ProverbWisdom
French origin
French originPrudence est mère de sûreté
Meaning: Being careful is what keeps you safe.
Literally: Prudence is the mother of safety
Example: “Vérifie la météo avant de partir en mer ; prudence est mère de sûreté.” — Check the weather before you sail: look before you leap.
Equivalents in English, Spanish, Japanese, German, Dutch, and 4 more languages
English: Look before you leap
Spanish: Antes que te cases, mira lo que haces (literally: Before you marry, look at what you're doing)
Japanese: 石橋を叩いて渡る (Ishibashi wo tataite wataru) (literally: Cross the stone bridge after tapping it)
German: Erst wägen, dann wagen (literally: First weigh, then dare)
Dutch: Bezint eer gij begint (literally: Reflect before you begin)
Russian: Семь раз отмерь, один раз отрежь (Sem' raz otmer', odin raz otrezh') (literally: Measure seven times, cut once)
Chinese: 三思而行 (Sān sī ér xíng) (literally: Think three times, then act)
Korean: 돌다리도 두들겨 보고 건너라 (Doldarido dudeulgyeo bogo geonneora) (literally: Tap even a stone bridge before you cross)
Arabic: في التأني السلامة وفي العجلة الندامة (Fī t-taʾannī s-salāma wa-fī l-ʿajala n-nadāma) (literally: In patience lies safety, in haste regret)
Origin: An old proverb shape that makes one quality the mother of another, as in l'oisiveté est mère de tous les vices, idleness is the mother of all vices.
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