猿も木から落ちる (Saru mo ki kara ochiru)
Meaning: Even experts make mistakes.
Language: Japanese
Literally: Even monkeys fall from trees
Category: Animals
Origin: Classical Japanese proverb.
More idioms — Animals
- 猫をかぶる (Neko wo kaburu) — To hide one's true nature; to act innocent.
- 馬の耳に念仏 (Uma no mimi ni nenbutsu) — Wasted advice on someone who won't listen.
- 雀の涙 (suzume no namida) — A pitifully small amount.
- 対牛弾琴 (Tai gyū dan kin) — Wasting effort on an unappreciative audience.
- 蛇足 (dassoku) — Something completely unnecessary; a superfluous addition.
- 猫に小判 (Neko ni koban) — Giving something valuable to someone who can't appreciate it.
More Japanese idioms
- 花より団子 (Hana yori dango) — Substance over style; practicality over beauty.
- 口が滑る (kuchi ga suberu) — To accidentally let something slip.
- 杞憂 (Kiyū) — Unnecessary worry about things that won't happen; baseless anxiety.
- 傍若無人 (Bōjaku-bujin) — Behaving without regard for others' feelings or presence around you.
- 一期一会 (Ichi-go ichi-e) — Treasure each encounter as unique and irreplaceable in life.
- 四面楚歌 (Shimensoka) — Being surrounded by enemies with no hope of escape or support.
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