D.
Daar niets goeds in is, gaat niets goeds nit—Where 20 no good is in, no good comes out. Dut. Pr.
Daar 't een mensch wee doet, daar heeft hij de hand—A man lays his hand where he feels the pain. Dut. Pr.
Daar twee kijven hebben ze beiden schuld—When two quarrel both are to blame. Dut. Pr.
Daar zijn meer dieven als er opgehangen worden—There are more thieves than are hanged. Dut. Pr.
Dabit Deus his quoque finem—God will put an end to these calamities also. Virg.
Da capo—From the beginning. It. 25
D'accord—Agreed; in tune. Fr.
Da chi mi fido, / Guardi mi Dio. / Da chi non mi fido, / Mi guarderò io—From him I trust may God keep me; from him I do not trust I will keep myself. It. Pr.
Dachtet ihr, der Löwe schliefe, weil er nicht brüllte?—Did you think the lion was sleeping because it did not roar? Schiller.
Da die Götter menschlicher noch waren, / Waren Menschen göttlicher—When the gods were more human, men were more divine. Schiller.
Dádivas quebrantan peñas—Gifts dissolve rocks. 30 Sp. Pr.
Da du Welt nicht kannst entsagen, / Erobre dir sie mit Gewalt—Where thou canst not renounce the world, subdue it under thee by force. Platen.
Dafür bin ich ein Mann, dass sich aushalte in dem was ich begonnen, dass ich einstehe mit Leib und Leben für das Trachten meines Geistes—For this end am I a man, that I should persevere steadfastly in what I have began, and answer with my life for the aspiration of my spirit. Laube.
Daily life is more instructive than the most effective book. Goethe.
[Greek: daitos eïsês]—An equal diet. Hom.
[Greek: Dakry' adakrya]—Tearless tears. Eurip. 35
Dal detto al fatto v'è un gran tratto—From saying to doing is a long stride. It. Pr.
Da locum melioribus—Make way for your betters. Ter.
Dame donde me asiente, que yo me haré donde me acueste—Give where I may sit down, and I will make where I may lie down. Sp. Pr.
Dames quêteuses—Ladies who collect for the poor. Fr.
Dämmerung ist Menschenlos in jeder Beziehung—Twilight 40 (of dawn) is the lot of man in every relation. Feuchtersleben.
Damna minus consueta movent—Losses we are accustomed to, affect us little. Juv.
Damnant quod non intelligunt—They condemn what they do not understand. Quinct.
Damn'd neuters, in their middle way of steering, / Are neither fish, nor flesh, nor good red-herring. Dryden.
Damnosa hæreditas—An inheritance which entails loss. L.
Damnosa quid non imminuit dies?—What is 45 there that corroding time does not impair? Hor.
Damnum absque injuria—Loss without injustice. L.
Damnum appellandum est cum mala fama lucrum—Gain at the expense of credit must be set down as loss. Pr.
Damn with faint praise, assent with civil leer, / And without sneering, teach the rest to sneer. / Willing to wound, and yet afraid to strike; / Just hint a fault, and hesitate dislike. Pope.
Danari fanno danari—Money breeds money. It. Pr.
Dance attendance on their lordships' pleasure. 50 Hen. VIII., v. 2.
Dan Chaucer, well of English undefiled, / On Fame's eternal bead-roll worthy to be filed. Spenser.
Dandies, when first-rate, are generally very agreeable men. Bulwer Lytton.
Danger for danger's sake is senseless. Victor Hugo.
Danger is the very basis of superstition. It produces a searching after help supernaturally when human means are no longer supposed to be available. B. R. Haydon.
Danger levels man and brute, / And all are fellows in their need. Byron.
Danger past, God forgotten. Pr. 5
Dannosa è il dono che toglie la libertà—Injurious is the gift that takes away our liberty. It. Pr.
Dans l'adversité de nos meilleurs amis, nous trouvons toujours quelque chose qui ne nous déplait pas—In the misfortune of our best friends we find always something which does not displease us. La Roche.
Dans la morale, comme l'art, dire n'est rien, faire est tout—In morals as in art, talking is nothing, doing is all. Renan.
Dans l'art d'intéresser consiste l'art d'écrire—The art of writing consists in the art of interesting. Fr.
Dans le nombre de quarante ne fait-il pas un 10 zéro?—In the number forty is there not bound to be a cipher? Fr.
Dans les conseils d'un état, il ne faut pas tant regarder ce qu'on doit faire, que ce qu'on peut faire—In the councils of a state, the question is not so much what ought to be done, as what can be done. Fr.
Dante was very bad company, and was never invited to dinner. Emerson.
Dante, who loved well because he hated, / Hated wickedness that hinders loving. Browning.
Dantur opes nulli nunc nisi divitibus—Wealth now-a-days goes all to the rich. Mart.
Dapes inemptæ—Dainties unbought, i.e., home 15 produce. Hor.
Dapibus supremi / Grata testudo Jovis—The shell (lyre) a welcome accompaniment at the banquets of sovereign Jove. Hor.
Dare pondus idonea fumo—Fit only to give importance to trifles (lit. give weight to smoke). Pr.
Dare to be true, nothing can need a lie; / A fault which needs it most, grows two thereby. George Herbert.
Daring nonsense seldom fails to hit, / Like scattered shot, and pass with some for wit. Butler.
Darkness visible. Milton. 20
Darkness which may be felt. Bible.
Dark night, that from the eye his function takes, / The ear more quick of apprehension makes. Mid. N. Dream, iii. 2.
Dark with excessive bright. Milton.
Das Alte stürzt, es ändert sich die Zeit, / Und neues Leben blüht aus den Ruinen—The old falls, the time changes, and new life blossoms out of the ruins. Schiller.
Das Alter der göttlichen Phantasie / Es 25 ist verschwunden, es kehret nie—The age of divine fantasy is gone, never to return. Schiller.
Das Alter wägt, die Jugend wagt—Age considers, youth ventures. Raupach.
Das arme Herz, hienieden / Von manchem Sturm bewegt, / Erlangt den wahren Frieden, / Nur, wo es nicht mehr schlägt—The poor heart, agitated on earth by many a storm, attains true peace only when it ceases to beat. Salis-Seewis.
Das Auge des Herrn schafft mehr als seine beiden Hände—The master's eye does more than both his hands. Ger. Pr.
Das begreife ein andrer als ich!—Let another try to understand that; I cannot. A. Lortzing.
Das Beste, was wir von der Geschichte haben, 30 ist der Enthusiasmus, den sie erregt—The best benefit we derive from history is the enthusiasm which it excites. Goethe.
Das Edle zu erkennen ist Gewinnst / Der nimmer uns entrissen werden kann—The ability to appreciate what is noble is a gain which no one can ever take from us. Goethe.
Das einfach Schöne soll der Kenner schätzen; / Verziertes aber spricht der Menge zu—The connoisseur of art must be able to appreciate what is simply beautiful, but the common run of people are satisfied with ornament. Goethe.
Das Erste und Letzte, was vom Genie gefordert wird, ist Wahrheitsliebe—The first and last thing which is required of genius is love of truth. Goethe.
Das Geeinte zu entzweien, das Entzweite zu einigen, ist das Leben der Natur—Dividing the united, uniting the divided, is the life of Nature. Goethe.
Das Geheimniss ist für die Glücklichen—Mystery 35 is for the favoured of fortune. Schiller.
Das Genie erfindet, der Witz findet bloss—Genius invents, wit merely finds. Weber.
Das Gesetz ist der Freund des Schwachen—Law is the protector of the weak. Schiller.
Das Gesetz nur kann uns Freiheit geben—Only law can give us freedom. Goethe.
Das Gewebe dieser Welt ist aus Nothwendigkeit und Zufall gebildet; die Vernunft des Menschen stellt sich zwischen beide, und weiss sie zu beherrschen—The web of this world is woven out of necessity and contingency; the reason of man places itself between the two, and knows how to control them. Goethe.
Das glaub' ich—That is exactly my opinion. 40 Ger. Pr.
Das Glück deiner Tage / Wäge nicht mit der Goldwage. / Wirst du die Krämerwage nehmen, / So wirst du dich schämen und dich bequemen—Weigh not the happiness of thy days with goldsmith's scales. Shouldst thou take the merchant's, thou shalt feel ashamed and adapt thyself. Goethe.
Das Glück giebt Vielen zu viel, aber Keinem genug—Fortune gives to many too much, but to no one enough. Ger. Pr.
Das glücklichste Wort es wird verhöhnt, / Wenn der Hörer ein Schiefohr ist—The happiest word is scorned, if the hearer has a twisted ear. Goethe.
Das grosse unzerstörbare Wunder ist der Menschenglaube an Wunder—The great indestructible miracle is man's faith in miracle. Jean Paul.
Das Grösste, was dem Menschen begegnen 45 kann, ist es wohl, in der eigenen Sache die allgemeine zu vertheitigen—The noblest function, I should say, that can fall to man is to vindicate all men's interests in vindicating his own. Ranke.
Das hat die Freude mit dem Schmerz gemein, / Dass sie die Menschen der Vernunft beraubt—Joy has this in common with pain, that it bereaves man of reason. Platen.
Das Heiligste, die Pflicht, ist leider das, was wir am öftersten in uns bekämpfen und meistens wider Willen thun—Duty, alas! which is the most sacred instinct in our nature, is that which we most frequently struggle with in ourselves, and generally do against our will. R. Gutzkow.
Das Herz gleicht dem Mühlsteine der Mehl gibt, wenn man Korn aufshüttet, aber sich selbst zerreibt, wenn man es unterlasst—The heart is like a millstone, which yields meal if you supply it with grain, but frets itself away if you neglect to do so. Weber.
Das Herz und nicht die Meinung ehrt den Mann—It is his heart, and not his opinion, that is an honour to a man. Schiller.
Das höchste Glück ist das, welches unsere 5 Mängel verbessert und unsere Fehler ausgleicht—The best fortune that can fall to a man is that which corrects his defects and makes up for his failings. Goethe.
Das Hohngelächter der Hölle—The scoffing laughter of Hell. Lessing.
Das Ideal in der Kunst, Grösse in Ruhe darzustellen, sei das Ideal auf dem Throne—Let the ideal in art, the representation of majesty in repose, be the ideal on the throne. Jean Paul.
Das ist die wahre Liebe, die immer und immer sich gleich bleibt, / Wenn man ihr alles gewährt, wenn man ihr alles versagt—That is true love which is ever the same (lit. equal to itself), whether everything is conceded to it or everything denied. Goethe.
Das Jahrhundert / Ist meinem Ideal nicht reif. Ich lebe / Ein Bürge derer, welche kommen werden—The century is not ripe for my ideal; I live as an earnest of those that are to come. Schiller.
Das Kind mit dem Bade verschütten—To throw 10 away the child with the bath, i.e., the good with the bad. Ger. Pr.
Das Kleine in einen grossen Sinne behandeln, ist Hoheit des Geistes; das Kleine für gross und wichtig halten, ist Pedantismus—To treat the little in a large sense is elevation of spirit; to treat the little as great and important is pedantry. Feuchersleben.
Das Leben dünkt ein ew'ger Frühling mir—Life seems to me an eternal spring. Lortzing.
