Greek Proverbs

Here are today's Greek proverbs with LOLCats! These are repeats of previous proverbs, but now with illustrations... and with a quiz too! See how you do on the questions up top, and then try them again down below after you've read through the proverbs (the quiz results display only at the blog, not in the email):

______ ὁ πάντων βασιλεύς.

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Νόμος ὁ πάντων βασιλεύς.

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______ δακὼν παῖδ᾿ ἀπέφυγε.

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Μῦς δακὼν παῖδ᾿ ἀπέφυγε.

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Μωρὸς ______ οὐ δύναται.

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Μωρὸς σιωπᾶν οὐ δύναται.

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Οὐκ αὖθις ______ πάγαις.

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Οὐκ αὖθις ἀλώπηξ πάγαις.

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Ὃ ______ ποίησον τάχιον.

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Ὃ ποιεῖς ποίησον τάχιον.

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Νόμος ὁ πάντων βασιλεύς.

Law is the king of all.

The words are from the poet Pindar and are quoted in Plato's Gorgias. The word πάντων could refer to things or to people (so I chose the ambiguous "all" in English), but the next line of Pindar's ode makes it clear that he referring to "everyone," not "everything" — θνατῶν τε καὶ ἀθανάτων, "both mortals and immortals." From the Greek root of βασιλ- we get English words like basil and basilica.

Μῦς δακὼν παῖδ᾿ ἀπέφυγε.

A mouse, having bit a child, ran away.

A child is small, but a mouse is even smaller, so the saying is used when someone, small though he may be, attacks an enemy greater than himself and gets away with it. The accusative form is παῖδα, but the final vowel is elided before the following vowel: παῖδ' ἀπέφυγε. From the root of Greek παῖς (παῖδ-), we get English words like pedagogy and pediatric.

Μωρὸς σιωπᾶν οὐ δύναται.

A fool isn't able to keep quiet.

There are many proverbs which praise the virtue of silence; talking too much is a sign of foolishness. The verb δύναται takes an infinitive complement: σιωπᾶν. From Greek σοφός and μωρός we get English sophomore, which is an oxymoron... and yes, we get the word oxymoron from μωρός also: sharp-dull.

Οὐκ αὖθις ἀλώπηξ πάγαις.

The fox (is not caught) again by the snare.

The key to this proverb is αὖθις, which means "again." The fox might get stuck in a trap once, but if she manages to get away, she is not going to make that mistake a second time; the smart fox learns from her mistakes. In this version of the saying, the verb is implied but not stated, although you can also find the saying with a verb included: οὐκ αὖθις ἀλώπηξ πάγαις ἁλώσεται, "The fox is not caught again by the snare." In addition, you can find an even shorter version of the saying: Οὐκ αὖθις ἀλώπηξ.

Ὃ ποιεῖς ποίησον τάχιον.

That which you do, do (very) quickly.

The adverb τάχιον is the comparative form of ταχύ; as often, the neuter adjective is being used as an adverb. The words come from the Gospel of John, when Jesus dismisses Judas from the Last Supper, knowing that Judas will betray him.

______ ὁ πάντων βασιλεύς.

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Νόμος ὁ πάντων βασιλεύς.

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______ δακὼν παῖδ᾿ ἀπέφυγε.

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Μῦς δακὼν παῖδ᾿ ἀπέφυγε.

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Μωρὸς ______ οὐ δύναται.

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Μωρὸς σιωπᾶν οὐ δύναται.

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Οὐκ αὖθις ______ πάγαις.

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Οὐκ αὖθις ἀλώπηξ πάγαις.

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Ὃ ______ ποίησον τάχιον.

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Ὃ ποιεῖς ποίησον τάχιον.

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And to finish up, here's a random LOLCat too:

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Greek Proverbs: August 20

Here are today's Greek proverbs with LOLCats! These are repeats of previous proverbs, but now with illustrations... and with a quiz too! See how you do on the questions up top, and then try them again down below after you've read through the proverbs (the quiz results display only at the blog, not in the email):

Νυμφίου ______ ὑμεῖς ζῆτε.

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Νυμφίου βίον ὑμεῖς ζῆτε.

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Ὁ ______ πληθύνει λόγους.

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Ὁ ἄφρων πληθύνει λόγους.

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Οὐχ εὕδει Διὸς ______.

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Οὐχ εὕδει Διὸς ὀφθαλμός.

