
ProverbWisdom
International origin1860
The greatest wealth is health
Meaning: Good health is more valuable than any material possession or social status.
Origin: An old saying with many relatives, such as "health is better than wealth." Ralph Waldo Emerson put it most memorably in The Conduct of Life (1860): "The first wealth is health."
Equivalents in German, Russian, and Arabic
German: Gesundheit ist der größte Reichtum (literally: Health is the greatest wealth)
Russian: Здоровье дороже богатства (Zdorov'ye dorozhe bogatstva) (literally: Health is dearer than riches)Arabic: الصحة تاج على رؤوس الأصحاء لا يراه إلا المرضى (Aṣ-ṣiḥḥa tāj ʿalā ruʾūs al-aṣiḥḥāʾ lā yarāh illā al-marḍā) (literally: Health is a crown on the heads of the healthy that only the sick can see)
Explore another collection: Idioms
Colorful expressions from dozens of languages, with their word-for-word translations.
- fit as a fiddle in excellent physical condition; healthy.
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