Das Leben eines Staates ist, wie ein Strom, in fortgehender Bewegung; wenn der Strom steht, so wird er Eis oder Sumpf—The life of a state, like a stream, lies in its onward movement; if the stream stagnates, it is because it is frozen or a marsh. J. v. Müller.
Das Leben gehört den Lebendigen an, und wer lebt, muss auf Wechsel gefasst sein—Life belongs to the living, and he who lives must be prepared for changes. Goethe.
Das Leben heisst Streben—Life is a striving. 15 Ger. Pr.
Das Leben ist die Liebe / Und des Lebens Leben Geist—Life is love, and the life of life, spirit. Goethe.
Das Leben ist nur ein Moment, der Tod ist auch nur einer—Life is but a moment, death also is but another. Schiller.
Das Leben lehrt uns, weniger mit uns / Und andern strenge sein—Life teaches us to be less severe both with ourselves and others. Goethe.
Das Nächste das Liebste—The nearest is the dearest. Ger. Pr.
Das Nächste steht oft unergreifbar fern—What 20 is nearest is often unattainably far off. Goethe.
Da spatium tenuemque moram; male cuncta, ministrat / Impetus—Allow time and slight delay; haste and violence ruin everything. Stat.
Das Publikum, das ist ein Mann / Der alles weiss und gar nichts kann—The public is a personage who knows everything and can do nothing. L. Roberts.
Das Recht hat eine wächserne Nase—Justice has a nose of wax. Ger. Pr.
Das Reich der Dichtung ist das Reich der Wahrheit / Schliesst auf das Heiligthum, es werde Licht—The kingdom of poetry is the kingdom of truth; open the sanctuary and there is light. A. v. Chamisso.
Das Schicksal ist ein vornehmer aber theurer 25 Hofmeister—Fate is a distinguished but expensive pedagogue. Goethe.
Das schönste Glück des denkenden Menschen ist, das Erforschliche erforscht zu haben, und das Unerforschliche ruhig zu verehren—The fairest fortune that can fall to a thinking man is to have searched out the searchable, and restfully to adore the unsearchable. Goethe.
Das schwere Herz wird nicht durch Worte leicht—Words bring no relief to a saddened heart. Schiller.
Das Schwerste in allen Werken der Kunst ist dass dasjenige, was sehr ausgearbeitet worden, nicht ausgearbeitet scheine—The most difficult thing in all works of art is to make that which has been most highly elaborated appear as if it had not been elaborated at all. Winkelmann.
Das Siegel der Wahrheit ist Einfachheit—The seal of truth is simplicity. Boerhave.
Das sind die Weisen, / Die durch Irrtum zur 30 Wahrheit reisen; / Die bei dem Irrtum verharren, / Das sind die Narren—Those are wise who through error press on to truth; those are fools who hold fast by error. Rückert.
Das Sprichwort sagt: Ein eigner Herd, / Ein braves Weib sind Gold und Perlen wert—A proverb says: A hearth of one's own and a good wife are worth gold and pearls. Goethe.
Das Talent arbeitet, das Genie schafft—Talent works, genius creates. Schumann.
Das Unglück kann die Weisheit nicht, Doch Weisheit kann das Unglück tragen—Misfortune cannot endure wisdom, but wisdom can endure misfortune. Bodenstedt.
Das Universum ist ein Gedanke Gottes—The universe is a thought of God. Schiller.
Das Unvermeidliche mit Würde trage—Bear 35 the inevitable with dignity. Streckfuss.
Das Vaterland der Gedanken ist das Herz: an dieser Quelle muss schöpfen, wer frisch trinken will—The native soil of our thoughts is the heart; whoso will have his fresh must draw from this spring. Börne.
Das Verhängte muss geschehen, / Das Gefürchte muss nahn—The fated must happen; the feared must draw near. Schiller.
Das Volk ist frei; seht an, wie wohl's ihm geht!—The people are free, and see how well they enjoy it. Mephisto, in "Faust."
Das Volk schätzt Stärke vor allem—The people rate strength before everything. Goethe.
Das Vortreffliche ist unergründlich, man mag damit anfangen was man will—What is excellent cannot be fathomed, probe it as and where we will. Goethe.
Das Wahre ist gottähnlich; es erscheint nicht unmittelbar, wir müssen es ans seinen Manifestationen errathen—Truth is like God; it reveals itself not directly; we must divine it out of its manifestations. Goethe.
Das Warum wird offenbar, / Wann die Toten aufersteh'n—We shall know the wherefore when the dead rise again. Müllner.
Das was mir wichtig scheint, hältst du für 5 Kleinigkeiten; / Das was mich ärgert hat bei dir nichts zu bedeuten—What is to me important you regard as a trifle, and what puts me out has with you no significance. Goethe.
Das Weib sieht tief, der Mann sieht weit. Dem Manne ist die Welt das Herz, dem Weibe ist das Herz die Welt—The woman's vision is deep reaching, the man's far reaching. With the man the world is his heart, with the woman her heart is her world. Grabbe.
Das Wenige verschwindet leicht dem Blick, / Der vorwärts sieht, wie viel noch übrig bleibt—The little (achieved) is soon forgotten by him who looks before him and sees how much still remains to be done. Goethe.
Das Werk lobt den Meister—The work praises the artist. Ger. Pr.
Das Wort ist frei, die That ist stumm, der Gehorsam blind—The word is free, action dumb, obedience blind. Schiller.
Das Wunder ist des Glaubens liebstes Kind—Miracle 10 is the pet child of faith. Goethe.
Data fata secutus—Following what is decreed by fate. M.
Dat Deus immiti cornua curta bovi—God gives the vicious ox short horns. Pr.
Dà tempo al tempo—Give time to time. It. Pr.
Date obolum Belisario—Give a mite to Belisarius!
Dat Galenus opes, dat Justinianus honores / 15 Sed Moses sacco cogitar ire pedes—Galen gives wealth, Justinian honours, but Moses must go afoot with a beggar's wallet.
Dat inania verba, / Dat sine mente sonum—He utters empty words; he utters sound without meaning. Virg.
Dat veniam corvis, vexat censura columbas—He pardons the ravens, but visits with censure the doves. Juv.
Daub yourself with honey, and you'll be covered with flies. Pr.
Dauer im Wechsel—Persistence in change. Goethe.
Da veniam lacrymis—Forgive these tears. 20
Da ventura a tu hijo, y echa lo en el mar—Give your son luck and then throw him into the sea. Sp. Pr.
Davus sum, non Œdipus—I am a plain man, and no Œdipus (who solved the riddle of the Sphinx). Ter.
Dawted dochters mak' dawly wives, i.e. petted daughters make slovenly wives. Sc. Pr.
Day follows the murkiest night; and when the time comes, the latest fruits also ripen. Schiller.
Day is driven on by day, and the new moons 25 hasten to their wane. Smart, from Hor.
Daylight will come, though the cock does not crow. Dan. Pr.
Days should speak, and multitude of years should teach wisdom. Bible.
De adel der ziel is meer waardig dan de adel des geslachts—Nobility of soul is more honourable than nobility by birth. Dut. Pr.
Dead men open living men's eyes. Sp. Pr.
Dead scandals form good subjects for dissection. 30 Byron.
De alieno largitor, et sui restrictor—Lavish of what is another's, tenacious of his own. Cic.
Deal mildly with his youth; / For young hot colts, being raged, do rage the more. Rich. II., ii. 1.
Deal so plainly with man and woman as to constrain the utmost sincerity and destroy all hope of trifling with you. Emerson.
Dear is cheap, and cheap is dear. Port. Pr.
Dear son of memory, great heir of fame. 35 Milton on Shakespeare.
Death and life are in the power of the tongue. Bible.
Death-bed repentance is sowing seed at Martinmas. Gael. Pr.
Death borders upon our birth, and our cradle stands in the grave. Bp. Hall.
Death but supplies the oil for the inextinguishable lamp of life. Coleridge.
Death comes equally to us all, and makes us 40 all equal when it comes. Donne.
Death finds us 'mid our playthings—snatches us, / As a cross nurse might do a wayward child. / From all our toys and baubles. Old Play.
Death gives us sleep, eternal youth, and immortality. Jean Paul.
Death is a black camel that kneels at every man's door. Turk. Pr.
Death is a commingling of eternity with time; in the death of a good man eternity is seen looking through time. Goethe.
Death is a fearful thing. Meas. for Meas., 45 iii. 1.
Death is a friend of ours, and he who is not ready to entertain him is not at home. Bacon.
Death is but another phasis of life, which also is awful, fearful, and wonderful, reaching to heaven and hell. Carlyle.
Death is but a word to us. Our own experience alone can teach us the real meaning of the word. W. v. Humboldt.
Death is but what the haughty brave, / The weak must bear, the wretch must crave. Byron.
Death is sure / To those that stay and those 50 that roam. Tennyson.
Death is the only physician, the shadow of his valley the only journeying that will cure us of age and the gathering fatigue of years. George Eliot.
Death is the quiet haven of us all. Wordsworth.
Death is the tyrant of the imagination. Barry Cornwall.
Death is the wish of some, the relief of many, and the end of all. Sen.
Death joins us to the great majority; / 'Tis to be borne to Platos and to Cæsars; / 'Tis to be great for ever; / 'Tis pleasure, 'tis ambition, then, to die. Young.
Death lays his icy hand on kings. Shirley.
Death levels all distinctions.
Death lies on her, like an untimely frost, / Upon the sweetest flower of all the field. Rom. and Jul., iv. 5.
Death may expiate faults, but it does not 5 repair them. Napoleon.
Death opens the gate of fame, and shuts the gate of envy after it. Sterne, after Bacon.
Death pays all debts. Pr.
Death puts an end to all rivalship and competition. The dead can boast no advantage over us, nor can we triumph over them. Hazlitt.
Death rides in every passing breeze, / He lurks in every flower. Heber.
Death's but a path that must be trod, / If 10 man would ever pass to God. Parnell.
Death shuns the wretch who fain the blow would meet. Byron.
Death, so called, is a thing which makes men weep, / And yet a third of life is passed in sleep. Byron.
Death stands behind the young man's back, before the old man's face. T. Adams.
Death treads in pleasure's footsteps round the world. Young.
Death will have his day. Rich. II., iii. 2. 15
De auditu—By hearsay.
Debate is masculine, conversation is feminine; the former angular, the latter circular and radiant of the underlying unity. A. B. Alcott.
De beste zaak heeft nog een goed' advocaat noodig—The best cause has need of a good pleader. Dut. Pr.
Debetis velle quæ velimus—You ought to wish as we wish. Plaut.
De bonne grâce—With good grace; willingly. 20 Fr.
De bonne lutte—By fair means. Fr.
De bon vouloir servir le roy—To serve the king with good-will. M.
Debt is the worst kind of poverty. Pr.
Debt is to a man what the serpent is to the bird; its eye fascinates, its breath poisons, its coil crushes both sinew and bone; its jaw is the pitiless grave. Bulwer Lytton.
Debts make the cheeks black. Arab. Pr. 25
De calceo sollicitus, at pedem nihil curans—Anxious about the shoe, but careless about the foot. L. Pr.
Deceit and falsehood, whatever conveniences they may for a time promise or produce, are, in the sum of life, obstacles to happiness. Johnson.
Deceit is a game played only by small minds. Corneille.
Decency is the least of all laws, yet it is the one which is the most strictly observed. La Roche.
