You need to login to view profiles OR to update your profile

Create a new account

Sign up for news and free books by email!
New announcements
Discussions
Proverbs

Don't count your chickens before they hatch.

Join
or login
to VOTE for Proverb of the Month
Votes
0
Updated 4mo ago
by
View this proverb in Swahili
Usihesabu kuku wako kabla hawajaanguliwa
Don't count your chickens before they hatch means that you shouldn't depend on a favorable outcome until it is certain. You shouldn't assume that all your eggs will hatch into healthy chicks and grow into chickens. Do you have a story about this proverb? Share below!

The first written record of this common English proverb is a sonnet written in 1570 by Thomas Howell:
Count not thy Chickens that unhatched be,
Weigh words as wind, till thou find certainty 

Many languages have proverbs that convey a similar principle.

Swahili:
Tujivune hatimaye
Let's praise ourselves at the end.

French:
Il ne faut pas vendre la peau de l’ours avant de l’avoir tué.
Don't sell the skin of the bear before killing it.

Arabic:
لا تشتري السمك وهو في البحر بل انتظر حتى يصطاد
Do not buy a fish while it is in the sea; wait until it is caught.

German:
Man soll den Tag nicht vor dem Abend loben.
Don't praise the day before the evening.

Latin
Ante victoriam ne canas triumphum
Don't sing triumphs before the victory.

Portuguese:
Não conte com o ovo dentro da galinha.
Don't count on the egg inside the chicken.
Details This picture was created using AI. What do you think? What picture do you think would best illustrate this proverb?
Sources
 Citation: Wiktionary
Loading...
Loading...
Login to view and post comments
Kadiri hamu ya kula inavyoongezeka, chakula kina ladha bora.

Methali hiyo ilionekana kwa mara ya kwanza katika kitabu cha Miguel de Cervantes Don Quixote, kilichochapishwa mwaka wa 1615 (katika Sehemu ya II, Sura ya V)

Mara nyingi wazazi husema hivi kwa watoto wao wanapokuwa walaji kwa fujo.
...
Updated 4mo ago
by
The winner of a competition or conflict receives the majority or entirety of the rewards, and possibly additional benefits beyond what was being fought over. 

In war, the spoils could refer to land, gained power or other sought after resources. In other pursuits the spoils typically refer to accolades, money or opportunities.

The proverb is typically used to explain unequal outcomes or to remind others that the stakes of many conflicts are winner take all, zero sum, or at the very least, disproportionately favorable to the few winners.

Check out the sources section for a description of the context and information about the US politician who was credited with the phrase (in the 1830s).
...
Updated 4mo ago
by
Many people are afraid to ask questions because they don't want to be seen as stupid. But asking questions is the best way to learn from others.

Asking questions also helps others around you. Have you ever hesitated to ask a question because you thought others already understood... but later you realized they didn't either? 

This proverb is similar to the English saying, “There's no such thing as a stupid question.”
...
Updated 4mo ago
by
Methali hii ya Kiingereza "To the victor go the spoils" inatafsirika pia kama "Mshindi ndiye anayechukua vyote" au "Mshindi hupokea nyara zote."

Mshindi wa shindano ndiye anayepokea tuzo. Huwa anachukua asilimia kubwa ya faida ama faida zote, na hata manufaa zaidi ya yale yaliyokuwa yakipiganiwa.

Katika vita, nyara zinaweza kuwa ardhi, mamlaka au rasilimali nyingine zinazotafutwa. Katika shughuli zingine nyara zinaweza kuwa sifa, pesa au fursa. Methali hii hutumika ili kueleza matokeo yasiyo sawa au kutukumbusha kwamba katika migogoro mingi ni mshindi ndiye atakayechukua yote, asilimia kubwa, au angalau, kupendelewa. Angalia sehemu ya vyanzo kwa maelezo ya muktadha kuhusu chimbuko la methali hii, mwanasiasa wa Marekani katika miaka ya 1830 (Kiingereza).
...
Updated 4mo ago
by