ProverbPerseverance
English origin
English originHe had need rise betimes that would please everybody.
Meaning: Rising early cannot satisfy conflicting demands; some desires are inherently incompatible.
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.
Equivalents in French, Spanish, Japanese, German, Portuguese, and 2 more languages
French: Qui veut plaire à tout le monde, doit se lever de bonne heure (literally: He had need rise early who would please everybody)
Spanish: Nunca llueve a gusto de todos (literally: It never rains to everyone's liking)
Japanese: あちら立てればこちらが立たず (Achira tatereba kochira ga tatazu) (literally: If you make that side stand, this side won't stand)
German: Allen Leuten recht getan, ist eine Kunst, die niemand kann (literally: To do right by everybody is an art that nobody can manage)
Portuguese: É difícil agradar a gregos e troianos (literally: It's hard to please both Greeks and Trojans)
Polish: Jeszcze się taki nie urodził, co by wszystkim dogodził (literally: The one who could please everybody hasn't been born yet)
Chinese: 众口难调 (Zhòng kǒu nán tiáo) (literally: Many mouths are hard to season for)
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Colorful expressions from dozens of languages, with their word-for-word translations.
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- no pegar ni con cola To be conspicuously out of place or unsuitable.
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