Deceptio visus—Optical illusion. 30
Decet affectus animi neque se nimium erigere nec subjicere serviliter—We ought to allow the affections of the mind to be neither too much elated nor abjectly depressed. Cic.
Decet imperatorem stantem mori—An emperor ought to die at his post (lit. standing). Vespasian.
Decet patriam nobis cariorem esse quam nosmetipsos—Our country ought to be dearer to us than ourselves. Cic.
Decet verecundum esse adolescentem—It becomes a young man to be modest. Plaut.
Decies repetita placebit—Ten times repeated, it 35 will still please. Hor.
Decipimur specie recti—We are deceived by the semblance of rectitude. Hor.
Decipit / Frons prima multos—First appearances deceive many.
Decision and perseverance are the noblest qualities of man. Goethe.
Declaring the end from the beginning, and from the ancient times the things that are not yet done. Bible.
Decori decus addit avito—He adds honour to 40 the honour of his ancestors. M.
Decorum ab honesto non potest separari—Propriety cannot be sundered from what is honourable. Cic.
De court plaisir, long repentir—A short pleasure, a long penance. Fr.
Decrevi—I have decreed. M.
Decus et tutamen—An honour and defence. M.
Dedecet philosophum abjicere animum—It does 45 not beseem a philosopher to be dejected. Cic.
De die in diem—From day to day.
Dedimus potestatem—We have given power. L.
Dediscit animus sero quod didicit diu—The mind is slow in unlearning what it has been long learning. Sen.
Deeds survive the doers. Horace Mann.
Deep calleth unto deep. Bible. 50
Deep insight will always, like Nature, ultimate its thought in a thing. Emerson.
Deep in the frozen regions of the north, / A goddess violated brought thee forth, / Immortal liberty. Smollett.
Deep on his front engraven / Deliberation sat, and public care. Milton.
Deep subtle wits, / In truth, are master spirits in the world. Joanna Baillie.
Deep vengeance is the daughter of deep 55 silence. Alfieri.
Deep vers'd in books, and shallow in himself. Milton.
De ezels dragen de haver, en de paarden eten die—Asses fetch the oats and horses eat them. Dut. Pr.
De facto—In point of fact.
Defeat is a school in which truth always grows strong. Ward Beecher.
Defeat is nothing but education, nothing but 60 the first step to something better. Wendell Phillips.
Defect in manners is usually the defect of fine perception. Emerson.
Defectio virium adolescentiæ vitiis efficitur sæpius quam senectutis—Loss of strength is more frequently due to the faults of youth than of old age. Cic.
Defendit numerus junctæque umbone phalanges—Their numbers protect them and their compact array. Juv.
Defend me, common sense, say I, / From reveries so airy, from the toil / Of dropping buckets into empty wells, / And growing old with drawing nothing up. Cowper.
Defend me from my friends; I can defend myself from my enemies. Maréchal Villars.
Deference is the most complicate, the most indirect, and the most elegant of all compliments. Shenstone.
Defer no time; / Delays have dangerous ends. 1 Henry VI., iii. 2.
Defer not the least virtue; life's poor span / 5 Make not an ell, by trifling in thy woe. / If thou do ill, the joy fades, not the pains; / If well, the pain doth fade, the joy remains. George Herbert.
Defer not till to-morrow to be wise, / To-morrow's sun to thee may never rise. Congreve.
Deficiunt vires—Ability is wanting.
Defienda me Dios de my—God defend me from myself. Sp. Pr.
Definition of words has been commonly called a mere exercise of grammarians; but when we come to consider the innumerable evils men have inflicted on each other from mistaking the meaning of words, the exercise of definition certainly begins to assume rather a more dignified aspect. Sydney Smith.
Deformed, unfinished, sent before my time / 10 Into this breathing world, scarce half made up, / And that so lamely and unfashionable, / That dogs bark at me as I halt by them. Rich. III., i. 1.
Deformity is daring; it is its essence to overtake mankind by heart and soul, and make itself the equal, ay, the superior of the rest. Byron.
De fumo in flammam—Out of the frying-pan into the fire. Pr.
Dégagé—Free and unrestrained. Fr.
De gaieté de cœur—In gaiety of heart; sportively; wantonly. Fr.
Degeneres animos timor arguit—Fear is proof 15 of a low-born soul. Virg.
Degli uomini si può dire questo generalmente che sieno ingrate, volubili simulatori, fuggitori pericoli, cupidi di guadagno—Of mankind we may say in general that they are ungrateful, fickle, hypocritical, intent on a whole skin and greedy of gain. Machiavelli.
Degrees infinite of lustre there must always be, but the weakest among us has a gift, however seemingly trivial, which is peculiar to him, and which, worthily used, will be a gift also to his race for ever. Ruskin.
De gustibus non disputandum—There is no disputing about tastes.
De hambre a nadie vi morir, de mucho comer a cien mil—I never saw a man die of hunger, but thousands die of overfeeding. Sp. Pr.
De haute lutte—By main force. Fr. 20
De hoc multi multa, omnes aliquid, nemo satis—Of this many have said many things, all something, no one enough.
Dei gratia—By the grace of God.
Dei jussu non unquam credita Teneris—Fated she (i.e., Cassandra) never to be believed by her Trojan countrymen. Virg.
Deil stick pride, for my dog deed o'd. Sc. Pr.
Deil tak' the hin'most! on they drive, / Till 25 a' their weel-swall'd kytes belyve / Are bent like drums, / And auld guid man maist like to rive / "Bethankit" hums. Burns.
Dein Auge kann die Welt trüb' oder hell dir machen; / Wie du sie ansiehst, wird sie weinen oder lachen—Thy eye can make the world dark or bright for thee; as thou look'st on it, it will weep or laugh. Rückert.
De industria—Purposely.
De integro—Over again; anew.
[Greek: Dei pherein ta tôn theôn]—We must bear what the gods lay on us.
Dei plena sunt omnia—All things are full of God. 30 Cic.
Déjeûner à la fourchette—A meat breakfast. Fr.
De jure—By right.
De kleine dieven hangt men, de groote laat men loopen—We hang little thieves and let great ones off. Dut. Pr.
Del agua mansa me libre Dios; que de la recia me guardaré yo—From smooth water God guard me; from rough, I can guard myself. Sp. Pr.
De lana caprina—About goat's wool, i.e., a worthless 35 matter.
Delay has always been injurious to those who are ready. Lucan.
Delay in vengeance gives a heavier blow. J. Ford.
Delay of justice is injustice. Landor.
Delectando pariterque monendo—By pleasing as well as instructing. Hor.
Delenda est Carthago—Carthage must be destroyed. 40 Cato Major.
Del giudizio, ognun ne vende—Of judgment every one has some to sell. It. Pr.
Deliberando sæpe perit occasio—An opportunity is often lost through deliberation. Pub. Syr.
Deliberandum est diu quod statuendum est semel—We must take time for deliberation, where we have to determine once for all. Pub. Syr.
Deliberate treachery entails punishment upon the traitor. Junius.
Deliberate with caution, but act with decision; 45 and yield with graciousness or oppose with firmness. Colton.
Deliberat Roma, perit Saguntum—While Rome deliberates, Saguntum perishes. Pr.
Delicacy is to the affections what grace is to the beauty. Degerando.
Delicacy of taste has the same effect as delicacy of passion; it enlarges the sphere both of our happiness and misery, and makes us sensible to pain as well as pleasures, which escape the rest of mankind. Hume.
Deliciæ illepidæ atque inelegantes—Unmannerly and inelegant pleasures. Catull.
Deligas tantum quem diligas—Choose only him 50 whom you love.
Delightful task! to rear the tender thought, / To teach the young idea how to shoot. Thomson.
Deliramenta doctrinæ—The crazy absurdities of learned men. L.
Delirant reges, plectuntur Achivi—Whatsoever devilry kings do, the Greeks must pay the piper. Hor.
Deliriums are dreams not rounded with a sleep. Jean Paul.
Deliverer, God hath appointed thee to free the oppressed and crush the oppressor. Bryant.
Dell' albero non si giudica dalla scorza—You can't judge of a tree by its bark. It. Pr.
De loin c'est quelque chose, et de près ce n'est rien—At a distance it is something, at hand nothing. La Fontaine.
Delphinum sylvis appingit, fluctibus aprum—He 5 paints a porpoise in the woods, a boar amidst the waves. Hor.
De lunatico inquirendo—To inquire into a man's state of mind.
Delusion and weakness produce not one mischief the less because they are universal. Burke.
Delusion may triumph, but the triumphs of delusion are but for a day. Macaulay.
Delusions are as necessary to our happiness as realities. Bovee.
Delusive ideas are the motives of the greatest 10 part of mankind, and a heated imagination the power by which their actions are incited. The world in the eye of a philosopher may be said to be a large madhouse. Mackenzie.
Del vero s'adira l'uomo—It is the truth that irritates a man. It. Pr.
De mal en pis—From bad to worse. Fr.
De male quæsitis vix gaudet tertius hæres—A third heir seldom enjoys what it dishonestly acquired. Juv.
Demean thyself more warily in thy study than in the street. If thy public actions have a hundred witnesses, thy private have a thousand. Quarles.
De medietate linguæ—Of a moiety of languages, 15 i.e., foreign jurymen. L.
Dem Esel träumet von Disteln—When the ass dreams, it is of thistles. Ger. Pr.
Dem Glücklichen schlägt keine Stunde—When a man is happy he does not hear the clock strike. Ger. Pr.
Dem harten Muss bequemt sich Will' und Grille—To hard necessity one's will and fancy (must) conform. Goethe.
Dem Herlichsten, was auch der Geist empfangen, drängt Stoff sich an—Matter presses heavily on the noblest efforts of the spirit. Goethe, in "Faust."
Dem Hunde, wenn er gut gezogen / Wird 20 selbst ein weiser Mann gewogen—Even a wise man will attach himself to the dog when he is well bred. Goethe.
De minimis non curat lex—The law takes no notice of trifles. L.
Dem Menschen ist / Ein Mensch noch immer lieber als ein Engel—A man is ever dearer to man than an angel. Lessing.
Democracies are prone to war, and war consumes them. W. H. Seward.
Democracy has done a wrong to everything that is not first-rate. Amiel.
Democracy is always the work of kings. 25 Ashes, which in themselves are sterile, fertilise the land they are cast upon. Landor.
Democracy is, by the nature of it, a self-cancelling business, and gives in the long-run a net result of zero. Carlyle.
Democracy is the healthful life-blood which circulates through the veins and arteries, which supports the system, but which ought never to appear externally, and as the mere blood itself. Coleridge.
Democracy is the most powerful solvent of military organisation. The latter is founded on discipline; the former on the negation of discipline. Renan.
De monte alto—From a lofty mountain. M.
De mortuis nil nisi bonum (or bene)—Let nothing 30 be said of the dead but what is favourable.
De motu proprio—From the suggestion of one's own mind; spontaneously.
Dem thätigen Menschen kommt es darauf an, dass er das Rechte thue; ob das Rechte geschehe, soll ihn nicht kümmern—With the man of action the chief concern is that he do the right thing; the success of that ought not to trouble him. Goethe.
Den Bösen sind sie los; die Bösen sind geblieben—They are rid of the Wicked One, (but) the wicked are still there. Goethe.
De nihilo nihil, in nihilum nil posse reverti—From nothing is nothing, and nothing can be reduced to nothing.
