Who hath aching teeth, hath ill tenants.
Meaning: Persistent pains are like bad tenants — troublesome, unwelcome, and hard to evict.
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 Challenge
- Adversity makes a man wise, not rich. — Hardship teaches wisdom even when it never fills your pockets.
- In vain he craves advice who will not follow it. — Asking for advice is pointless if you never intend to heed it.
- He that's afraid of wounds must not come nigh a battle. — If you fear getting hurt, stay out of the fight — risk is action's price.
- April borrows three days of March, and they are ill. — Early spring often turns wintry again, as harsh as the month just past.
- Bachelors grin, but married men laugh till their hearts ache. — A bachelor's idle grin can't match the fuller joys — and aches — of married life.
- Bring not a bagpipe to a man in trouble. — Unwanted noise or distraction worsens suffering; provide comfort matching the sufferer's…
From our tongue twisters
- 간장 공장 공장장은 장 공장장이고 된장 공장 공장장은 강 공장장이다. (Ganjang gongjang gongjangjang eun Jang gongjangjang igo, doenjang gongjang gongjangjang eun Gang gongjangjang ida.) — A 'gong/jang/gang' syllable storm — the two surnames (Jang/Gang) swap while the rest stay…
- 경찰청 철창살은 외철창살이고 검찰청 철창살도 외철창살이다. (Gyeongchalcheong cheolchangsal eun oe cheolchangsal igo, geomchalcheong cheolchangsal do oe cheolchangsal ida.) — A 'cheong/cheol/chal' onslaught — Korean's aspirated stops and affricates in relentless s…
- Strč prst skrz krk. — Four words, zero vowels — the most concentrated consonant cluster challenge in any Europe…