ProverbChallengeArabic origin

يد واحدة لا تصفق (yad wāḥida lā tuṣaffiqu)

Meaning: Nothing is achieved without cooperation.

Literally: One hand does not clap

Example: “لن ننجح في تنظيف الحي وحدنا؛ يد واحدة لا تصفق.” — We can't clean up the neighborhood alone; many hands make light work.

Equivalents in English

Origin: Clapping takes two hands, so one hand alone cannot make a sound. The proverb, common across the Arab world, means that nothing gets done without cooperation, and is also said of a quarrel, which needs two sides. Persian and other languages of the region have the same saying.

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