Romanian proverbs

Proverbs from all Romanian speaking parts of the world.

A

 * Adevărul se spune glumind.
 * English equivalent: Many a true word is spoken in jest.
 * " Se non è vero, è molto ben trovato.
 * "If it is not true it is very well invented."
 * Giordano Bruno, De gli heroici furori (1585) [The Heroic Furies; also translated as On Heroic Frenzies], as quoted in A Book of Quotations, Proverbs and Household Words (1907) edited by Sir William Gurney Benham
 * Variant translations: If it is not true, it is well conceived. If it is not true, it is a good story.


 * Apa linǎ este adâncă.
 * English equivalent: Still waters run deep.
 * "Slow but steady work can achieve much." or "That a man says little does not mean that he does not think profoundly."


 * Așchia nu sare departe de trunchi
 * English equivalent: The apple doesn't fall far from the tree.


 * Așteaptā, murgule, să paști iarbă verde.
 * Wait, steed, to graze on green grass.
 * English equivalent: While the grass grows, the steed starves.
 * "True heroism is remarkably sober, very undramatic. It is not the urge to surpass all others at whatever cost, but the urge to serve others at whatever cost."
 * Arthur Ashe, s quoted in Worth Repeating : More Than 5,000 Classic and Contemporary Quotes (2003) by Bob Kelly, p. 169.

B

 * Barbă lungă și capra are, dar minte nicicum nu are.
 * English proverbs: If the beard were all, the goat might preach.

C

 * Calul bun se vinde în grajd. (The good horse is sold even in stable)
 * English equivalent: Good wine needs no bush.
 * "A good product does not need advertising."


 * Cine ascultǎ la ușă își aude faima.
 * English equivalent: Eavesdroppers hear no good of themselves.
 * "Dave: You know, that son of yours just cursed at me. Vicky: Wow, you actually stopped yelling at Larry long enough for him to swear at you? Dave: Hey, you know, when I was a kid, I never would have talked to my father that way. I did it behind his back as a sign of respect."
 * Jennifer Glickman, The War at Home (2007)


 * Cine zice una, trebuie să zică și două.
 * English equivalent: Who says "A" must say "B".


 * Cine spune mult face puțin.
 * Big talkers are not big doers.
 * English equivalentː Great talkers are little doers.
 * "Well done is better than well said."
 * Benjamin Franklin, Poor Richard's Almanack (1737)


 * Cine vrea miezul, să spargă nuca.
 * English equivalentː He that would eat the kernel must crack the nut.
 * "Nothing is achieved without effort."


 * Toate cele frumoase, poartă și ponoase.
 * English equivalent: All that is fair must fade
 * "Nothing lasts forever."


 * Cine aleargă după doi iepuri, nu prinde nici unul.
 * English equivalent: You must not run after two hares at the same time.
 * "Concentrate on one thing at a time or you will achieve nothing. - Trying to do two or more things at a time, when even one on its own needs full effort, means that none of them will be accomplished properly."


 * Cine dă îndatǎ, dă de două ori.
 * English equivalent: He gives twice, who gives in a trice.


 * Cine nu face când poate nu face când vrea.
 * English equivalent: He that will not when he may, when he will he may have nay.
 * "Take advantage of an opportunity when it presents itself, even if you do not want or need it at the time, because it may no longer be available when you do."


 * Cine s'a fript cu supa, suflă și-n iaurt.
 * English equivalent: A burnt child dreads the fire.


 * Cine sapă groapa altuia, cade singur în ea.
 * English equivalent: He who digs a pit for others, will fall in it himself.


 * Cine se aseamănă, se adunǎ.
 * English equivalent: Like will to like.
 * "Every man loves well what is like to himself."


 * Cine se laudă singur, se ocărăște pe sine.
 * English equivalent: Don't blow your own horn.


 * Cine se scoală de dimineață, departe ajunge.
 * English equivalent: Early to bed and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise or Early bird gets the worm.
 * "A lifestyle that involves neither staying up late nor sleeping late is good for body and mind and leads to financial success."


 * Cine tace nu se căiește.
 * English equivalent: Least said, soonest mended.
 * "In private animosities and verbal contentions, where angry passions are apt to rise, - the least said, the better in general. By multiplying words, cases often grow worse instead of better."


