There's a first time for everything
Meaning: It is wise to try different sorts of things or experiences that one is unaccustomed to or wary of.
Origin: A catchphrase that, according to Eric Partridge's dictionary of catch phrases, became common around 1945 in both Britain and the United States. An early literary example is Terence Rattigan's play Who Is Sylvia? (1950): "there has to be a first time for everything."
Equivalents in French, Spanish, and German
- French: il y a un commencement à tout
- Spanish: Siempre hay una primera vez (literally: There is always a first time)
- German: Es gibt für alles ein erstes Mal (literally: There is a first time for everything)
More proverbs about Perseverance
- Third time's the charm — Persistence through repeated attempts eventually succeeds where earlier tries failed.
- Throw enough mud at the wall, some of it will stick — Regarding this "mud" term in particular, it may possibly reference a technique of buildin…
- Who keeps company with the wolf will learn to howl — Association with morally corrupt people inevitably corrupts your own character and behavi…
- Advice comes too late when a thing is done. — Counsel offered after the deed is already done is worthless.
- Every one has a penny to spend at a new ale-house. — Novelty draws everyone's custom; people always find a coin for the latest attraction.
- Keep from the anger of a great man. — Avoid provoking the powerful, whose wrath can do you real harm.
From our idioms
- Passer du coq à l'âne — To switch topics abruptly and illogically.
- Avoir le melon — To be bigheaded and conceited.
- Mettre la charrue avant les bœufs — To do things in the wrong order.