ProverbWisdom
English origin
English originLaws were made for rogues.
Meaning: Honest people need no laws; restrictions exist only because dishonest people require external constraints.
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 Italian
Italian: Le leggi sono fatte pei tristi (literally: Laws were made for rogues)
Explore another collection: Compliments & Insults
Compliments and insults from around the world, from the sweet to the savage.
- Courir sur le haricot To get badly on someone's nerves.
- Tienes menos luces que un barco pirata You're really not the brightest.
- Eres más lento que el caballo del malo You're painfully slow — the villain's horse never catches the hero.
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