A word is enough to the wise.

Meaning: The wise person needs only minimal guidance to understand and act on good advice.

Often credited to: The Roman playwrights Plautus and Terence, in Latin

Origin: From the Latin dictum sapienti sat est — a word to the wise is enough — found in the Roman comedies of Plautus and Terence. Ben Jonson has "a word to the wise" around 1600, and 19th-century writers shortened the Latin to "verbum sap." The wise person needs only a hint.

Equivalents in French, Spanish, Japanese, Italian, Portuguese, and 2 more languages

French: À bon entendeur, demi-mot (literally: To a good listener, half a word)
Spanish: A buen entendedor, pocas palabras bastan (literally: For a good understander, few words suffice)
Japanese: 一を聞いて十を知る (Ichi o kiite jū o shiru) (literally: Hear one, understand ten)
Italian: A buon intenditor poche parole (literally: For a good listener, few words)
Portuguese: A bom entendedor, meia palavra basta (literally: For a good listener, half a word is enough)
Dutch: Een goed verstaander heeft maar een half woord nodig (literally: A good listener needs only half a word)
Polish: Mądrej głowie dość dwie słowie (literally: Two words are enough for a wise head)