A Scotch mist will wet an Englishman through to the skin.
Meaning: Light drizzle, when underestimated, soaks you more thoroughly than dramatic downpours because you're unprepared.
Origin: A Scotch mist is a thick, drizzling Highland fog that seems too light to matter but soaks anyone caught in it. John Clarke's proverb collection of 1639 has it, and Thomas Fuller explained in 1662 that small mischiefs, if not stopped early, may prove very dangerous.
More proverbs about Challenge
- It's ill shaving against the wool. — Forcing work against natural resistance creates unnecessary difficulty and poor results.
- Ships fear fire more than water. — Sailors know that uncontrolled fire destroys vessels faster than the ocean itself threate…
- Every man will shoot at the enemy, but few will go to fetch the shaft. — Courage in battle is common; the difficult work of recovery and preparation afterward sep…
- As good sit still as rise up and fall. — Futile effort yields no better outcome than patient acceptance when circumstances are bey…
- Put a snake in your bosom, and when it is warm it will sting you. — Harboring someone you know to be dangerous, once comfortable, will inevitably betray your…
- Better be ill spoken of by one before all, than by all before one. — Public criticism from a single person is preferable to private gossip spreading through m…
From our tongue twisters
- На дворе трава, на траве дрова. (Na dvore trava, na trave drova.) — A short but nasty 'tr/dr' blend — the consonant clusters that trip up every learner of Ru…
- Шла Саша по шоссе и сосала сушку. (Shla Sasha po shosse i sosala sushku.) — A merciless 'sh/s/ss' collision — Sasha walking, sucking, and all those sibilants.
- Карл у Клары украл кораллы, Клара у Карла украла кларнет. (Karl u Klary ukral korally, Klara u Karla ukrala klarnet.) — A 'kl/kr/r' drama — crime, countercrimes, and consonant clusters all at once.