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Ὁ ______ οὐ πιστεύεται.

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Ὁ ψεύστης οὐ πιστεύεται.

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Ουδεὶς πεινῶν ______ ᾄδει.

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Ουδεὶς πεινῶν καλὰ ᾄδει.

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Νυμφίου βίον ὑμεῖς ζῆτε.

You are leading the life of the newlywed.

The proverbial "life of the newlywed" is a happy time, full of food and drink and without having to work. This saying appears in Aristophanes' Birds in this form, with the plural: νυμφίων, newlyweds: ὑμεῖς μὲν ἆρα ζῆτε νυμφίων βίον. The line is iambic: ὑμεῖς μὲν ἆ||ρα ζῆτε νυμ||φίων βίον.

Ὁ ἄφρων πληθύνει λόγους.

The fool multiplies his words. 

This is a saying from the Biblical Book of Ecclesiastes. This is just one of many sayings in Ecclesiastes denouncing the wordiness of fools; the Greek ἄφρων is an alpha-private compound: ἄ-φρων, without-mind, "witless, foolish." The wide range of meanings of λόγος in Greek gives his kind of saying an ironic undertone: the fools has plenty of words, but not necessarily of the logical persuasion. 

Οὐχ εὕδει Διὸς ὀφθαλμός.

The eye of Zeus does not sleep.

This is a fragment from a lost Greek tragedy; a fuller form of the saying adds: ἐγγὺς δ' ἐστὶ καίπερ ὢν πρόσω, "and he is near, even though being far away." On the etymology of the name of Zeus, see Wikipedia: Zeus.

Ὁ ψεύστης οὐ πιστεύεται.

The liar is not believed.

This saying is nicely illustrated by the famous Aesop's fable of The Boy Who Cried Wolf; the liar is not believed even when he is telling the truth. The noun ψεύστης is related to the verb ψεύδω which you saw in a previous blog post: Πολλὰ ψεύδονται ἀοιδοί.

Ουδεὶς πεινῶν καλὰ ᾆδει.

No one who is hungry sings beautiful songs.

There is a rhyming Latin equivalent from the Middle Ages: Ieiunus venter non vult cantare libenter, "A hungry stomach will not gladly sing." The verb ᾄδω also appears in the form ἀείδω. As with so many important Greek words, the etymology is unknown.

Νυμφίου ______ ὑμεῖς ζῆτε.

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Νυμφίου βίον ὑμεῖς ζῆτε.

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Ὁ ______ πληθύνει λόγους.

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Ὁ ἄφρων πληθύνει λόγους.

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Οὐχ εὕδει Διὸς ______.

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Οὐχ εὕδει Διὸς ὀφθαλμός.

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Ὁ ______ οὐ πιστεύεται.

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Ὁ ψεύστης οὐ πιστεύεται.

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Ουδεὶς πεινῶν ______ ᾄδει.

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Ουδεὶς πεινῶν καλὰ ᾄδει.

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And to finish up, here's a random proverb and a random LOLCat too:

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Greek Proverbs: August 13

Here are today's Greek proverbs with LOLCats! These are repeats of previous proverbs, but now with illustrations... and with a quiz too! See how you do on the questions up top, and then try them again down below after you've read through the proverbs (the quiz results display only at the blog, not in the email):

Μὴ φοβοῦ, μόνον ______.

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Μὴ φοβοῦ, μόνον πίστευε.

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Ἱματίῳ ______ περιστέλλεις.

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Ἱματίῳ πῦρ περιστέλλεις.

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Ἀνεῳγμέναι ______ θύραι.

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Ἀνεῳγμέναι Μουσῶν θύραι.

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Πολλὰ ψεύδονται ______.

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Πολλὰ ψεύδονται ἀοιδοί.

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______ ἔσχατον γηράσκει.

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Θυμὸς ἔσχατον γηράσκει.

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Μὴ φοβοῦ, μόνον πίστευε.

Do not be afraid; just have faith.

The words are spoken to Jairus by Jesus in the Gospel of Mark when he is told that the daughter of Jairus is dead; he then goes and revives her. You can find out more at Wikipedia: Raising of Jairus's Daughter. From the Greek root φοβ- we get all the -phobia words in English. The word μόνον is used adverbially here; the neuter singular is often used as an adverb.

Ἱματίῳ πῦρ περιστέλλεις.

