A great ship needs deep waters.
Meaning: Significant ambitions require sufficient resources and circumstances to achieve their full potential.
Origin: Recorded in A Dictionary of English Proverbs and Proverbial Phrases, an undated collection published in London by Whittaker & Co. around 1880 and credited to Thomas Preston. Its earlier history hasn't been traced.
More proverbs about Wisdom
- A green wound is soon healed. — Fresh injuries recover quickly; delay in treatment makes wounds harder to mend.
- A green winter makes a fat churchyard. — Mild winters allow diseases to flourish unchecked, increasing mortality through the follo…
- An unbidden guest must bring his own stool with him. — Uninvited visitors cannot expect hospitality and must accommodate themselves without burd…
- A guilty conscience needs no accuser. — Wrongdoing torments the mind so intensely that external judgment becomes unnecessary for…
- Hail brings frost in the tail. — Severe weather's worst effects linger after the initial storm passes, demanding continued…
- He knows not a hawk from a hand-saw. — Lacking discernment between predator and tool reveals ignorance of fundamental distinctio…
From our idioms
- mettere le corna — To commit infidelity against a partner; to cuckold someone.
- alla bell'e meglio — In a sloppy, careless, or makeshift manner; doing something poorly for lack of effort or…
- senza capo né coda — In a senseless or disjointed way; without coherence, order, or point.