Denique non omnes eadem mirantur amantque—All 35 men do not admire and love the same things. Hor.
Den Irrthum zu bekennen, schändet nicht—It is no disgrace to acknowledge an error. R. Gutzkov.
Denken und Thun, Thun und Denken, das ist die Summe aller Weisheit von jeher anerkannt, von jeher geübt, nicht eingesehen von einem jeden—To think and act, to act and think, this is the sum of all the wisdom that has from the first been acknowledged and practised, though not understood by every one, i.e., (as added) the one must continually act and react on the other, like exhaling and inhaling, must correspond as question and answer. Goethe.
Denke nur niemand, dass man auf ihn als den Heiland gewartet habe—Let no one imagine that he is the man the world has been waiting for as its deliverer. Goethe.
Den leeren Schlauch bläst der Wind auf, / Den leeren Kopf der Dünkel—The empty bag is blown up with wind, the empty head with self-conceit. Claudius.
Den Mantel nach dem Winde kehren—To trim 40 one's sails (lit. to turn one's cloak) to the wind. Ger. Pr.
Den Menschen Liebe, den Göttern Ehrfurcht—To men, affection; to gods, reverence. Grillparzer.
Denn geschwätzig sind die Zeiten, / Und sie sind auch wieder stumm—For the times are babbly, and then again the times are dumb. Goethe.
De non apparentibus, et non existentibus, eadem est ratio—Things which do not appear are to be treated as the same as those which do not exist. Coke.
De novo—Anew.
Den Profit som kom seent, er bedre end aldeles 45 ingen—The profit which comes late is better than none at all. E. H. Vessel.
Den rechten Weg wirst nie vermissen, / Handle nur nach Gefühl und Gewissen—Wilt thou never miss the right way, thou hast only to act according to thy feeling and conscience. Goethe.
Den schlecten Mann muss man verachten / Der nie bedacht was er vollbringt—We must spurn him as a worthless man who never applies his brains to what he is working at. Schiller.
Dens theonina—A calumniating disposition (lit. tooth).
Deo adjuvante non timendum—God assisting, there is nothing to be feared.
Deoch an doris—The parting cup. Gael.
Deo dante nil nocet invidia, et non dante, nil 5 proficit labor—When God gives, envy injures us not; when He does not give, labour avails not.
Deo date—Give unto God. M.
Deo duce, ferro comitante—God my guide, my sword my companion. M.
Deo duce, fortuna comitante—God for guide, fortune for companion. M.
Deo ducente—God guiding. M.
Deo favente—With God's favour. 10
Deo fidelis et regi—Faithful to God and the king. M.
Deo gratias—Thanks to God.
Deo honor et gloria—To God the honour and glory. M.
Deo ignoto—To the unknown God.
Deo juvante—With God's help. 15
De omnibus rebus, et quibusdam aliis—About everything, and certain things else.
De omni re scibile et quibusdam aliis—On everything knowable and some other matters.
Deo, non fortuna—From God, not fortune. M.
Deo, optimo maximo—To God, the best and greatest. M.
Deo, patriæ, amicis—For God, country, and 20 friends. M.
Deo, regi, patriæ—To God, king, and country. M.
Deo, regi, vicino—For God, king, and our neighbour. M.
Deo, republicæ, amicis—To God, the state, and friends. M.
Deorum cibus est—A feast fit for the gods.
De oui et non vient toute question—All disputation 25 comes out of "Yes" and "No." Fr. Pr.
Deo volente—With God's will.
Depart from the highway and transplant thyself in some enclosed ground; for it is hard for a tree that stands by the wayside to keep her fruit till it be ripe. St. Chrysostom.
De paupertate tacentes / Plus poscente ferent—Those who say nothing of their poverty fare better than those who beg. Hor.
De' peccati de' signori fanno penitenza i poveri—The poor do penance for the sins of the rich. It. Pr.
Dependence goes somewhat against the grain 30 of a generous mind; and it is no wonder, considering the unreasonable advantage which is often taken of the inequality of fortune. Jeremy Collier.
Dependence is a perpetual call upon humanity, and a greater incitement to tenderness and pity than any other motive whatsoever. Addison.
Depend upon it, if a man talks of his misfortunes, there is something in them that is not disagreeable to him. Johnson.
De pilo, or de filo, pendet—It hangs by a hair. Pr.
De pis en pis—From worse to worse. Fr.
De plano—With ease. 35
De præscientia Dei—Of the foreknowledge of God.
Deprendi miserum est—To be caught is a wretched experience.
Depressus extollor—Having been depressed, I am exalted. M.
De profundis—Out of the depths.
De propaganda fide—For propagating the Catholic 40 faith.
De publico est elatus—He was buried at the public expense. Livy.
Der Ausgang giebt den Thaten ihre Titel—It is the issue that gives to deeds their title. Goethe.
Der beste Prediger ist die Zeit—Time is the best preacher. Ger. Pr.
Der Böse hat nicht nur die Guten, sondern auch die Bösen gegen sich—The bad man has not only the good, but also the evil opposed to him. Bischer.
Der brave Mann denkt an sich selbst zuletzt—The 45 brave man thinks of himself last of all. Schiller.
Der civilisierte Wilde ist der schlimmste aller Wilden—The civilised savage is the worst of all savages. C. J. Weber.
Der den Augenblick ergreift / Das ist der rechte Mann—He who seizes the moment is the right man. Goethe.
Der Dichter steht auf einer höhern Warte / Als auf den Zinnen der Partei—The poet stands on a higher watch-tower than the pinnacle of party. Freiligrath.
Der echte Geist schwingt sich empor / Und rafft die Zeit sich nach—The genuine spirit soars upward, and snatches the time away after it. Uhland.
Derelictio communis utilitatis contra naturam—The 50 abandonment of what is for the common good is a crime against nature. Cic.
Der Erde Paradies und Hölle / Liegt in dem Worte "Weib"—Heaven and Hell on earth lie in the word "woman." Seume.
Der Fluss bleibt trüb, der nicht durch einen See gegangen, / Das Herz unsauber, das nicht durch ein Weh gegangen—The river remains troubled that has not passed through a lake, the heart unpurified that has not passed through a woe. Rückert.
Der Frauen Zungen ja nimmer ruhn—Women's tongues never rest. A. v. Chamisso.
Der Friede ist immer die letzte Absicht des Krieges—Peace is ever the final aim of war. Wieland.
Der Fuchs ändert den Pelz und behält den 55 Schalk—The fox changes his skin but keeps his knavery. Ger. Pr.
Der Fürst ist nichts, als der erste Diener des Staates—The prince is nothing but the first servant of the state. Frederick the Great.
Der Geist, aus dem wir handeln, ist das Höchste—The spirit from which we act is the principal (lit. the highest) matter. Goethe.
Der Geist der Medicin ist leicht zu fassen; / Ihr durchstudiert die gross' und kleine Welt, / Um es am Ende gehn zu lassen, / Wie's Gott gefällt—The spirit of medicine is easy to master; you study through the great and the little worlds, to let it go in the end as God pleases. Mephisto, in "Faust."
Der Geist, der stets verneint—The spirit that constantly denies, that says everlastingly "No." Goethe's "Mephistopheles."
Der Geist ist immer autochthone—Spirit is always indigenous, i.e., always native to the soil out of which it springs. Goethe.
Der geringste Mensch kann complet sein, wenn er sich innerhalb der Gränzen seiner Fähigkeiten und Fertigkeiten bewegt—The humblest mortal may attain completeness if he confine his activities within the limits of his capability and skill. Goethe.
Der Glaube ist der rechte, der, dass er der rechte bleibt, nicht gezwungen ist einen andern irrgläubig zu finden—That faith is the orthodox which, that it may remain such, is under no necessity of finding another heterodox. Börne.
Der Gott, der mir im Busen wohnt, / Kann 5 tief mein Innerstes erregen; der über allen meinen Kräften thront, er kann nach aussen nichts bewegen—The God who dwells in my breast can stir my inmost soul to its depths; he who sits as sovereign over all my powers has no control over things beyond. Goethe.
Der grösste Mensch bleibt stets ein Menschenkind—The greatest man remains always a man-child, or son of man. Goethe.
Der grösste Schritt ist der aus der Thür—The greatest step is that out of the door. Ger. Pr.
Der gute Mann braucht überall viel Boden—The good man needs always large room. Lessing.
Der gute Wille ist in der Moral alles; aber in der Kunst ist er nichts: da gilt, wie schon das Wort andeutet, allein Können—Goodwill is everything in morals, but in art it is nothing: in it, as the word indicates, only ability counts for aught. Schopenhauer.
Der Hahn schliesst die Augen, wann er krähet, 10 weil er es auswendig kann—The cock shuts his eyes when he crows, because he has it by heart. Ger. Pr.
Der Handelnde ist immer gewissenlos, es hat niemand Gewissen, als der Betrachtende—The man who acts merely is always without conscience; no one has conscience but the man who reflects. Goethe.
Der hat die Macht, an den die Menge glaubt—He has the power whom the majority believe in. Raupach.
Der hat nie das Glück gekostet, der's in Ruh geniessen will—He has never tasted happiness who will enjoy it in peace. Th. Körner.
Der Hauptfehler des Menschen bleibt, dass er so viele kleine hat—Man's chief fault is ever that he has so many small ones. Jean Paul.
Der Himmel giebt die Gunst des Augenblicks; / 15 Wer schnell sie fasst, wird Meister des Geschicks—Heaven gives the grace needed for the moment; he who seizes it quickly becomes master of his fate. Raupach.
Der Himmel kann ersetzen / Was er entzogen hat—What Heaven has taken away, Heaven can make good. Rückert.
Der Historiker ist ein rückwärts gekehrter Prophet—The historian is a prophet with his face turned backwards. F. v. Schlegel.
Der höchste Stolz und der höchste Kleinmuth ist die höchste Unkenntniss seiner selbst—Extreme pride and extreme dejection are alike extreme ignorance of one's self. Spinoza.
Der höchste Vorwurf der Kunst für denkende Menschen ist der Mensch—The highest subject of art for thinking men is man. Winkelmann.
Deridet, sed non derideor—He laughs, but I am 20 not laughed at.
Der Irrthum ist recht gut, so lange wir jung sind; man muss ihn nur nicht mit ins Alter schleppen—Error is very well so long as we are young, but we must not drag it with us into old age. Goethe.
Der ist edel, / Welcher edel fühlt und handelt—He is noble who feels and acts nobly. Heine.
Der Jugend Führer sei das Alter; beiden sei / Nur wenn sie als Verbundne wandeln, Glück versichert—Be age the guide of youth; both will be happy only if they go hand in hand (lit. as confederates) together. Goethe.
Der Jüngling kämpft, damit der Greis geniesse—The youth fights that the old man may enjoy. Goethe.
Der kann nicht klagen über harten Spruch, 25 den man zum Meister seines Schicksals macht—He cannot complain of a hard sentence who is made master of his own fate. Schiller.
Der kleine Gott der Welt bleibt stets von gleichem Schlag / Und ist so wunderlich, als wie am ersten Tag—The little god of the world (i.e., man) continues ever of the same stamp, and is as odd as on the first day. Goethe.
Der Krieg ist die stärkende Eisenkur der Menschheit—War is the strengthening iron cure of humanity. Jean Paul.
