Share a favorite Spanish Proverb

Question

Here's one of mine (slightly altered to include my steadily wrinkling face).

A la luz de la tea, no hay mujer (o hombre) fea (feo).

By the light of the torch, there is no ugly woman (or man).

Answer 1

Señor, concedeme lo que necesario para mantener, porque si me da poco desesperaré y si me da más te olvidaré.

Lord, give me what I need to sustain myself, for if you give me too little I will despair and if you give me too much I will forget you.

Es uno de mis preferidos tambien. - mountaingirl123, Jan 12, 2010

Answer 2

Ojos que no ven, corazón que no siente. Eyes that do not see, heart that does not feel.

Answer 3

Camarón que se duerme, se lo lleva la corriente.

The shrimp that falls asleep gets carried away by the current. (That's literal, of course. However a more common English equivalent might be: "You snooze, you loose!")

Answer 4

Para saber hablar, hay que saber escuchar

In order to know how to talk, one must know how to listen

Good One :) - Partho, Feb 24, 2010

Answer 5

Another of my favorites: (Hey, I do love my dogs!)

Si quieres el perro, acepta las pulgas.

If you want the dog, accept the fleas.

Or, likely more to the point: Love me, love my faults!

Answer 6

These are my favorites:

El que madruga, Dios le ayuda.

He who gets up early, God helps him.

BUT

No por tanto madrugar amanece más temprano.

Not for getting up too early the sunrise will be earlier.

Combining the above we learn:

Todo en exceso hace daño.

Everything in excess is harmful.

Answer 7

Great thread ... will surely help us in understanding the language

Here're my two cents:

No hay un caballo que no se pueda montar ni un jinete que no se pueda desmontar. (There's no horse that can not be mounted or no rider that can not be removed/ dislodged)

Answer 8

You can't succeed if you don't try.

Perro que no camina, no encuentra hueso.
The dog that doesn't walk doesn't find a bone.

Answer 9

"Haz bien y no mires a quién."

Paraphrased: "Do good without looking for special recognition." Literally: "Do good and don't look to whom."

Answer 10

A Peruvian saying:

The only reason we can breathe is because air is free.

I'm not sure how to translate this.

Answer 11

"No tengas como vano el consejo del anciano." Do not consider useless the advice of an old person.

Answer 12

No todo lo que brilla es oro. - Not all that shines is gold.

It means that not everything that appears to be of good quality actually is.