ProverbHuman Nature
Spanish origin1599
Spanish origin1599Many go for wool and come back shorn.
Meaning: Pursuing gain from others often results in losing what you already possess through their cunning.
Origin: Recorded in English in 1599, in a book of Spanish dialogues: "You will go for wool, and return home shorn." The 1612 English translation of Don Quixote has it too. People who set out to gain something often lose what they already had.
Equivalents in French, Spanish, Japanese, Italian, and Portuguese
French: Tel est pris qui croyait prendre (literally: He who thought to catch is caught)
Spanish: Ir por lana, y volver trasquilado (literally: To go for wool and come back shorn)
Japanese: ミイラ取りがミイラになる (Miira tori ga miira ni naru) (literally: The mummy hunter becomes a mummy)
Italian: Andare per lana e tornarsene tosi (literally: To go for wool and come home shorn)
Portuguese: Ir à lã e ser tosquiado (literally: To go for wool and get shorn)
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- Se faire des cheveux blancs To worry oneself sick.
- Haut les cœurs ! Take courage; lift your spirits.
- Aux calendes grecques Never — used of something postponed indefinitely.
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