 * Cine trăiește nădăjduind moare jinduind.
 * English equivalent: He that lives on hope will die fasting.


 * ''Cu cheia de aur se deschide poarta raiului.
 * English equivalent: A golden key opens any gate but that of heaven.


 * Cum îți așterni, așa dormi,
 * English equivalent: As you make your bed, so you must lie.
 * "You must put up with the unpleasant results of a foolish action or decision."


 * Copiii, nebunii și bețivii spun adevărul.
 * English equivalent: Children, fools and drunken men tell the truth.
 * "Children and fools have no inhibition, and alcohol consumed removes the inhibition against telling the truth that occasionally one would like to keep secret."
 * Source for proverbs and meaning:


 * Cu moartea toate diferențele dispar.
 * English equivalent: It will all be the same a hundred years hence.
 * "Trivial problems or mistakes of the present moment have no lasting significance or effect, so there is no point in worrying about them."


 * Cu picătura se face ploaia.
 * English equivalent: Rain is made by drops.
 * "All contributions, however small, are of use."
 * Source for proverbs:
 * Source for proverbs:


 * Cu prea multă grabă nu faci multă ispravă.
 * English equivalentː More haste less, speed.


 * Cum e tata, e și fiul.
 * English equivalent: Like father, like son.
 * "Sons may look and behave like their fathers. This is due to inheritance and the example observed closely and daily."


 * Cu râma mică, se prinde peștele cel mare.
 * English equivalent: Set a herring to catch a whale.


 * Cu vânturi nu se vopsesc ouăle roșii.
 * English equivalent: Fine words butter no parsnips.
 * "Mere words have no value unless they are followed by positive action."


 * Cum e mama e și fata.
 * English equivalent: Like mother, like daughter.
 * "Daughters may look and behave like their mothers. This is due to inheritance and the example observed closely and rarely."


 * Cum îți așterni, asa te vei culca.
 * English equivalent: As you make your bed, so you must lie.
 * "You must put up with the unpleasant results of a foolish action or decision."

D

 * Dacă vreĭ să trăescĭ liniscit, să nu ved̦ĭ, să n'aud̦ĭ, și să tacĭ.
 * Contemporary Romanian: Dacă vrei să trăiești liniștit, să nu vezi, să n-auzi și să taci.
 * Latin equivalent: Hear, see, be silent, if you wish to live (in peace).
 * Latin equivalent: Hear, see, be silent, if you wish to live (in peace).


 * Dă-i, Doamne, mintea românului din urmă.
 * English equivalent: If only I knew then, what I do now.


 * De multe ori ce este scăzut în fire, meșteșugul cum se cade plinește.
 * English equivalent: Life imitates art.


 * De nevoie n-ai ce face.
 * English equivalent: Necessity has no law.


 * Din două rele s-alegi pe cea mai mică.
 * English equivalent: The least of two evils.
 * Meaning: "If you are forced to choose between two options, both of which are undesirable, all you can do is choose the one that is less undesirable than the other."
 * {{{cite book|author=Martin H. Manser|title=The Facts on File Dictionary of Proverbs|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=fgaUQc8NbTYC&pg=PA42|accessdate=3 August 2013|year=2007|publisher=Infobase Publishing|isbn=978-0-8160-6673-5|page=42}}


 * Din omul bun, bun lucru iese.
 * English equivalent: Good blood always shows itself.


 * Din prisosul inimii grăiește gura.
 * English equivalent: Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.


 * Drumul spre iad e pavat cu intenții bune.
 * English equivalent: The road to hell is paved with good intentions.


 * Dupâ ploie, vine soare.
 * English equivalent: After rain comes sunshine.

E

 * Exemplele rele strică moravurile bune.

F

 * Fă-mă, mamă, împărat, să mă mir ce m-a găsit.


 * Fă-mă, mamă, să-ți semăn.


 * Faptele grăiesc mai apăsat decât vorbele.
 * English equivalent: Actions speak loudee than words.


 * Fiecare pasăre își iubește cuibul.
 * English equivalent: The bird loves her own nest.


 * Fieșicare cu gustul său.
 * English equivalent: There is no accounting for taste.


 * Fii dupǎ cum te aratǎ chipul.
 * English equivalent: Handsome is that handsome does.


