Commnly Used Arabic Proverbs & Sayings
Table of Contents
Arabic proverbs can be very helpful to understand the way that people in Arabic-speaking cultures think about the world. Proverbs can also provide example sentences, which can memorised and used as models for building unique sentences.
A proverb is a short and pithy expression, popular in spoken langauge and often stating a general truth or piece of advice in the form of an aphorism or allegory. Proverbs form part of the folklore of a culture, handed down from generation to generation.
Below, we listed the most common Arabic proverbs and sayings. The first category is for colloquial Arabic sayings. They are presented here in the Gulf Arabic dialect, but since they are quite common throughout the Arabic-speaking world, pronunciation may not vary considerably.
The second is a list of Standard Arabic proverbs. Those are generally dervied from literary sources and are usually pronounced in Standard Arabic by most native speakers, inspite of their native dialect.
Colloquial Proverbs and Sayings
Excess is the brother of scarcity
'Having too much of something is just as bad as having too little of it'
iz-zaa-yid a-khu in-naa-giS
الزائد اخو الناقص
Stretch your legs as far as your blanket
'Live within your means.'
'ala gad il-Haa-fek mid rij-laek
على قد لحافك مد رجليك
A monkey is a gazelle in his mother's eyes
Equivalent to English 'Beauty is in the eye of the beholder'
il qird fi 'ane um-ma gha-zaal
القرد في عين أمه غزال
A dog's tail is always bent
Equivalent to English ' A leopard can’t change its spots'
thael il kalb 'um-rah ma ye'-te-dil
ذيل الكلب عمره مايعتدل
Standard Arabic Proverbs
This cub is from that lion
Equivalent to English 'Like mother, like daughter'
haak ash-shib-lu min thaak al a-sad
هاك الشبل من ذاك الأسد
Birds favour their kind
Equivalent to English 'Birds of a feather flock together'
at-Tu-yuur 'a-la ash-kaa-li-ha ta-qa'
الطيور على اشكالها تقع
A house divided cannot stand
il bay-tu al mun-qa-sim la yas-ta-mir
البيت المنقسم لا يستمر
Every sun has to rise after it sets
li kul-li sham-sun shu-rooq-in ba'-dal ghu-roob
لكل شمس شروق بعد الغروب
Necessity is the mother of invention
al Haa-ja um-mul ikh-ti-raa'
الحاجة أم الاختراع
A tree begins with a seed
aw-wa-lu ash-sha-ja-ra-ti bath-ra
أول الشجرة بذرة
Silence is a sign of approval
as-Sam-tu hu-wa 'a-laa-ma-tu ar-ri-DHa
الصمت هو علامة الرضا
Wishing does not make a poor man rich
la yagh-na ar-ra-ju-lu al-fa-qee-ru bit-ta-man-ni
لا يغنى الرجل الفقير بالتمني
Trust in God, but tether your camel
a'-qi-la naa-qa-ta-ka wa 'a-la al-laa-hi ta-wa-kal
اعقل (ناقتك وعلى الله) توكل
Seek knowledge from cradle to grave
iT-lu-bu al 'il-ma min al mah-di i-la al laHd
اطلبوا العلم من المهد الى اللحد
Time is gold
al waq-tu kath-tha-hab
الوقت كالذهب
Time is like a sword, cut it before it cuts you
al waq-tu kas-sayf in lam taq-Ta'-hu qa-Ta-'ak
الوقت كالسيف إن لم تقطعه قطعك
Put your neighbour before your home
aj-jaar qab-lad-daar
الجار قبل الدار
Threads of lies are short
Hab-lul ka-thib qa-Seer
حبل الكذب قصير
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