Better be a beggar than a fool.
Meaning: Poverty with dignity and sense surpasses the shame of foolish wealth or status.
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 Human Nature
- A blind man would be glad to see it. — Even the most limited or deprived person would be grateful for what others take for grant…
- The best horse needs breaking, and the best child needs teaching. — Even the most naturally gifted require discipline and guidance to develop their potential…
- In a calm sea every man is a pilot. — Fair conditions mask incompetence; true skill emerges only when facing genuine difficulty.
- A man can do more than he can. — Ambition and self-belief often exceed our actual capabilities, yet this gap drives human…
- Many can pack the cards that cannot play. — Those lacking skill can arrange circumstances to their advantage, yet fail when execution…
- A cat loves fish, but she's loth to wet her feet. — Desire for something doesn't overcome reluctance to pay its necessary cost or risk.
From our idioms
- מצא חן בעיניי (matsa chen be'einai) — It pleased me; I liked it.
- תפסת מרובה לא תפסת (Tafasta merubah lo tafasta) — Overreach for too much and you end up with nothing.
- Дати драла (Daty drala) — To run away fast.