You can't have your cake and eat it too
Meaning: You can't enjoy two mutually exclusive things simultaneously.
Origin: English proverb first recorded in 1538, originally 'eat your cake and have it too.'
Translations
- French: On ne peut avoir le beurre et l'argent du beurre (literally: You can't have the butter and the money for the butter)
- Spanish: No se puede estar en misa y repicando (literally: You can't be at mass and ringing the bells)
- Japanese: 二兎を追う者は一兎をも得ず (Nito wo ou mono wa itto wo mo ezu) (literally: He who chases two rabbits catches neither)
More proverbs about Wisdom
- Better safe than sorry — It's wiser to be cautious than to take unnecessary risks.
- A rose by any other name would smell as sweet — The essence of something doesn't depend on what it's called.
- Kill two birds with one stone — Accomplish two tasks with a single action.
- Don't bite off more than you can chew — Don't take on more than you can handle.
- Every rose has its thorn — Even the best things have their drawbacks.
- All's well that ends well — A good outcome justifies the difficulties along the way.
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