Bez pracy nie ma kołaczy

Meaning: Nothing worthwhile comes without hard work.

Literally: No work, no cakes

Example: “Chcesz zdać egzamin? Bez pracy nie ma kołaczy.” — You want to pass the exam? No pain, no gain.

Equivalents in English, French, Spanish, Japanese, German, and 3 more languages

English: No pain, no gain
French: On n'a rien sans rien (literally: You get nothing without nothing)
Spanish: El que algo quiere, algo le cuesta (literally: Whoever wants something must pay something for it)
Japanese: 苦あれば楽あり (Ku areba raku ari) (literally: If there is suffering, there is ease)
German: Ohne Fleiß kein Preis (literally: Without diligence, no prize)
Russian: Без труда не вынешь и рыбку из пруда (Bez truda ne vynesh' i rybku iz pruda) (literally: Without effort you can't even pull a fish from the pond)
Arabic: من جد وجد (Man jadda wajada) (literally: Whoever strives, finds)
Turkish: Emek olmadan yemek olmaz (literally: Without toil there's no food)

Origin: A kołacz is a rich round festive cake, traditionally baked for weddings: no work, no celebration. Pracy and kołaczy rhyme.

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