You're wrapping fire in your cloak.

As Erasmus explains, this is like "nursing a viper in your bosom," i.e. you are keeping something close to you (fire) that will lead to your own destruction. The word himation is sometimes used in English when writing about ancient Greek clothing.

Ἀνεῳγμέναι Μουσῶν θύραι.

The doors of the Muses (are) open.

In other words: everyone has access to the arts; it is not a private privilege. You can find out more about these goddesses at Wikipedia: Muses.

Πολλὰ ψεύδονται ἀοιδοί.

The bards tell many lies.

The saying appears in Aristotle's Metaphysics, who labels the words a παροιμία, a "proverb," and the words are also attributed to Solon, one of the Seven Sages of ancient Greece. From the Greek root in the verb ψεύδω we get English words like pseudo, pseudonym, etc., and from πολύ, we get all the poly- words: polygon, polygamy, polytheism, and on and on.

Θυμὸς ἔσχατον γηράσκει.

Anger grows old last.

The word ἔσχατον is used here adverbially: grows old last (of all). In other words, as someone gets older they might lose the pleasures of youth, but they will still be capable of getting angry, perhaps even of getting more angry in their old age. There's a related idea in Sophocles's Oedipus at Colonus: θυμοῦ γὰρ οὐδὲν γῆράς ἐστιν ἄλλο πλὴν θανεῖν, "anger has no old age other than death." From the same root as Greek ἔσχατον we get English eschatology.

Μὴ φοβοῦ, μόνον ______.

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Μὴ φοβοῦ, μόνον πίστευε.

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Ἱματίῳ ______ περιστέλλεις.

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Ἱματίῳ πῦρ περιστέλλεις.

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Ἀνεῳγμέναι ______ θύραι.

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Ἀνεῳγμέναι Μουσῶν θύραι.

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Πολλὰ ψεύδονται ______.

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Πολλὰ ψεύδονται ἀοιδοί.

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______ ἔσχατον γηράσκει.

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Θυμὸς ἔσχατον γηράσκει.

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And to finish up, here's a random proverb and a random LOLCat too:

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Greek Proverbs: August 11

Here are today's Greek proverbs with LOLCats! These are repeats of previous proverbs, but now with illustrations... and with a quiz too! See how you do on the questions up top, and then try them again down below after you've read through the proverbs (the quiz results display only at the blog, not in the email):

Οὐ γνῶσις, ἀλλὰ ______.

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Οὐ γνῶσις, ἀλλὰ πρᾶξις.

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Καὶ ______ ποιῶν πρόσεχε.

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Καὶ καλὸν ποιῶν πρόσεχε.

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Εἰς ______ τοξεύεις.

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Εἰς οὐρανὸν τοξεύεις.

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Μέγα βιβλίον μέγα ______.

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Μέγα βιβλίον μέγα κακόν.

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Ἔνεστι κἀν ______ χολή.

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Ἔνεστι κἀν μύρμηκι χολή.

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Οὐ γνῶσις, ἀλλὰ πρᾶξις.

Not knowledge, but action.

For example, it's not enough to read a book about swimming; if you want to learn to swim, you need to get in the water and swim. The saying is adapted from Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics: τὸ τέλος ἐστὶν οὐ γνῶσις ἀλλὰ πρᾶξις, "the goal is not knowledge, but action." The Greek word πρᾶξις has been adopted into English as praxis, and γνῶσις as gnosis.

Καὶ καλὸν ποιῶν πρόσεχε.

Even doing good, take care.

This saying reminds us that the outcomes of all actions are unforeseen: good deeds should lead to good outcomes, but be careful — you cannot take good outcomes for granted.

Εἰς οὐρανὸν τοξεύεις.

You're shooting an arrow at the sky.

This Greek saying appears as part of a delightful list of ἀδύνατα, "impossibilities," sometimes included as part of Plutarch's Moralia, and it also appears in the ancient Greek proverb collections. Of course, there is no way you can hit the sky with an arrow, so this is a fool's errand. Even worse, the arrow can fall back down and hit you. Compare the saying in the Biblical book of Ecclesiasticus:  "If one cast a stone on high, it will fall upon his own head." Compare also a saying you saw in an earlier blog post: Εἰς οὐρανὸν πτύεις.

Μέγα βιβλίον μέγα κακόν.

