ''aleph''—the first letter of the Phoenician ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
A Rolling Stone Gathers No Moss
A rolling stone gathers no moss is a proverb, first credited to Publilius Syrus, who in his ''Sententiae'' states, "''People who are always moving, with no roots in one place or another, avoid responsibilities and cares.''" The phrase spawned a shorter mossless offshoot image, that of the ''rolling stone'', and modern moral meanings have diverged, from similar themes such as used in the popular song " Papa Was a Rollin' Stone", to a more complementary commentary on "freedom" from excessive rootedness, such as in the band The Rolling Stones. Correct attribution The saying may not be authentic to Publilius Syrus, as the Latin form usually given, ''Saxum volutum non obducitur musco'', does not appear in his edited texts. It is first documented in Egbert of Liège collection in Latin "Fecunda Ratis" (The Well-Laden Ship), V. 182, of about 1023: "Assidue non saxa legunt volventia muscum." So the proverb was not invented but made popular 500 years later by Erasmus' ''Adagia'', first pu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
An Essay On Criticism
''An Essay on Criticism'' is one of the first major poems written by the English writer Alexander Pope (1688–1744), published in 1711. It is the source of the famous quotations "To err is human; to forgive, divine", "A little learning is a dang'rous thing" (frequently misquoted as "A little knowledge is a dang'rous thing"), and "Fools rush in where angels fear to tread". Composition The first fragmentary drafts of the work were written in Abberley in 1707. It was first published in May 1711. Many of the poem's ideas had existed in prose form since at least 1706. Composed in heroic couplets (pairs of adjacent rhyming lines of iambic pentameter) and written in the Horatian mode of satire, it is a verse essay primarily concerned with how writers and critics behave in the new literary commerce of Pope's contemporary age. The poem covers a range of good criticism and advice, and represents many of the chief literary ideals of Pope's age. Structure and themes The verse "essay ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
All That Glitters Is Not Gold
"All that glitters is not gold" is an aphorism stating that not everything that looks precious or true turns out to be so. While early expressions of the idea are known from at least the 12th–13th century, the current saying is derived from a 16th-century line by William Shakespeare, "All that glisters is not gold". Origins The expression, in various forms, originated in or before the 12th century and may date back to Æsop. The Latin is ''Non omne quod nitet aurum est.'' The French monk Alain de Lille wrote "Do not hold everything gold that shines like gold" in 1175. Chaucer gave two early versions in English: "''But al thyng which that shyneth as the gold / Nis nat gold, as that I have herd it told''" in "The Canon's Yeoman's Tale", and "''Hyt is not al golde that glareth''" in "The House of Fame". The popular form of the expression is a derivative of a line in William Shakespeare's play ''The Merchant of Venice'', which employs the word "glisters," a 16th-century synonym f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
_abbatiale_1.jpg "Click for more on -> Proverb (horse)")
