Who sings drives away care.
Meaning: Singing actively displaces worry by occupying the mind with melody rather than anxious thoughts.
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.
Equivalents in French and Spanish
- French: Qui chante son mal enchante (literally: He who sings charms away his sorrow)
- Spanish: Quien canta, sus males espanta (literally: Who sings, drives away care)
More proverbs about Morality
- Trust not a broken staff. — A weakened support system, once compromised, cannot reliably bear weight in future crises.
- Truth is stranger than fiction. — Reality often presents unexpected twists that invented stories cannot match in sheer impr…
- Fair fall truth and daylight. — Truth endures like dawn; concealment crumbles when light reveals what darkness protected.
- As good twenty as nineteen. — Waiting one more year won't materially improve a situation already long delayed or postpo…
- Good wares make quick markets. — Quality products sell themselves without requiring aggressive persuasion or extended nego…
- Good watch prevents misfortune. — Vigilant attention to detail and circumstances stops problems before they develop into se…
From our idioms
- Veiller au grain — To stay alert for trouble.
- Tomber des hallebardes — To rain extremely hard.
- L'été indien — A spell of unseasonably warm weather in autumn.