Read more: A guide to how to understand Irish speak or slang
The Irish are known for their wit, wisdom and storytelling ability, many of which has manifested in the form of Irish proverbs.
IrishCentral has comprised a rundown of some of the best (and some of the worst) of these classic nuggets of advice. So grab a cuppa tea, perhaps a wayward friend in need of some guidance and settle down with these Irish words of wisdom.
The ones you probably heard from your Irish mother:
She may have told you these time and time again, but you probably had to figure them out for yourself…
It is sweet to drink but bitter to pay for.
It's often a person's mouth breaks his nose.
You never miss the water till the well has run dry.
A cabin with plenty of food is better than a hungry castle.
There is no fireside like your own fireside.
The most accurate:
Not romantic, not cynical – just realistic…
There are no unmixed blessings in life.
Beware of the anger of a patient man.
Every dog is brave on his own doorstep.
A friend's eye is a good mirror.
You've got to do your own growing, no matter how tall your father was.
The funniest:
Whether these are true, false or just don’t plain make sense, they’ll be sure to get a giggle out of you…
If a cat had a dowry, she would often be kissed.
One may live without one's friends, but not without one's pipe.
Women do not drink liquor but it disappears when they are present.
Everyone is sociable until a cow invades his garden.
Never bolt the door with a boiled carrot.
The most confusing:
Anyone have a clue on what these mean? Let us know…
Put a beggar on a horse and he'll ride it to hell.
What butter or whiskey does not cure cannot be cured.
The skin of the old sheep is on the rafter no sooner than the skin of the young sheep.
A hole is more honorable than a patch.
There never was an old slipper but there was an old stocking to match it.
The worst:
So bad, they deserve individual commentary…
Work without end is housewife's work.
Last time I checked, it ain’t no man’s world anymore
Talk of the devil, and he will appear.
So I guess this means the actors in “Dogma” are going to hell
A change of work is as good as a rest.
Speak for yourself – I’d say most of us need a vacation every once in a while
It is better to be lucky than wise.
Better for who? Lotto winners? What about the lotto curse?!
Sense does not come before age.
Perhaps not, but sense sure doesn’t come WITH age
Only the rich can afford compassion.
See: “A cabin with plenty of food is better than a hungry castle”
Read more: A guide to how to understand Irish speak or slang
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Switch to the desktop site to post a comment.LilPaddy | Apr 08, 2011, 07:18 PM EDT
Exactly right CitizenWhy..... Just like the Ba****ds here at/on Norco City Council (Ca) Fn. Ba****ds all!!!
billyjustin | Apr 06, 2011, 01:07 PM EDT
a old broom knows the dirty corners,
sirpeter | Apr 05, 2011, 05:52 PM EDT
raynandsnow...Turn down the brightness on the comp as much as you can..It will be easier on your eyes.
sirpeter | Apr 05, 2011, 05:47 PM EDT
Put a beggar on a horse and he'll ride it to hell...That means when a person who isn't used to money comes into alot of it,they sometimes lose their heads and don't know how to handle it..And so end up worse then before they had money.
stephengbolger | Apr 05, 2011, 03:17 PM EDT
Two sayings : from my grandmother Murphy-- Paper never refused ink (don't believe everything you read) and my mother's favorite, when in doubt about dirty hands and faces--You have to eat a peck of dirt before you die.
phearne | Apr 05, 2011, 02:06 PM EDT
My Irish/Choctaw grandmother had a saying that I never could explain exactly what it meant,though it made sense in an odd way."Well they have the same drawers to get glad in." This was her usual comment when someone was angry about something.
raynandsnow | Apr 05, 2011, 01:29 PM EDT
I really laughed at some of these. Unfortunately my eyes hurt only after a view minutes on a computer. Is there any possibility, you guys could bring out a old style newspaper. I would love it !
eiriamach | Apr 05, 2011, 08:00 AM EDT
"A hole is more honorable than a patch." Don't be ashamed of your poverty and try to cover it up. In today's Great Recession America, it gives me some comfort to remember that my Irish ancestors lived in poverty with dignity and honor and never lost their sense of community. Try doing that in the US!
