Barley straw's good fodder when the cow gives water.
Meaning: When resources are scarce, even poor substitutes become valuable for survival.
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 Morality
- Better to be beaten than be in bad company. — Physical hardship endures briefly; corrupting influences from vice seep into character pe…
- Brag's a good dog, but Holdfast is a better. — Boasting accomplishes nothing; actually keeping what you have through persistence and rel…
- Brag's a good dog, but that he hath lost his tail. — Boasting loses you the respect that makes bragging worthwhile in the first place.
- Brag's a good dog if he be well set on; but he dare not bite. — Empty boasting lacks substance—confidence unsupported by real ability cannot sustain itse…
- Business is the salt of life. — Commerce and productive work preserve society's vitality, preventing the staleness and de…
- A bad bush is better than the open field. — Imperfect shelter still protects you better than standing completely exposed to danger.
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- Culaccino — The ring or stain left on a surface by a wet or cold glass — that small, damp circle that…