 * Finea bună, tote bune.
 * English equivalent: All is well that ends well.
 * "Problems and misfortunes along the way can be forgotten as long as the end is satisfactory."


 * Fructul nu cade departe de pom.
 * English equivalent: The apple does not fall far from the tree.
 * "Children observe daily and — in their behaviour — often follow the example of their parents."
 * Source for proverbs and meaning:

G

 * ̈Gura ucide mai mult decât sabia.
 * English equivalent: Gluttony kills more than the sword.

I

 * În țara orbilor, cel cu un ochi este împărat.
 * English equivalent: Among the blind, the one-eyed is king.
 * "People of only limited capability can succeed when surrounded by those who are even less able than themselves."

L

 * Lenea e începutul sărăciei.
 * English equivalent: Poverty is the reward of idleness.


 * Lup în piele de oaie.
 * English equivalent: Beware of false prophets which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly, they are ravening wolves.
 * "An innocent demeanor may hide much guilt."

M

 * Mai bine puțin cu dreptate decât mult cu strâmbǎtate.
 * English equivalent: Honesty is the best policy.
 * "Being honest or telling the truth is always the wisest course of action."


 * Mai multe muște cad în miere decât în oțet.
 * English equivalent: You can catch more flies with a drop of honey than with a barrel of vinegar.


 * Mǎrul nu cade departe de pom.
 * English equivalent: The apple does not fall far from the tree.
 * "Children observe daily and — in their behaviour — often follow the example of their parents."


 * Mărul putred strică și pe cele bune.
 * English equivalent: One rotten apple will spoil the whole barrel.


 * Măture fie-care la ușa sa.
 * English equivalent: Everyone should sweep before his own door.


 * Mincinosul cu de-a sila face musca cât cămila.
 * English equivalent: Don't make a mountain out of a molehill.


 * Mult zgomot pentru nimic.
 * English equivalent: Great cry and little wool.


 * Munte cu munte nu s'adună, ma omlu totna va și s'va.
 * Idiomatic translation: A mountain never meets a mountain, but a man meets a man.
 * Meaning: There are some things/events that are impossible, like an encounter of mountains, but there is always a chance for people to meet. or Once can always find a possibility for revenge.
 * Source for proverbs and meaning:

N

 * Nemulțumitului i se ia darul!
 * English equivalent: Beggars can’t be choosers.
 * "We must accept with gratitude and without complaint what we are given when we do not have the means or opportunity to provide ourselves with something better.”


 * Nicovala n-are frică de ciocan.
 * English equivalent: A good anvil does not fear the hammer.
 * "We are stuck with technology when what we really want is just stuff that works."
 * Douglas Adams, The Salmon of Doubt (2002) (posthumously)


 * Nimeni nu știe mai bine unde strânge cizma, decât cel ce o poartǎ.
 * English equivalent: No one knows where the shoe pinches, but he who wears it.
 * Meaning: "Nobody can fully understand another person's hardship or suffering."


 * Nu ațâța foc peste foc.
 * English equivalent: Don't add fuel to the fire.
 * "One should not make a bad situation even worse by an improper remark."


 * Nu barba îl face pe filozof, filozof.
 * English equivalent: It is not the beard that makes the philosopher.
 * "We salute the man, not the rank."
 * Band of Brothers


 * Nu facetĭ ce fac eu, ci cea ce vĕ spun eu.
 * English equivalent: Preachers say do as I say and not as I do.
 * "It bears no reason that the world should show greater love to me, than I have showed it."
 * John Locke, Second Tract of Government (1662)


 * Nu da vrabia din mână pe cioara de pe gard.
 * English equivalent: A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.


 * Nu iese fum fără foc.
 * English equivalent: There is no smoke without fire.
 * "There is no effect without some cause. or It is supposed that if there is a rumour, there must be some truth behind it."


 * Nu lăsa pe mâine ce poți face azi.
 * English equivalent: Don't leave for tomorrow what you can do today.


 * Nu măsura pe alții cu palma ta.
 * Translation: "Don't measure others with your own hand."
 * English equivalent: Don't measure others by your own yardstick.
 * "If one does not understand a person, one tends to regard him as a fool."
 * Attributed to Carl Jung


 * Nu se aruncă mărgăritarul porcilor.
 * English equivalent: Do not throw pearls before swine.