A big book (is) a big evil.
So wrote the poet Callimachus, in defense of short poetry as opposed to epics. The adjective κακόν is being used substantively: an evil (thing).

Ἔνεστι κἀν μύρμηκι χολή.

There is bile even in the ant.

In other words, even though it is tiny, the ant has a temper! As Erasmus explains, the proverb warns that even a "small" enemy can be dangerous. The word κἀν is a contraction: καὶ ἐν (the breathing mark inside the word is a clue to the contraction). The bile, χολή, was one of the four humors of the body in Greek medicine: blood, phlegm, black bile, and yellow bile. The yellow bile was associated with anger, hence the English word choleric. You can find out more at Wikipedia: Four temperaments. The black bile, µέλαινα χολή, gave rise to melancholy.

Οὐ γνῶσις, ἀλλὰ ______.

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Οὐ γνῶσις, ἀλλὰ πρᾶξις.

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Καὶ ______ ποιῶν πρόσεχε.

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Καὶ καλὸν ποιῶν πρόσεχε.

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Εἰς ______ τοξεύεις.

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Εἰς οὐρανὸν τοξεύεις.

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Μέγα βιβλίον μέγα ______.

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Μέγα βιβλίον μέγα κακόν.

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Ἔνεστι κἀν ______ χολή.

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Ἔνεστι κἀν μύρμηκι χολή.

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And to finish up, here's a random proverb and a random LOLCat too:

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Greek Proverbs: August 6

Here are today's Greek proverbs with LOLCats! These are repeats of previous proverbs, but now with illustrations... and with a quiz too! See how you do on the questions up top, and then try them again down below after you've read through the proverbs (the quiz results display only at the blog, not in the email):

Τὸ τῆς Ἀμαλθείας ______.

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Τὸ τῆς Ἀμαλθείας κέρας.

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______ πάντων ἐφορᾷ τέλος.

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Ζεὺς πάντων ἐφορᾷ τέλος.

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Ἔσω ______ καὶ ἔξω ἀλώπηξ.

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Ἔσω λέων καὶ ἔξω ἀλώπηξ.

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______ οἶκον οὐ τρέφει.

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Κάλλος οἶκον οὐ τρέφει.

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Τῶν ὤτων ἔχω τὸν ______.

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Τῶν ὤτων ἔχω τὸν λύκον.

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Τὸ τῆς Ἀμαλθείας κέρας.

The horn of Amaltheia.

This saying refers to a mythological "horn of plenty." Amaltheia was the foster-mother of the baby Zeus, whom his mother had to conceal from his father, and in some traditions, she was imagined to be a goat. When baby Zeus accidentally broke off one of her horns, the horn became a magical "horn of plenty" pouring forth food and drink in abundance. You can find out more at Wikipedia: Amalthea and Wikipedia: Cornucopia. The Greek κέρας gives us the scientific term keratin, the protein found in horns, nails, claws, hooves, etc.

Ζεὺς πάντων ἐφορᾷ τέλος.

Zeus oversses the outcome of all things.

This is another of the sayings attributed to Solon. The verb ἐφορᾷ is a compound of ἐπι and ὁρᾷ: the iota drops before the following vowel, and then the pi aspirates, resulting in the compound ἐφορᾷ. For more about the etymology of Zeus's name, which has Διός as its genitive form, see Wikipedia. The word τέλος has enormous range of meaning as you can see in the LSJ dictionary entry; the English word "end" has a similar range of meaning. From this Greek word we get English teleology.

῎Εσω λέων καὶ ἔξω ἀλώπηξ.

Inside, a lion — and outside, a fox.

The opposition between lion and fox is often found in Greek proverbs, and it is also a character opposition often found in Aesop's fables. The ἑρμηνεία (interpretation) that accompanies this proverb says "Mixing wickedness (fox) with audacity (lion), you seem to show what you are not and to hide what you happen to be." (The inclusion of these little interpretations is one of the distinctive features of the proverb collection attributed to Aesop.)

Κάλλος οἶκον οὐ τρέφει.

Beauty does not nourish the household.

The noun κάλλος, "beauty," stands here for the beautiful woman: someone might have married for beauty, but this proverb advocates for wives with skills needed to take care of the household.

Τῶν ὤτων ἔχω τὸν λύκον.  
I've got the wolf by the ears.

