Learn to say before you sing.
Meaning: Master the fundamentals of speech and communication before attempting public performance or eloquent expression.
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 Communication
- Saying and doing are two things. — Words cost nothing, but actions require commitment, effort, and genuine intention to fulf…
- If a man says little he thinks the more. — Silence often reflects deeper contemplation, while excessive speech betrays shallow reaso…
- He was born with a silver spoon in his mouth. — Inheriting wealth from birth grants unearned advantages that others must struggle to achi…
- Better that the feet slip than the tongue. — A physical misstep heals quickly, but careless words cause lasting damage to relationship…
- Spare to speak and spare to spend. — Restraint in both words and money preserves resources and prevents regrettable waste.
- There is a time to speak as well as to be silent. — Knowing when to withhold words proves as valuable as knowing when to voice them.
From our idioms
- fall off the wagon — To lose control of oneself and engage in a compulsive behavior.
- fall on deaf ears — To be heard but ignored, or to be heard but to have no effect.
- feather one's nest — To build up one's riches, usually quietly and perhaps by some unethical method (sentence…