What's bred in the bone will come out in the flesh
Meaning: Inborn character traits and inherited nature inevitably reveal themselves outwardly, no matter how concealed.
Origin: An old proverb that inborn character cannot be hidden forever. It was recorded in Latin in England around 1290, and Sir Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur (c. 1470) has Launcelot say that it is hard to take out of the flesh what is bred in the bone.
More proverbs about Wisdom
- What you lose on the swings you gain on the roundabouts — Life's ups and downs balance out over time; temporary losses in one area offset by gains…
- Wins on Sunday, sells on Monday — Quick early success often masks underlying weakness, inviting premature confidence before…
- You can't be half pregnant — A condition either exists completely or not at all; commitment cannot be partial or ambig…
- You can't make a silk purse of a sow's ear — Inferior materials cannot be transformed into superior products through effort alone.
- You can't run with the hare and hunt with the hounds — Loyalty to opposing sides simultaneously is impossible; you must choose which faction to…
- You don't dip your pen in company ink — Romantic entanglements with colleagues create workplace conflicts and jeopardize professi…
From our compliments & insults
- Du bist nicht die hellste Kerze auf der Torte — You're a little dim — not the smartest in the room.
- Tu as une cervelle de moineau — You're scatterbrained and forgetful.
- Без царя в голове (Bez tsarya v golove) — Foolish and reckless — with no one in charge upstairs.