The higher the standing the lower the fall.
Meaning: Elevated positions carry greater vulnerability to catastrophic collapse due to accumulated distance from stable ground.
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
- Stars are not seen during sunshine. — Greatness becomes invisible when overwhelmed by more dominant presences or circumstances.
- He would starve in a cook-shop. — Incompetence in one's own field ensures failure, even surrounded by abundance and opportu…
- Step by step the ladder is climbed. — Incremental progress through consistent effort achieves what rushing toward ambitious goa…
- Whoso lacketh a stock, his gain's not worth a chip. — Without capital to reinvest profits, modest earnings disappear into daily expenses rather…
- The full stomach loatheth the honeycomb, but to the hungry every bitter thing is sweet. — Hunger transforms perception; satisfied people reject what starving people gratefully acc…
- Between two stools he comes to the ground. — Trying to sit on two stools simultaneously leaves you falling between them, unsupported a…
From our idioms
- in a bind — In a difficult situation or position.
- in a nutshell — Concisely; in a few words.
- in a pinch — In an emergency; if necessary.