Der Künstler muss mit Feuer entwerfen und mit Phlegma ausführen—The artist must invent (lit. sketch) with ardour and execute with coolness. Winkelmann.
Der Lebende hat Recht—The living has right on his side. Schiller.
Der Mann, der das Wenn und das Aber 30 erdacht / Hat sicher aus Häckerling Gold schon gemacht—The man who invented "if" and "but" must surely have converted chopt straw into gold. G. A. Bürger.
Der Mann muss hinaus ins feindliche Leben—A man must go forth to face life with its enmities. Schiller.
Der Mensch begreift niemals wie anthropomorphisch er ist—Man never comprehends how anthropomorphic his conceptions are. Goethe.
Der Mensch denkt, Gott lenkt—Man proposes, God disposes. Ger. Pr.
Der Menschenkenner steht überall an seinem Platze—He who knows man is everywhere in his place. Klinger.
Der Mensch erfährt, er sei auch wer er mag, / 35 Ein letztes Glück und einen letzten Tag—No man, be he who he may, but experiences a last happiness and a last day. Goethe.
Der Mensch hat nur allzusehr Ursache, sich vor dem Menschen zu schützen—Man has only too much reason to guard himself from man. Goethe.
Der Mensch ist ein nachahmendes Geschöpf und wer der vorderste ist, führt die Herde—Man is an imitative being, and the foremost leads the flock. Schiller.
Der Mensch ist entwickelt, nicht erschaffen—Man has been developed, not created. Oken.
Der Mensch ist frei geschaffen, ist frei, / Und würd' er in Ketten geboren!—Man has been created free, is free, even were he born in chains. Schiller.
Der Mensch ist frei wie der Vogel im Käfig; er kann sich innerhalb gewisser Grenzen bewegen—Man is free as the bird in the cage: he has powers of motion within certain limits. Lavater.
Der Mensch ist im Grunde ein wildes, entsetzliches Thier—Man is at bottom a savage animal and an object of dread, as we may see (it is added) he still is when emancipated from all control. Schopenhauer.
Der Mensch ist nicht bloss ein denkendes, er ist zugleich ein empfindendes Wesen. Er ist ein Ganzes, eine Einheit vielfacher, innig verbundner Kräfte, und zu diesem Ganzen muss das Kunstwerk reden—Man is not merely a thinking, he is at the same time a sentient, being. He is a whole, a unity of manifold, internally connected powers, and to this whole must the work of art speak. Goethe.
Der Mensch ist nicht geboren frei zu sein / 5 Und für den Edeln ist kein schöner Glück / Als einem Fürst, den er ehrt, zu dienen—Man is not born to be free; and for the noble soul there is no fairer fortune than to serve a prince whom he regards with honour. Goethe.
Der Mensch ist selbst sein Gott, sein Beruf ist: Handeln—Man is a god to himself, and his calling is to act. Tiedge.
Der Mensch ist, was er isst—Man is what he eats. L. Feuerbach.
Der Mensch liebt nur einmal—Man loves only once. Ger. Pr.
Der Mensch muss bei dem Glauben verharren, dass das Unbegreifliche begreiflich sei; er würde sonst nicht forschen—Man must hold fast by the belief that the incomprehensible is comprehensible; otherwise he would not search. Goethe.
Der Mensch muss ein Höheres, ein Göttliches 10 anerkennen—ob in sich oder über sich, gleichviel—Man must acknowledge a higher, a divine—whether in himself or over himself, no matter. Hamerling.
Der Mensch versuche die Götter nicht—Let not man tempt the gods. Schiller.
Der Mensch war immer Mensch, voll Unvollkommenheit—Man has ever been man, full of imperfection. J. P. Uz.
Der Mensch, wo ist er her? / Zu schlecht für einen Gott, zu gut für's Ungefähr—Man, whence is he? Too bad to be the work of a god, too good for the work of chance. Lessing.
Der Muth der Wahrheit ist die erste Bedingung des philosophischen Studiums—The courage of truth is the first qualification for philosophic study. Hegel.
Dernier ressort—A last resource. Fr. 15
Der Pfaff liebt seine Herde, doch die Lämmlein mehr als die Widder—The priest loves his flock, but the lambs more than the rams. Ger. Pr.
Der preise glücklich sein, der von / Den Göttern dieser Welt entfernt lebt—Let him count himself happy who lives remote from the gods of this world. Goethe.
Der Rathgeber eines Höheren handelt klüglich, wenn er sein geistiges Uebergewicht verbirgt, wie das Weib seine Schönheit verhüllt um des Sieges desto gewisser zu sein—The adviser of a superior acts wisely if he conceals his spiritual superiority, as the woman veils her beauty in order to be the more certain of conquering. Zachariae.
Derrière la croix souvent se tient le diable—Behind the cross the devil often lurks. Fr. Pr.
Der Ring macht Ehen, / Und Ringe sind's, die 20 eine Kette machen—The ring makes marriage, and rings make a chain. Schiller.
Der Rose süsser Duft genügt, / Man braucht sie nicht zu brechen / Und wer sich mit dem Duft begnügt / Den wird ihr Dorn nicht stechen—The sweet scent of the rose suffices; one needs not break it off, and he who is satisfied therewith will not be stung by the thorn. Bodenstedt.
Der Schein regiert die Welt, und die Gerechtigkeit ist nur auf der Bühne—Appearance rules the world, and we see justice only on the stage. Schiller.
Der Schein, was ist er, dem das Wesen fehlt? / Das Wesen wär' es, wenn es nicht erschiene?—The appearance, what is it without the reality? And what were the reality without the appearance? (the clothes, as "Sartor" has it, without the man, or the man without the clothes). Goethe.
Der Schmerz ist die Geburt der höheren Naturen—Pain is the birth of higher natures. Tiedge.
Der Sinn erweitert, aber lähmt; die That 25 belebt, aber beschränkt—Thought expands, but lames; action animates, but narrows. Goethe.
Der Stärkste hat Recht—The right is with the strongest. Ger. Pr.
Der Stein im Sumpf / Macht keine Ringe—You can make no rings if you throw a stone into a marsh. Goethe.
Der Tod entbindet von erzwungnen Pflichten—Death releases from enforced duties. Schiller.
Der Umgang mit Frauen ist das Element guter Sitten—The society of women is the nursery of good manners. Goethe.
Der Verständige findet fast alles lächerlich, 30 der Vernünftige fast nichts—The man of analytic, or critical, intellect finds something ridiculous in almost everything; the man of synthetic, or constructive, intellect, in almost nothing. Goethe.
Der Vortrag macht des Redners Glück—It is delivery that makes the orator's success. Goethe.
Der Wahn ist kurz, die Reu' ist lang—The illusion is brief, the remorse is long. Schiller.
Der Weg der Ordnung, ging er auch durch Krümmen, / Er ist kein Umweg—The path which good order prescribes is the direct one, even though it has windings. Schiller.
Der Weise hat die Ohren lang, die Zunge kurz—The wise man has long ears and a short tongue. Ger. Pr.
Der Weise kann des Mächtigen Gunst entbehren, 35 / Doch nicht der Mächtige des Weisen Lehren—The wise man can dispense with the favour of the mighty, but not the mighty man with the wisdom of the wise. Bodenstedt.
Der Wille ist des Werkes Seele—What we will is the soul of what we do. Ger. Pr.
Der wird stets das Beste missen / Wer nicht borgt, was andre wissen—He will always lack what is best who does not give credit to what others know. Rückert.
Der Witz ist die Freiheit des Sklaven—The witty sally is the freedom of the slave. Ruge.
Der Zug des Herzens ist des Schicksals Stimme—In the drawing of the heart is the oracle of fate. Schiller.
Descend a step in choosing thy wife; ascend a step in choosing thy friend. The Talmud.
Description is always a bore, both to the describer 5 and the describee. Disraeli.
Deserted, at his utmost need, / By those his former bounty fed, / On the bare earth exposed be lies, / With not a friend to close his eyes. Dryden.
Desiderantem quod satis est, neque / Tumultuosum sollicitat mare, / Non verberatæ grandine vineæ / Fundusque mendax—A storm at sea, a vine-wasting hail tempest, a disappointing farm, cause no anxiety to him who is content with enough. Hor.
Desideratum—A thing desired, but regretfully wanting.
Desine fata Deum flecti sperare precando—Cease to hope that the decrees of the gods can bend to prayer. Virg.
Desinit in piscem mulier formosa superne—A 10 beautiful woman in the upper parts terminating in a fish. Hor.
Désir de Dieu et désir de l'homme sont deux—What God wishes and man wishes are two different things. Fr. Pr.
Desires are the pulse of the soul. Manton.
Des Lebens Mühe / Lehrt uns allein des Lebens Güter schätzen—The labour of life alone teaches us to value the good things of life. Goethe.
Des Mannes Mutter ist der Frau Teufel—The husband's mother is the wife's devil. Ger. Pr.
Des Menschen Engel ist die Zeit—Time is 15 man's angel. Schiller.
Des Menschens Leben ist / Ein kurzes Blühen und ein langes Welken—The life of man is a short blossoming and a long withering. Uhland.
Despair defies even despotism; there is that in my heart would make its way through hosts with levelled spears. Byron.
Despair is like froward children, who, when you take away one of their playthings, throw the rest into the fire for madness. Charron.
Despair is the only genuine atheism. Jean Paul.
Despair takes heart when there's no hope to 20 speed; / The coward then takes arms and does the deed. Herrick.
Despair—the last dignity of the wretched. H. Giles.
Despatch is the soul of business. Chesterfield.
Desperate diseases need desperate remedies. Pr.
Despise anxiety and wishing, the past and the future. Jean Paul.
Despise not any man, and do not spurn anything; 25 for there is no man that has not his hour, nor is there anything that has not its place. Rabbi Ben Azai.
Despise not the discoveries of the wise, but acquaint thyself with their proverbs, for of them thou shalt learn instruction. Ecclus.
Despise your enemy and you will soon be beaten. Port. Pr.
Despite his titles, power, and pelf, / The wretch concentred all in self, / Living, shall forfeit fair renown, / And, doubly dying, shall go down / To the vile dust, from whence he sprung, / Unwept, unhonoured, and unsung. Scott.
Despondency comes readily enough to the most sanguine. Emerson.
Desponding fear, of feeble fancies full, / Weak 30 and unmanly, loosens every power. Thomson.
Despotism is a legitimate mode of government in dealing with barbarians, provided the end be their improvement, and the means justified by actually effecting that end. J. S. Mill.
Despotism is essential in most enterprises; I am told they do not tolerate "freedom of debate" on board a seventy-four. Carlyle.
Despotism is often the effort of Nature to cure herself from a worse disease. Robert, Lord Lytton.
Despotism sits nowhere so secure as under the effigy and ensigns of freedom. Landor.
Despotismus ist der schwarze Punkt in aller 35 Menschen Herzen—Despotism is the black spot in the hearts of all men. C. J. Weber.
Desque nací lloré, y cada dia nace porqué—I wept as soon as I was born, and every day explains why. Sp. Pr.
Des Rats bedarf die Seele nicht, die Rechtes will—The soul which wills what is right needs no counsel. Platen.
Destiny is our will, and will is nature. Disraeli.
Destitutus ventis remos adhibe—The wind failing, ply the oars.
Destroy his fib or sophistry—in vain! / The 40 creature's at his dirty work again. Pope.
