You can't teach an old dog new tricks
Meaning: It's difficult to change established habits.
Origin: John Fitzherbert's Book of Husbandry (1523), a farming manual, advises that a dog must learn when it is a whelp, for it is hard to make an old dog stoop — that is, put its nose to the ground to follow a scent. The modern wording, with "new tricks," came later.
Equivalents in French, Spanish, Japanese, and German
- French: On ne change pas les vieilles habitudes (literally: Old habits don't change)
- Spanish: Loro viejo no aprende a hablar (literally: An old parrot doesn't learn to speak)
- Japanese: 老犬に新芸は教えられぬ (Rōken ni shingei wa oshierarenu) (literally: You can't teach new tricks to an old dog)
- German: Was Hänschen nicht lernt, lernt Hans nimmermehr (literally: What little Hans doesn't learn, grown Hans will never learn)
More proverbs about Human Nature
- Hunger is the best sauce — Food tastes better when you're truly hungry.
- The hand that rocks the cradle rules the world — Mothers have profound influence on society.
- No news is good news — The absence of bad news is itself good news.
- Every man for himself — In crisis, everyone must look after their own interests.
- No man is an island — Humans need connection with others.
- Beggars on horseback — Those given power abuse it worst.
From our idioms
- jemandem einen Bären aufbinden — To tell someone a deliberate lie or deceptive story for amusement or manipulation.
- in den sauren Apfel beißen — To accept an unpleasant necessity or disagreeable situation with resignation and stoicism.
- mit jemandem Katz und Maus spielen — To tease or toy with someone's emotions, alternating between kind and cruel treatment for…