 * Nu se poate sluji doi paroni.
 * Translation: Nobody can serve two masters.
 * English equivalent: Also, Nobody can serve two masters.
 * Meaning: One cannot serve two conflicting causes simultaneously. If this is attempted neither will be served properly.
 * Source for meaning and proverbs:


 * Nu te amesteca nepoftit în vorba altora.
 * English equivalent: Give neither salt nor counsel till you are asked for it.
 * "They say never give advice because a wise man doesn't need it and a fool won't heed it."
 * David Stoess, Right Foot in the Pacific, Left Foot in the Atlantic (2000)


 * Nu vedzi grinda di ti ocl'iul a tau, ma vedzi sil'ea altui..
 * Idiomatic translation: You see the splinter in another's eye but fail to see the beam in your own.


 * Nu vinde pielea ursului din pădure.
 * English equivalent: Don't sell the skin till you have caught the bear.

O

 * Ochii care nu se văd se uită.
 * English equivalent: Out of sight, out of mind.


 * Ochii care se văd rar se iubesc.
 * English equivalent: Absence makes the heart grow fonder.


 * Ochii sunt oglinda inimii.
 * English equivalent: The eyes are sometimes a true index of the heart.


 * Orbul pe orb povățuind cad amândoi în groapă.
 * English equivalent: If the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.


 * Ori te poartă cum ți-e vorba, ori vorbește cum ți-e portul.
 * English equivalent: Walk the talk.
 * "People who give me advice... I reckon they're talking to themselves."
 * Nic Pizzolatto, said by Detective Cohle in the television show True Detective (2014).

P

 * Pasărea după ce se cunoaște? După cântec. Mujicul după ce se cunoaște? După vorbă.
 * English equivalent: The bird is known by his note, the man by his words.


 * Pe o ureche intră și pe alta iese.
 * In at one ear and out at the other.
 * English equivalent: Advice most needed are the least heeded.


 * Puțin dai, puțin primești.
 * English equivalent: Sow thin, shear thin.
 * "Believe that you have somethikng important to contribute to the world, and that the world would be a lesser place without that contribution."
 * Jordan Peteraon, YouTube: Advice to Young Men in Their 20s | Jordan and Mikhaila Peterson (2021)

R

 * Răbdarea trece marea.
 * English equivalent: Patience is a virtue, and a little will not hurt you.


 * Rana dacă se deschide, anevoie se-nchide.
 * English equivalent: It is not wise to open old wounds.

S

 * Sare din lac în puț.
 * English equivalent: Out of the frying pan into the fire.


 * Să nu lași drumul mare pentru cărare.
 * English equivalent: He that leaves the highway to cut short, commonly goes about.


 * Sângele apă nu se face.
 * English equivalent: Blood is thicker than water.


 * Scoate ban din piatrǎ (seacă).
 * English equivalent: All is fish that comes to the net.
 * "Right it is to be taught even by the enemy."
 * Ovid, Metamorphoses (8 AD)


 * Și firul de păr își are umbra sa.
 * English equivalent: Every hair casts its shadow.


 * Spǎrtura până e mică, trebuie cârpitǎ.
 * English equivalent: A stitch in time saves nine.
 * "No one needs to be told that a vast deal of labor is expended unnecessarily. This is occasioned, to a great extent, by the neglect of seasonable repairs."


 * Spune’mi cu cine te-nsoțești, ca sǎ-țǐ spun cine ești.
 * English equivalent: A man is known by the company he keeps.

T

 * Tot ce cu mare poftă iubim, acela cu mare lesnire credem.
 * English equivalent: The wish is father to the thought.


 * Totu lucru la vrema sa.
 * English equivalent: Man proposes, God disposes.
 * "Plans are insulted destinies. I don't have plans, I only have goals."
 * Ash Chandler, Freudian Slip, Mumbai Mirror Buzz, April 2006.

U

 * Unde nu-i cap, vai de picioare.
 * English equivalent: A forgetful head makes a weary pair of heels.


 * Unde dai și unde crapă.
 * English equivalent: To shoot at a pigeon and kill a crow.
 * Romanian expression which is about an unexpected outcome of an action.

V

 * Voia este în tine.
 * English equivalent: Where there is a will, there is a way.
 * "If you are sufficiently determined to achieve something, then you will find a way of doing so."