Make not your sail too large for your ship.
Meaning: Ambition must match your actual resources, or you'll capsize under the weight of your own aspirations.
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 Wisdom
- Salmon and sermon have their season in Lent. — Both salmon and sermons flourish during Lent because scarcity and spiritual focus make th…
- Catch a bird by putting salt on its tail. — Impossible tasks require absurd methods; chasing what flees demands accepting futility.
- You can't make ropes of sand. — Attempting to bind unstable elements together will fail; fragile foundations cannot suppo…
- What's sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander. — Fair rules must apply equally to both parties, regardless of gender or status.
- Sweet meat must have some sauce. — Desirable things often require effort, cost, or unpleasant accompaniment to obtain them f…
- One scabbed sheep infects the whole flock. — A single corrupted member spreads moral or practical contamination throughout an entire c…
From our compliments & insults
- حمار (ḥimār) — A stubborn fool — the donkey being the universal symbol of obstinacy in Arabic culture.
- Je bent een kanjer — You're a star — a champ and a wonderful person.
- Золотые руки (Zolotye ruki) — You're wonderfully skilled with your hands — a true master at making and fixing things.