This refers to a no-win situation: it's dangerous to hold on, but it's also dangerous to let go! From this Greek root ὠτ- we get the English word otologist, an ear-doctor.

Τὸ τῆς Ἀμαλθείας ______.

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Τὸ τῆς Ἀμαλθείας κέρας.

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______ πάντων ἐφορᾷ τέλος.

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Ζεὺς πάντων ἐφορᾷ τέλος.

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Ἔσω ______ καὶ ἔξω ἀλώπηξ.

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Ἔσω λέων καὶ ἔξω ἀλώπηξ.

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______ οἶκον οὐ τρέφει.

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Κάλλος οἶκον οὐ τρέφει.

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Τῶν ὤτων ἔχω τὸν ______.

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Τῶν ὤτων ἔχω τὸν λύκον.

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And to finish up, here's a random proverb and a random LOLCat too:

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Greek Proverbs: August 4

Here are today's Greek proverbs with LOLCats! These are repeats of previous proverbs, but now with illustrations... and with a quiz too! See how you do on the questions up top, and then try them again down below after you've read through the proverbs (the quiz results display only at the blog, not in the email):

_______ οὐ δωροδοκεῖται.

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Ἀλώπηξ οὐ δωροδοκεῖται.

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_______ κρεῶν ἐπιθυμεῖ.

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Δασύπους κρεῶν ἐπιθυμεῖ.

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Ἄλλος _______, ἄλλη δίαιτα.

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Ἄλλος βίος, ἄλλη δίαιτα.

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Ἄρτι _______ πίττης γεύεται.

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Ἄρτι μῦς πίττης γεύεται.

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_______ τυράννων χεῖρες.

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Μακραὶ τυράννων χεῖρες.

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Ἀλώπηξ οὐ δωροδοκεῖται.

A fox cannot be bribed.

The idea here is that foxes are sneaky. They would no doubt gladly accept your gifts, but that does not mean they will change their behavior. If you offer the fox a chicken to stay away from the henhouse, the fox will take the chicken... and still raid the henhouse! So, be careful if you are going to bribe someone: you don't want to bribe someone who is like the fox.

Δασύπους κρεῶν ἐπιθυμεῖ.

The rabbit craves meat.

On one level, the saying refers to something absurd and inappropriate: rabbits are herbivores, not carnivores. In a more subtle way, however, the saying refers a different absurdity: asking someone else for something that you already possess in abundance. Rabbits are hunted for meat; rabbits are meat, so a rabbit does not need to seek meat elsewhere! The word δασύπους is a nickname for the rabbit or hare: δασυ-πους, hairy-foot.

Ἄλλος βίος, ἄλλη δίαιτα.

A different life, a different lifestyle.

This has a simple literal meaning: different people have different lifestyles. In addition, as Erasmus explains, this saying applies to people whose life circumstances have changed (suddenly prosperous, or the opposite), and whose lifestyle then changes accordingly. The word δίαιτα is the origin of the English word diet.

Ἄρτι μῦς πίττης γεύεται.

The mouse is now tasting the pitch.

The verb γεύεται takes a genitive complement (have a taste "of"): πίττης. The saying is used by Demosthenes, and it alludes to a mousetrap in which the mouse is lured and trapped in sticky pitch. In other words: someone has just made a fatal mistake, one from which they cannot escape. The proverb appears in the LSJ entry for μῦς.

Μακραὶ τυράννων χεῖρες.

Long (are) the hands of tyrants.

Compare the English proverb, "Kings have long arms." In other words, kings, tyrants, etc. can exert their dangerous power at a distance. And yes, the English word "tyrant" comes from the Greek. Compare an expanded version in Benjamin Franklin's Poor Richard's Almanac: "Kings have long Arms, but Misfortune longer: Let none think themselves out of her Reach."

_______ οὐ δωροδοκεῖται.

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Ἀλώπηξ οὐ δωροδοκεῖται.

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_______ κρεῶν ἐπιθυμεῖ.

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Δασύπους κρεῶν ἐπιθυμεῖ.

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Ἄλλος _______, ἄλλη δίαιτα.

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Ἄλλος βίος, ἄλλη δίαιτα.

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Ἄρτι _______ πίττης γεύεται.

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Ἄρτι μῦς πίττης γεύεται.

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_______ τυράννων χεῖρες.

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Μακραὶ τυράννων χεῖρες.

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And to finish up, here's a random proverb and a random LOLCat too:

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