PROVERB

proverb, adage, saw, byword

(noun) a condensed but memorable saying embodying some important fact of experience that is taken as true by many people

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology

Noun

proverb (plural proverbs)

A phrase expressing a basic truth which may be applied to common situations.

A striking or paradoxical assertion; an obscure saying; an enigma; a parable.

A familiar illustration; a subject of contemptuous reference.

A drama exemplifying a proverb.

Synonyms

• (phrase expressing a basic truth): adage, apothegm, byword, maxim, paroemia, saw, saying, sententia

• See also saying

Verb

proverb (third-person singular simple present proverbs, present participle proverbing, simple past and past participle proverbed)

To write or utter proverbs.

To name in, or as, a proverb.

To provide with a proverb.

Source: Wiktionary


Prov"erb, n. Etym: [OE. proverbe, F. proverbe, from L. proverbium; pro before, for + verbum a word. See Verb.]

1. An old and common saying; a phrase which is often repeated; especially, a sentence which briefly and forcibly expresses some practical truth, or the result of experience and observation; a maxim; a saw; an adage. Chaucer. Bacon.

2. A striking or paradoxical assertion; an obscure saying; an enigma; a parable. His disciples said unto him, Lo, now speakest thou plainly, and speakest no proverb. John xvi. 29.

3. A familiar illustration; a subject of contemptuous reference. Thou shalt become an astonishment, a proverb, and a by word, among all nations. Deut. xxviii. 37.

4. A drama exemplifying a proverb. Book of Proverbs, a canonical book of the Old Testament, containing a great variety of wise maxims.

Syn.

– Maxim; aphorism; apothegm; adage; saw.

Prov"erb, v. t.

1. To name in, or as, a proverb. [R.] Am I not sung and proverbed for a fool Milton.

2. To provide with a proverb. [R.] I am proverbed with a grandsire phrase. Shak.

Prov"erb, v. i.

Definition: To write or utter proverbs. [R.]

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



RESET




Word of the Day

19 May 2025

CHEMICAL

(adjective) of or made from or using substances produced by or used in reactions involving atomic or molecular changes; “chemical fertilizer”


coffee icon

Coffee Trivia

According to Guinness World Records, the largest coffee press is 230 cm (7 ft 6 in) in height and 72 cm (2 ft 4 in) in diameter and was created by Salzillo Tea and Coffee (Spain) in Murcia, Spain, in February 2007. The cafetière consists of a stainless steel container, a filtering piston, and a superior lid.

coffee icon