Des Uebels Quelle findest du nicht aus, und aufgefunden fliesst sie ewig fort—The well-spring of evil thou canst not discover, and even if discovered, it flows on continually. Goethe.
Desunt cætera—The remainder is wanting.
Desunt inopiæ multa, avaritiæ omnia—Poverty is in want of many things, avarice of everything. L. Pr.
Des Zornes Ende ist der Reue Anfang—The end of anger is the beginning of repentance. Bodenstedt.
Deteriores omnes sumus licentia—We are all 45 the worse for the license. Ter.
Determined, dared, and done. Smart.
Detested sport, that owes its pleasures to another's pain. Cowper.
De tijd is aan God en ons—Time is God's and ours. Dut. Pr.
Det ille veniam facile, cui venia est opus—He who needs pardon should readily grant it. Sen.
Detour—A circuitous march. Fr. 50
De tout s'avise à qui pain faut—A man in want of bread is ready for anything. Fr. Pr.
Detraction's a bold monster, and fears not / To wound the fame of princes, if it find / But any blemish in their lives to work on. Massinger.
De trop—Too much, or too many; out of place. Fr.
Detur aliquando otium quiesque fessis—Leisure and repose should at times be given to the weary. Sen.
Detur digniori—Let it be given to the most worthy. M.
Detur pulchriori—Let it be given to the fairest. The inscription on the golden apple of discord.
Deum cole, regem serva—Worship God, preserve the king. M.
Deum colit, qui novit—He who knows God worships 5 Him. Sen.
Deus avertat—God forbid.
Deus ex machina—A mechanical instead of a rational or spiritual explanation (lit. a god mechanically introduced).
Deus hæc fortasse benigna / Reducet in sedem vice—God will perhaps by a gracious change restore these things to a stable condition. Hor.
Deus id vult—God wills it. War-cry of the Crusaders before Jerusalem.
Deus major columna—God is the greater support. 10 M.
Deus mihi providebit—God will provide for me. M.
Deus omnibus quod sat est suppeditat—God supplies enough to all. M.
Deus vult—It is God's will.
Deux hommes se rencontrent bien, mais jamais deux montagnes—Two men may meet, but never two mountains. Fr.
Deux yeux voient plus clair qu'un—A ghost 15 was never seen by two pair of eyes (lit. two eyes see more clearly than one). Fr.
Devil take the hindmost. Beaumont and Fletcher.
Devine si tu peux, et choisis si tu l'oses—Solve the riddle if you can, and choose if you dare. Corneille.
Devise, wit; write, pen; for I am for whole volumes in folio. Love's L. Lost, i. 2.
De vive voix—Verbally. Fr.
Devote each day to the object then in time, 20 and every evening will find something done. Goethe.
Devotion in distress is born, but vanishes in happiness. Dryden.
Devotion, when it does not lie under the check of reason, is apt to degenerate into enthusiasm (fanaticism). Addison.
De waarheid is eene dochter van den tijd—Truth is a daughter of Time. Dut. Pr.
Dewdrops are the gems of morning, but the tears of mournful eve. Coleridge.
De wereld wil betrogen zijn—The world likes 25 to be deceived. Dut. Pr.
Dexterity or experience no master can communicate to his disciple. Goethe.
Dextras dare—To give right hands to each other.
Dextro tempore—At a lucky moment. Hor.
Diamonds cut diamonds. Ford.
Di bene fecerunt, inopis me quodque pusilli / 30 Finxerunt animi, raro et perpauca loquentis—The gods be praised for having made me of a poor and humble mind, with a desire to speak but seldom and briefly. Hor.
Dicam insigne, recens, adhuc / Indictum ore alio—I will utter something striking, something fresh, something as yet unsung by another's lips. Hor.
Dicenda tacenda locutus—Saying things that should be, and things that should not be, said. Hor.
Dicere quæ puduit, scribere jussit amor—What I was ashamed to say, love has ordered me to write. Ovid.
Dicique beatus / Ante obitum nemo supremaque funera debet—No one should be called happy before he is dead and buried. Ovid.
Dicta fides sequitur—The promise is no sooner 35 given than fulfilled. Ovid.
Dicta tibi est lex—The conditions have been laid before you. Hor.
Dictum de dicto—A report founded on hearsay.
Dictum factum—No sooner said than done. Ter.
Dictum sapienti sat est—A word to a wise man is enough. Plaut. and Ter.
Did charity prevail, the press would prove / A 40 vehicle of virtue, truth, and love. Cowper.
Did I know that my heart was bound to temporal possessions, I would throw the flaming brand among them with my own hand. Schiller.
"Did I not tell you that after thunder rain would be sure to come on?" Socrates to his friends when, after a volley of upbraidings, Xantippe threw a jugful of water at his head.
Didst thou but know the inly touch of love, / Thou wouldst as soon go kindle fire with snow, / As seek to quench the fire of love with words. Two Gen. of Ver., ii. 7.
Did you ever hear of Captain Wattle? / He was all for love and a little for the bottle. C. Dibden.
Die Aemter sind Gottes; die Amtleute Teufels—Places 45 are God's; place-holders are the devil's. Ger. Pr.
Die alleinige Quelle des Rechts ist das gemeinsame Bewusstsein des ganzen Volks; der allgemeine Geist—The only fountain of justice is the common consciousness of the whole people; the spirit common to all of them. Lasalle.
Die Alten sind die einzigen Alten, die nie alt werden—The ancients (i.e., the Greeks and Romans) are the only ancients that never grow old. C. J. Weber.
Die Anmut macht unwiderstehlich—Grace makes its possessor irresistible. Goethe.
Die ärgsten Studenten werden die frömmsten Prediger—The worst-behaved students turn out the most pious preachers. Ger. Pr.
Die Armen müssen tanzen wie die Reichen 50 pfeifen—The poor must dance as the rich pipe. Ger. Pr.
Die Augen glauben sich selbst, die Ohren andern Leuten—The eyes believe themselves, the ears other people. Ger. Pr.
Die Augen sind weiter als der Bauch—The eyes are larger than the belly. Ger. Pr.
Die besten Freunde stehen im Beutel—Our best friends are in our purse. Ger. Pr.
Die Bewunderung preist, die Liebe ist stumm—Admiration praises, love is dumb. Börne.
Die Blumen zu pflegen, / Das Unkraut zu 55 tilgen, / Ist Sache des Gärtners—The gardener's business is to root out the weeds and tend the flowers. Bodenstedt.
Die Botschaft hör' ich wohl, allein mir fehlt der Glaube—I hear the message, but I lack the faith. Goethe.
Die Damen geben sich und ihren Putz zum besten / Und spielen ohne Gage mit—The ladies by their presence and finery contribute to the treat and take part in the play without pay from us. The Theatre Manager in Goethe's "Faust."
Die Dämmerung ist das freundliche Licht der Liebenden—The gloaming is the light that befriends the wooer. Seume.
Die de wereld wel beziet, men zag nooit schoonder niet—Whoso considers the world well must allow he has never seen a better. Dut. Pr.
Die Dornen, die Disteln, sie stechen gar sehr, 5 doch stechen die Altjungfernzungen noch mehr—Thorns and thistles prick very sore, but old maids' tongues sting much more. C. Geibel.
Die een ander jaagt zit zelfs niet stil—He who chases another does not sit still himself. Dut. Pr.
Die Ehe ist Himmel und Hölle—Marriage is heaven and hell. Ger. Pr.
Die eigentliche Religion bleibt ein Inneres, ja Individuelles, denn sie hat ganz allein mit dem Gewissen zu thun; dieses soll erregt, soll beschwichtigt werden—Religion, properly so called, is ever an inward, nay, an individual thing, for it has to do with nothing but the conscience, which has now to be stirred up, now to be soothed. Goethe.
Die Einsamkeit ist noth; doch sei nur nicht gemein, / So kannst du überall in einer Wüste sein—Solitude is painful; only be not vulgar, for then you may be in a desert everywhere. Angelus Silesius.
Die Eintracht nur macht stark und gross, / 10 Die Zwietracht stürzet alles nieder—Only concord makes us strong and great; discord overthrows everything. Gellert.
Die Erde wird durch Liebe frei; / Durch Thaten wird sie gross—Through love the earth becomes free; through deeds, great. Goethe.
Die Erinnerung ist das einzige / Paradies, aus dem wir nicht vertrieben werden kann—Remembrance is the only paradise from which we cannot be driven. Jean Paul.
Die Fabel ist der Liebe Heimatwelt, / Gern wohnt sie unter Feen, Talismanen, / Glaubt gern an Götter, weil sie göttlich ist—Fable is love's native world, is fain to dwell among fairies and talismans, and to believe in gods, being herself divine. Schiller.
Die Frauen sind das einzige Gefäss, was uns Neuern noch geblieben ist, um unsere Idealität hineinzugiessen—Woman is the only vessel which still remains to us moderns into which we can pour our ideals. Goethe.
Die Frauen tragen ihre Beweise im Herzen, 15 die Männer im Kopfe—Women carry their logic in their hearts; men, in their heads. Kotzebue.
Die Freiheit der Vernunft ist unser wahres Leben—The freedom of reason is our true life. Tiedge.
Die Freiheit kann nicht untergehn, / So lange Schmiede Eisen hämmern—The sun of freedom cannot set so long as smiths hammer iron. E. M. Arndt.
Die Freude kennst du nicht, wenn du nur Freuden kennest; / Dir fehlt das ganze Licht, wenn du's in Strahlen trennest—Joy knowest thou not if thou knowest only joys; the whole light is wanting to thee if thou breakest it up into rays. Rückert.
Die Freudigkeit ist die Mutter aller Tugenden—Joyousness is the mother of all virtues. Goethe.
Die Gegenwart ist eine mächtige Göttin; Lern' 20 ihren Einfluss kennen—The present is a potent divinity; learn to acquaint thyself with her power. Goethe.
Die Geheimnisse der Lebenspfade darf und kann man nicht offenbaren; es gibt Steine des Anstosses, über die ein jeder Wanderer stolpern muss. Der Poet aber deutet auf die Stelle hin—The secrets of the way of life may not and cannot be laid open; there are stones of offence along the path over which every wayfarer must stumble. The poet, or inspired teacher, however, points to the spot. Goethe.
Die Geisterwelt ist nicht verschlossen; / Dein Sinn ist zu, dein Herz ist todt—The spirit-world is not shut; thy sense is shut, thy heart is dead. Goethe.
Die Geschichte der Wissenschaften ist eine grosse Fuge, in der die Stimmen der Völker nach und nach zum Vorschein kommen—The history of the sciences is a great fugue, in which the voices of the nations come one by one into notice. Goethe.
Die Geschichte des Menschen ist sein Charakter—The history of a man is in his character. Goethe.
Die Gesetze der Moral sind auch die der 25 Kunst—The laws of morals are also those of art. Schumann.
Die Glocken sind die Artillerie der Geistlichkeit—Bells are the artillery of the Church. Joseph II.
Die goldne Zeit, wohin ist sie geflohen? / Nach der sich jedes Herz vergebens sehnt—The golden age, whither has it fled? after which every heart sighs in vain. Goethe.
Die Götter brauchen manchen guten Mann / Zu ihrem Dienst auf dieser weiten Erde. / Sie haben noch auf dich gezählt—The upper powers need many a good man for their service on this wide earth. They still reckon upon thee. Goethe.
