PROVERB. A short traditional saying of a didactic or advisory nature, in which a generalization is given specific, often metaphorical, expression: A stitch in time saves nine, meaning that action taken now will prevent a small problem becoming larger. Proverbs are found in many languages and cultures. A common idea may be given different local references: English carrying coals to Newcastle equivalent to Greek sending owls to Athens. Proverbial sayings were popular in the Middle Ages and treated as accepted wisdom. In the 16c and 17c, they were often used in literature, to support arguments and give emphasis to the author's views.

Proverbs are often of linguistic interest and may show lexical change. The saying ‘Do not spoil the hog for a halfpenny-worth of tar’ is recorded in 1600, but changed to sheep in 1651 and ship in 1823. The mnemonic needs of oral transmission may appear in: rhyme ‘Birds of a feather flock together’; ASSONANCE ‘A stitch in time saves nine’; ALLITERATION ‘Look before you leap’. Two proverbs may seem contradictory when in fact they contain truths applicable to different situations: Too many cooks spoil the broth as against Many hands make light work. Proverbs in present-day usage may often be regarded as clichés, but their persistence indicates their sociolinguistic importance. Commonly, when they occur in informal conversation, only the opening phrase is used: Well, a stitch in time, you know; Don't count your chickens (before they are hatched). See METAPHOR, QUOTATION.