
ProverbWisdom
English origin
Mischiefs come by the pound and go away by the ounce.
Meaning: Problems accumulate quickly through negligence but dissolve only through sustained, deliberate effort.
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.
Explore another collection: Idioms
Colorful expressions from dozens of languages, with their word-for-word translations.
- put one's foot down To be firm and unyielding about something.
- put one's money where one's mouth is To back up one's words with money or action.
- rack one's brain To search through one's mind intensively; to try very hard to think of something.
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