Die Götter sprechen nur durch unser Herz zu uns—The gods speak to us only through our heart. Goethe.
Die grosse Moral—das Interesse, sagte Mirabeau, 30 tötet in der Regel die kleine—das Gewissen—The great moral teacher, interest, as Mirabeau said, ordinarily slays conscience, the less. C. J. Weber.
Die grössten Menschen hängen immer mit ihrem Jahrhundert durch eine Schwachheit zusammen—It is always through a weakness that the greatest men are connected with their generation. Goethe.
Die grössten Schwierigkeiten liegen da, wo wir sie nicht suchen—The greatest difficulties lie there where we are not seeking for them. Goethe.
Die het in het vuur verloren heeft, moet het in de asch zoeken—What is lost in the fire must be searched for in the ashes. Dut. Pr.
Die Hindus der Wüste geloben keine Fische zu essen—The Hindus of the desert take a vow to eat no fish. Goethe.
Die höchste Naturschönheit ist das gottgleiche Wesen: der Mensch—The most beautiful object in Nature is the godlike creature: man. Oken.
Die höchste Weisheit ist, nicht weise stets zu sein—It is the highest wisdom not to be always wise. M. Opitz.
Die Hölle selbst hat ihre Rechte?—Has Hell itself its rights? Goethe.
Die Ideale sind zerronnen, / Die einst das trunkne Herz geschwellt—The ideals are all melted into air which once swelled the intoxicated heart. Schiller.
Die Idee ist ewig und einzig.... Alles was 5 wir gewahr werden und wovon wir reden können, sind nur Manifestationen der Idee—The idea is one and eternal.... Everything we perceive, and of which we can speak, is only a manifestation of the idea. Goethe.
Die Irrthümer des Menschen machen ihn eigentlich liebenswürdig—It is properly man's mistakes, or errors, that make him lovable. Goethe.
Diejenige Regierung ist die beste, die sich überflüssig macht—That government is best which makes itself unnecessary. W. v. Humboldt.
Die Kinder sind mein liebster Zeitvertreib—My dearest pastime is with children. Chamisso.
Die Kirche hat einen guten Magen, hat ganze Länder aufgefressen, und doch noch nie sich übergessen—The Church has a good stomach, has swallowed up whole countries, and yet has not overeaten herself. Goethe, in "Faust."
Die Kirche ist's, die heilige, die hohe, / Die zu 10 dem Himmel uns die Leiter baut—The Church, the holy, the high, it is that rears for us the ladder to heaven. Schiller.
Die Kleinen reden gar so gern von dem was die Grossen thun—Small people are so fond of talking of what great people do. Ger. Pr.
Die Klugheit sich zur Führerin zu wählen / Das ist es, was den Weisen macht—It is the choice of prudence for his guide that makes the wise man. Schiller.
Die Kraft ist schwach, allein die Lust ist gross—The strength is weak, but the desire is great. Goethe.
Die kranke Seele muss sich selber helfen—The sick soul must work its own cure (lit. help itself). Gutskow.
Die Krankheit des Gemütes löset sich / In 15 Klagen und Vertrauen am leichtesten auf—Mental sickness finds relief most readily in complaints and confidences. Goethe.
Die Kunst darf nie ein Kunststück werden—Art should never degenerate into artifice. Ger.
Die Kunst geht nach Brod—Art goes a-begging. Ger. Pr.
Die Kunst ist eine Vermittlerin des Unaussprechlichen—Art is a mediatrix of the unspeakable. Goethe.
Die Leidenschaften sind Mängel oder Tugenden, nur gesteigerte—The passions are vices or virtues, only exaggerated. Goethe.
Die Leidenschaft flieht, / Die Liebe muss bleiben; 20 / Die Blume verblüht, / Die Frucht muss treiben—Passion takes flight, love must abide; the flower fades, the fruit must ripen. Schiller.
Die letzte Wahl steht auch dem Schwächsten offen; / Ein Sprung von dieser Brücke macht mich frei—The last choice of all is open even to the weakest; a leap from this bridge sets me free. Schiller.
Die Liebe hat kein Mass der Zeit; sie keimt / Und blüht und reift in einer schönen Stunde—Love follows no measure of time; it buds and blossoms and ripens in one happy hour. Körner.
Die Liebe ist der Liebe Preis—Love is the price of love. Schiller.
Die Liebe macht zum Goldpalast die Hütte—Love converts the cottage into a palace of gold. Hölty.
Die Lieb' umfasst des Weibes volles Leben, / 25 Sie ist ihr Kerker und ihr Himmelreich—Love embraces woman's whole life; it is her prison and her kingdom of heaven. Chamisso.
Die Lust ist mächtiger als alle Furcht der Strafe—Pleasure is more powerful than all fear of the penalty. Goethe.
Die Lust zu reden kommt zu rechter Stunde, / Und wahrhaft fliesst das Wort aus Herz und Munde—The inclination to speak comes at the right hour, and the word flows true from heart and lip. Goethe.
Die Manifestationen der Idee als des Schönen, ist eben so flüchtig, als die Manifestationen des Erhabenen, des Geistreichen, des Lustigen, des Lächerlichen. Dies ist die Ursache, warum so schwer darüber zu reden ist—The manifestation of the idea as the beautiful is just as fleeting as the manifestation of the sublime, the witty, the gay, and the ludicrous. This is the reason why it is so difficult to speak of it. Goethe.
Die Meisterhaft gilt oft für Egoismus—Mastery passes often for egoism. Goethe.
Die Menge macht den Künstler irr' und scheu—The 30 multitude is a distraction and scare to the artist. Goethe.
Die Menschen fürchtet nur, wer sie nicht kennt, / Und wer sie meidet, wird sie bald verkennen—Only he shrinks from men who does not know them, and he who shuns them will soon misknow them. Goethe.
Die Menschen kennen einander nicht leicht, selbst mit dem besten Willen und Vorsatz; nun tritt noch der böse Wille hinzu, der Alles entstellt—Men do not easily know one another, even with the best will and intention; presently ill-will comes forward, which disfigures all. Goethe.
Die Menschen sind im ganzen Leben blind—Men are blind all through life. Goethe.
Die Menschheit geben uns Vater und Mutter, die Menschlichkeit aber gibt uns nur die Erziehung—Human nature we owe to father and mother, but humanity to education alone. Weber.
Die Milde ziemt dem Weibe, / Dem Manne 35 ziemt die Rache!—Mercy becomes the woman; avengement, the man. Bodenstedt.
Die Mode ist weiblichen Geschlechts, hat folglich ihre Launen—Mode is of the female sex, and has consequently their whims. C. J. Weber.
Die monarchische Regierungsform ist die dem Menschen natürliche—Monarchy is the form of government that is natural to mankind. Schopenhauer.
Die Moral steckt in kurzen Sprüchen besser, als in langen Reden und Predigten—A moral lesson is better expressed in short sayings than in long discourse. Immermann.
Diem perdidi!—I have lost a day! Titus, on finding that he had done no worthy action during the day.
Die Mütter geben uns von Geiste Wärme, und die Väter Licht—Our mothers give to our spirit heat, our fathers light. Jean Paul.
Die Natur ist ein unendlich geteilter Gott—Nature is an infinitely divided God. Schiller.
Die Natur weiss allein, was sie will—Nature alone knows what she aims at. Goethe.
Die of a rose in aromatic pain. Pope.
Die Phantasie ward auserkoren / Zu öffnen 5 uns die reiche Wunderwelt—Fantasy was appointed to open to us the rich realm of wonders. Tiedge.
Die Rachegötter schaffen im Stillen—The gods of vengeance act in silence. Schiller.
Dies adimit ægritudinem—Time cures our griefs. L. Pr.
Die Schönheit ist das höchste Princip und der höchste Zweck der Kunst—Beauty is the highest principle and the highest aim of art. Goethe.
Die Schönheit ist vergänglich, die ihr doch / Allein zu ehren scheint. Was übrig bleibt, / Das reizt nicht mehr, und was nicht reizt, ist tot—Beauty is transitory, which yet you seem alone to worship. What is left no longer attracts, and what does not attract is dead. Goethe.
Die Schönheit ruhrt, doch nur die Anmuth 10 sieget, / Und Unschuld nur behält den Preis—Beauty moves us, though only grace conquers us, and innocence alone retains the prize. Seume.
Die Schulden sind der nächste Erbe—Debts fall to the next heir. Ger. Pr.
Die Schwierigkeiten wachsen, je näher man dem Ziele kommt—Difficulties increase the nearer we approach the goal. Goethe.
Dies datus—A day given for appearing in court. L.
Dies faustus—A lucky day.
Dies infaustus—An unlucky day. 15
Die Sinne trügen nicht, aber das Urteil trügt—The senses do not deceive, but the judgment does. Goethe.
Dies iræ, dies illa, / Sæclum solvet in favilla / Teste David cum Sibylla—The day of wrath, that day shall dissolve the world in ashes, as David and the Sibyl say.
Dies non—A day when there is no court.
Die Sorgen zu bannen, / (Das Unkraut des Geistes), den Kummer zu scheuchen, / Die Schmerzen zu lindern, / Ist Sache des Sängers—To banish cares (the wild crop of the spirit), to chase away sorrow, to soothe pain, is the business of the singer. Bodenstedt.
Die Sorg' um Künft'ges niemals frommt; Man 20 fühlt kein Uebel, bis es kommt. / Und wenn man's fühlt, so hilft kein Rat; / Weisheit ist immer zu früh und zu spat—Concern for the future boots not; we feel no evil till it comes. And when we feel it, no counsel avails; wisdom is always too early and too late. Rückert.
Dies religiosi—Religious days; holidays.
Die süssesten Trauben hängen am höchsten—The sweetest grapes hang highest. Ger. Pr.
Diet cures more than doctors. Pr.
Die te veel onderneemt slaagt zelden—He who undertakes too much seldom succeeds. Dut. Pr.
Die That allein beweist der Liebe Kraft—The 25 act alone shows the power of love. Goethe.
Die Thätigkeit ist was den Menschen glücklich macht; / Die, erst das Gute schaffend, bald ein Uebel selbst / Durch göttlich wirkende Gewalt in Gutes kehrt—It is activity which renders man happy, which, by simply producing what is good, soon by a divinely working power converts an evil itself into a good. Goethe.
Die Todten reiten schnell!—The dead ride fast! Bürger.
Die treue Brust des braven Manns allein ist ein sturmfester Dach in diesen Zeiten—The loyal heart of the good man is in these times the only storm-proof place of shelter. Schiller.
Die Tugend des Menschen, der nach dem Geboten der Vernunft lebt, zeigt sich gleich gross in Vermeidung, wie in Ueberwindung der Gefahren—The virtue of the man who lives according to the commands of reason manifests itself quite as much in avoiding as in overcoming danger. Spinoza.
Die Tugend grosser Seelen ist Gerechtigkeit—The 30 virtue of great souls is justice. Platen.
Die Tugend ist das höchste Gut, / Das Laster Weh dem Menschen thut—Virtue is man's highest good, vice works him nought but woe. Goethe.
Die Tugend ist nicht ein Wissen, sondern ein Wollen—Virtue is not a knowing, but a willing. Zachariae.
Die Tugend ohne Lohn ist doppelt schön—Virtue unrewarded is doubly beautiful. Seume.
