You can't see the forest for the trees
Meaning: Being too focused on small details can prevent you from seeing the overall picture.
Origin: John Heywood's 1546 collection has "Ye cannot see the wood for the trees" — British English still says wood, while American English prefers forest. It describes someone so absorbed in details that they miss the larger picture.
Equivalents in French, Spanish, Japanese, and German
- French: On ne voit pas la forêt à cause des arbres (literally: One doesn't see the forest because of the trees)
- Spanish: Los árboles no dejan ver el bosque (literally: The trees don't let you see the forest)
- Japanese: 木を見て森を見ず (Ki wo mite mori wo mizu) (literally: Seeing the trees but not the forest)
- German: Den Wald vor Bäumen nicht sehen (literally: Not to see the forest because of the trees)
More proverbs about Human Nature
- The wolf changes his coat but not his character — Surface appearances can change, but a person's fundamental nature remains the same.
- Not all who wander are lost — Those who explore unconventional paths may have a deeper sense of direction than it appea…
- Every person is a mirror to another — We see our own nature reflected in how we treat others and how others respond to us.
- A man's home is his castle — A person's home is their private domain, which no one may enter or interfere with without…
- Behind every great man is a great woman — Significant male achievement typically depends on crucial female support, often unrecogni…
- Clothes don't make the man — External appearances cannot determine a person's true character, integrity, or worth.
From our tongue twisters
- Capra neagră sare piatra, piatra-i neagră, capra-i albă. — A rapid 'c/pr/n' alternation that gains speed — and the colour-swap at the end trips the…
- Μια πάπια μα ποια πάπια; μια πάπια με παπιά στα παγωμένα νερά. (Mia papia ma pia papia; mia papia me papia sta pagomena nera.) — A 'pa/pi/pag' drill — the near-identical syllables pile up while the image stays perfectl…
- Appilan pappilan apupapin papupata pankolla kiehuu ja kuohuu. — A relentless 'pap/pap/pu' bilabial drill stacked with Finnish double consonants.