DennisQ | Apr 05, 2011, 12:18 AM EDT
Keeping with the theory that everything old was once new, there's Caill do Mitsubishi, tá mo chapall amuigh as an tsráid. Depending on the context, it means roughly, "There's some things you can't buy with money." The word caill is sometimes rendered more freely.
modo313445 | Apr 04, 2011, 10:59 PM EDT
In case I didn't make it clear, the reason you never said the word devil was because he might think you were calling him to you and that you wanted him in your live instead of God.
modo313445 | Apr 04, 2011, 10:54 PM EDT
The one about the devil reminded me of my grandmother from Co Galway. To her dying day even after ove 50 years in the US she would NEVER say the word devil. If she needed to say it it was "dv" in a very soft whisper.She has been gone for over 40 years but I still miss her.
antoman | Apr 04, 2011, 10:46 PM EDT
A wipe of the ducks ass.
PaddyMac | Apr 04, 2011, 09:50 PM EDT
My Dad always said "A change is as good as a rest." It does make sense - variety is the spice of life an' all! (Sure would have been nice for the webmaster to have formatted the quotes to separate them from the commentary - that was a confusing read.)
gavinsgrandma | Apr 04, 2011, 07:49 PM EDT
My mother would say "if wishes were horses beggars would ride" and "what does that have to do with the price of eggs in China"
ellenfromcork | Apr 04, 2011, 06:55 PM EDT
How about "Just because the cat has kittens in the oven, it doesn't make them muffins." And to go along w/ the slippers and stockings, "There's an arse for every chair" and if you should sit in the wrong chair, "Marry in haste and repent at leisure"
eibhleann7 | Apr 04, 2011, 03:08 PM EDT
Let's not forget, "Hunger is good sauce" . No truer words were spoken. C. Pat, you may need to translate that one as well......
eibhleann7 | Apr 04, 2011, 03:04 PM EDT
Thanks, Canadian Pat, for explaining these for Mr. Haynes. He's obviously not the sharpest tool in the shed!
CitizenWhy | Apr 04, 2011, 11:18 AM EDT
"A hole is more honorable than a patch." This really quite suggestive, in the way of good poetry. One time you could take it to mean that you want to give the impression that the hole just happened and you will soon put it aside and wear a new jacket. At other times that you will wear the hole as a protest against the unjustness of your poverty rather than put up with patchwork reforms and minor concessions. There are many other ways you mind could turn this one around.
floridafinn | Apr 04, 2011, 11:15 AM EDT
My Gran used to say, "Put a beggar on a horse and he'll ride it to 'death'" which meant 'Don't bother to help him because he won't appreciate it." The 'butter and whiskey' was her confidence in the old wive's cures. The best cure was the hot toddy which had both. You stumped me on the sheepskins! A couple of my family members were fey and could often tell when someone we hadn't seen for a while would call. They'd say, "Speak of the devil."
CitizenWhy | Apr 04, 2011, 11:11 AM EDT
"Put a beggar on a horse and he'll ride it to hell." Means that absolute powerlessness corrupts as much as absolute power. So when you give the powerless sudden power they will be utterly corrupt. Riding a horse is simply an ancient symbol of power.
inisheer | Apr 04, 2011, 10:40 AM EDT
Always liked "There's many a ship lost within site of the shore."
pounder | Apr 04, 2011, 10:30 AM EDT
Back in Sligo when my mom was young,her mom,my grandma, would admonish her sons when going out to the pub to not come home on the 'back of the ass', which was the mode of transportation back then.
CanadianPat | Apr 04, 2011, 10:27 AM EDT
To help you: Beggar on a horse-sudden good fortune is wasted! :Skin of an old sheep-ill fortune strikes both young and old.;A hole is more honorable-take pride in yourself for there is no honor in letting on to be what your are not.Hope you find this helpfull!
VDDService | Apr 04, 2011, 10:27 AM EDT
If wishes were Donkeys, Beggars would ride! A dog smells his own shite first!
solomon | Apr 04, 2011, 10:25 AM EDT
"There never was an old slipper but there was an old stocking to match it." My old Tipperary grandfather would say this - probably about himself and my Roscommon grandmother. He married late in life and she was a widow with five children. He actually would say "shoe" instead of "slipper". To be more specific: "No one needs to stay unmarried:single & alone; a person can find a partner in life." "The most confusing:" really are not that "confusing" if one thinks a moment: use some college (or West Coast of Kerry) Logic & Philosophy. I could give you a meaning soon enough. This was fun to read. It brought back some "Irish" memories.