What is a saying?

What Does Saying Mean

We explain what a saying is and some short sayings spread in the Spanish language. Also, some popular sayings.

Some sayings offer a solution to face dilemmas or difficult moments.

What is a saying?

A saying is a saying or phrase that expresses a teaching or moral , often formulated with a rhyme or some other literary figure . Sayings are characterized by being transmitted orally, from generation to generation. As they come from popular wisdom, in general the author is not known, except those that come from classic works such as Don Quixote de la Mancha, a work in which one of the most popular sayings is found: “Bark, Sancho, sign that ride".

Sayings are usually the result of experience , so the advice they give has to do with ways of understanding life in relation to issues such as work, life in the country, society , climate , effort or energy. time . Some offer a solution to deal with dilemmas or difficult times.

Sayings are studied by Paremiology , which is dedicated to the study of sententious judgments and also, from its structure and contextualization, by Linguistics .

In general, these sentences have a paired structure: in the first verse a condition is expressed and in the second, a consequence.

Sayings usually have literary figures, such as rhyme , in addition to appealing to verses and prose. These resources help make them easy to remember and transmit, allowing them to be part of the collective memory .

See also: Legend

Short sayings

Some of the most popular short sayings in the Spanish language are the following:

  • To foolish words, deaf ears.
  • Barking dog does not bite.
  • The early bird God helps.
  • Better than nothing.
  • The one who searches, finds.
  • Stale bread, sharp teeth.
  • Who laughs last laughs best.
  • Silence is consent.
  • Knowledge does not take place.
  • Much ado About Nothing.
  • At bad times, good face.
  • By the mouth dies the fish.
  • Evil of many, consolation of fools.
  • Who goes wrong, ends badly.
  • Whoever takes a lot of space, the less he tightens up.
  • The third time's the charm.
  • Wants is power.
  • There is no rose without a thorn.
  • Each feather flock together.
  • To each his own theme.

Popular sayings

Among the most popular sayings in the Spanish language, the following can be mentioned:

  • Out of sight, out of mind.
  • Every cloud has a silver lining.
  • Do not leave for tomorrow what you can do today.
  • Better known bad than good to know.
  • The cleanest is not the one that cleans the cleanest, but the one that dirties the least.
  • There is no good or bad that lasts a hundred years.
  • You do not have to look for the fifth leg of the cat.
  • Memory is like the best friend, when you need it most, it fails you.
  • Think badly and you will be right, although sometimes you will be wrong.
  • Hell is full of good intentions and heaven is full of good works.
  • Who did not look for friends in joy, in misfortune does not ask for them.
  • The one who wants celestial, that it costs him.
  • To the one that likes the peach, that the fluff is banked.

More examples of sayings

Some other examples of the most repeated sayings from generation to generation are the following:

  • A bird in hand is better than a hundred flying.
  • Not by much getting up early it dawns earlier.
  • Like father Like Son.
  • The madman knows more in his house than the sane man in someone else's.
  • Tell me who your friends are and I'll tell you who you are.
  • A gift horse in the teeth not look.
  • Full belly happy heart.
  • the word is silver and silence is gold.
  • Whoever goes wrong ends up badly.
  • From the saying to the stretch there is a long way.
  • Whoever robs a thief has a hundred years of forgiveness.
  • Loose lips sink ships.
  • If the river makes a noise its because water is running.
  • Although the monkey is dressed in silk, it remains cute.

Go up