Dieu aide à trois sortes de personnes, aux fous, aux enfants, et aux ivrognes—God protects three sorts of people, fools, children, and drunkards. Fr. Pr.
Dieu avec nous—God with us. M. 35
Dieu ayde—God help me. M.
Dieu défend le droit—God defends the right. M.
Dieu donne le froid selon le drap—God gives the cold according to the cloth. Fr. Pr.
Dieu et mon droit—God and my right. M.
Dieu fit du repentir la vertu des mortels—God 40 has made repentance the virtue of mortals. Voltaire.
Dieu garde la lune des loups—God guards the moon from the wolves. Fr. Pr.
Dieu mésure le froid à la brebis tondue—God measures the cold to the shorn lamb. Fr. Pr.
Die unbegreiflich hohen Werke / Sind herrlich wie am ersten Tag—The incomprehensibly high works are as glorious as on the first day. Goethe.
Dieu nous garde d'un homme qui n'a qu'une affaire—God keep us from a man who knows only one subject. Fr. Pr.
Die Unschuld hat im Himmel einen Freund—Innocence 45 has a friend in heaven. Schiller.
Die Unsterblichkeit ist nicht jedermann's Sache—Immortality is not every man's business or concern. Goethe.
Dieu pour la tranchée, qui contre?—If God is our defence, who is against us? M.
Dieu seul devine les sots—God only understands fools. Fr. Pr.
Die veel dienstboden heeft, die heeft veel dieven—He who has many servants has many thieves. Dut. Pr.
Die vernünftige Welt ist als ein grosses unsterbliches Individuum zu betrachten, das unaufhaltsam das Nothwendige bewirkt und dadurch sich sogar über das Zufällige zum Herrn macht—The rational world is to be regarded as a great immortal individuality, that is ever working out for us the necessary (i.e., an order which all must submit to), and thereby makes itself lord and master of everything contingent (or accidental). Goethe.
Die Vernunft ist auf das Werdende, der Verstand auf das Gewordene angewiesen; jene bekümmert sich nicht: wozu? dieser fragt nicht: woher?—Reason is directed to what is a-doing or proceeding, understanding to what is done or past; the former is not concerned about the "whereto," the latter inquires not about the "whence." Goethe.
Die Wacht am Rhein—"The watch on the Rhine." A German national song.
Die Wahrheit richtet sich nicht nach uns, sondern wir müssen uns nach ihr richten—The truth adjusts itself not to us, but we must adjust ourselves to it. Claudius.
Die Wahrheit schwindet von der Erde / Auch 5 mit der Treu' ist es vorbei, / Die Hunde wedeln noch und stinken / Wie sonst, doch sind sie nicht mehr treu—Truth is vanishing from the earth, and of fidelity is the day gone by. The dogs still wag the tail and smell the same as ever, but they are no longer faithful. Heine.
Die Wahrheit zu sagen ist nützlich dem, der höret, schädlich dem der spricht—Telling the truth does good to him who hears, harm to him who speaks. Ger. Pr.
Die wankelmüt'ge Menge, / Die jeder Wind herumtreibt! Wehe dem, / Der auf dies Rohr sich lehnet—The fickle mob, how they are driven round by every wind that blows! Woe to him who leans on this reed! Schiller.
Die Weiber lieben die Stärke ohne sie nachzuahmen; die Männer die Zartheit, ohne sie zu erwiedern—Women admire strength without affecting it; men delicacy without returning it. Jean Paul.
Die Weiber meiden nichts so sehr als das Wörtchen Ja; wenigstens sagen sie es erst nach dem Nein—Women are shy of nothing so much as the little word "Yes;" at least they say it only after they have said "No." Jean Paul.
Die Weisen wägen ihre Worte mit der Goldwage—The 10 wise weigh their words in the balance of the goldsmith. Ecclus.
Die Weiseste merken höchstens nur wie das Schicksal sie leitet, und sind es zufrieden—The wisest know at highest only how destiny is leading them, and are therewith content. Forster.
Die Welt der Freiheit trägt der Mensch in seinem Innern. / Und Tugend ist der Freiheit Götterkind—Man bears the world of freedom in his heart, and virtue is freedom's divine child. Tiedge.
Die Weltgeschichte ist das Weltgericht—The history of the world is the judgment of the world. Schiller.
Die Welt ist dumm die Welt ist blind, / Wird täglich abgeschmackter—The world is stupid, the world is blind, becomes daily more absurd. Heine.
Die Welt ist ein Gefängniss—The world is a 15 prison. Goethe.
Die Welt ist voller Widerspruch—The world is full of contradiction. Goethe.
Die Welt ist vollkommen überall, / Wo der Mensch nicht hinkommt mit seiner Qual—The world is all perfect except where man comes with his burden of woe. Schiller.
Die Worte sind gut, sie sind aber nicht das Beste. Das Beste wird nicht deutlich durch Worte—Words are good, but are not the best. The best is not to be understood by words. Goethe.
Die Zeiten der Vergangenheit / Sind uns ein Buch mit sieben Siegeln; / Was Ihr den Geist der Zeiten heisst / Das ist im Grund' der Herrn eigner Geist, / In dem die Zeiten sich bespiegeln—The times that are past are a book with seven seals. What ye call the spirit of the times is at bottom but the spirit of the gentry in which the times are mirrored. Goethe, in "Faust."
Die Zeit ist schlecht, doch giebt's noch grosse 20 Seelen!—The times are bad, yet there are still great souls. Körner.
Die Zukunft decket Schmerzen und Glücke—The future hides in it gladness and sorrow. Goethe.
Different good, by art or nature given, / To different nations, makes their blessings even. Goldsmith.
Different minds / Incline to different objects; one pursues / The vast alone, the wonderful, the wild; / Another sighs for harmony and grace, / And gentlest beauty. Akenside.
Different times different manners. It. Pr.
Difficile est crimen non prodere vultu—It is 25 difficult not to betray guilt by the countenance. Ovid.
Difficile est longum subito deponere amorem—It is difficult to relinquish at once a long-cherished passion. Catull.
Difficile est plurimum virtutem revereri, qui semper secunda fortuna sit usus—It is difficult for one who has enjoyed uninterrupted good fortune to have a due reverence for virtue. Cic.
Difficile est proprie communia dicere—It is difficult to handle a common theme with originality. Hor.
Difficile est satiram non scribere—It is difficult not to indulge in (lit. to write) satire. Juv.
Difficile est tristi fingere mente jocum—It is 30 difficult to feign mirth when one is in a gloomy mood. Tibulle.
Difficilem oportet aurem habere ad crimina—One should be slow in listening to criminal accusations. Pub. Syr.
Difficilia quæ pulchra—The really good is of difficult attainment. L. Pr.
Difficilis, facilis, jucundus, acerbus es idem; / Nec tecum possum vivere, nec sine te—Cross but easy-minded, pleasant and sour together; I can neither live with thee nor yet without thee. Mart.
Difficilis in otio quies—Tranquillity is difficult if one has nothing to do.
Difficilius est sarcire concordiam quam rumpere—It 35 is more difficult to restore harmony than sow dissension.
Difficult to sweep the intricate foul chimneys of law. Carlyle.
Difficulties are meant to rouse, not discourage. Channing.
Difficulties are things that show what men are. Epictetus.
Difficulties may surround our path, but if the difficulties be not in ourselves, they may generally be overcome. Jowett.
Difficulties strengthen the mind, as labour does the body. Sen.
Difficulty, abnegation, martyrdom, death, are the allurements that act on the heart of man. Kindle the inner genial life of him, you have a flame that burns up all lower considerations. Carlyle.
Diffugiunt, cadis / Cum fæce siccatis, amici, / Ferre jugum pariter dolosi—When the wine-casks are drained to the lees, our friends soon disperse, too faithless to bear as well the yoke of misfortune. Hor.
Diffused knowledge immortalises itself. Sir J. 5 Macintosh.
Dignity and love do not blend well, nor do they continue long together. Ovid.
Dignity consists not in possessing honours, but in deserving them. Arist.
Dignity is often a veil between us and the real truth of things. Whipple.
Dignity of position adds to dignity of character, as well as dignity of carriage. Bovee.
Dignum laude virum Musa vetat mori—The 10 Muse takes care that the man who is worthy of honour does not die. Hor.
Digressions in a book are like foreign troops in a state, which argue the nation to want a heart and hands of its own; and often either subdue the natives, or drive them into the most unfruitful corners. Swift.
Digressions incontestably are the sunshine; they are the life, the soul of reading. Sterne.
Dii laboribus omnia vendunt—The gods sell all things to hard labour. Pr.
Dii majores et minores—Gods of a higher and lower degree.
Dii majorum gentium—The twelve gods of the 15 highest order.
Dii penates—Household gods.
Di irati laneos pedes habent—The gods when angry have their feet covered with wool. Pr.
Dii rexque secundent—May God and the king favour us. M.
Diis aliter visum—The gods have decreed otherwise. Virg.
Diis proximus ille est / Quem ratio, non ira 20 movet—He is nearest to the gods whom reason, not passion, impels. Claud.
Dilationes in lege sunt odiosæ—Delays in the law are odious. L.
Dilettantism, hypothesis, speculation, a kind of amateur-search for truth, toying and coquetting with truth; this is the sorest sin, the root of all imaginable sins. Carlyle.
Dilexi justiciam et odi iniquitatem, propterea morior in exilio—I have loved justice and hated injustice, therefore die I an exile. Gregory VII. on his death-bed.
Diligence increases the fruits of labour. Hesiod.
Diligence is the mother of good fortune. Cervantes. 25
Diligentia, qua una virtute omnes virtutes reliquæ continentur—Diligence, the one virtue that embraces in it all the rest. Cic.
Diligent, that includes all virtues in it a student can have. Carlyle, to the Students of Edinburgh University.
Diligent working makes an expert workman. Dan. Pr.
Diligitur nemo, nisi cui fortuna secunda est—Only he is loved who is the favourite of fortune. Ovid.
Dimidium facti, qui cœpit, habet—He who has 30 begun has half done. Hor.
Ding (knock) down the nests, and the rooks will flee awa. Sc. Pr., used to justify the demolition of the religious houses at the Reformation.
Dinna curse him, sir; I have heard a good man say that a curse was like a stone flung up to the heavens, and maist like to return on his head that sent it. Scott.
Dinna gut your fish till you get them. Sc. Pr.
Dinna lift me before I fa'. Sc. Pr.
Dinna scald your ain mou' wi ither folk's kail 35 (broth). Sc. Pr.
Di nos quasi pilas homines habent—The gods treat us mortals like so many balls to play with. Plaut.
Diogenes has well said that the only way to preserve one's liberty was being always ready to die without pain. Goethe.
Dios es el que sana, y el médico lleva la plata—Though God cures the patient, the doctor pockets the fee. Sp. Pr.
Dios me dé contienda con quien me entienda—God grant me to argue with such as understand me. Sp. Pr.
Di picciol uomo spesso grand' ombra—A little 40 man often casts a long shadow. It. Pr.
Dira necessitas—Cruel necessity. Hor.
Dirigo—I direct. M.
Dirt is not dirt, but only something in the wrong place. Palmerston.
Diruit, ædificat, mutat quadrata rotundis—He pulls down, he builds up, he changes square into round. Hor.
Dir war das Unglück eine strenge Schule—Misfortune 45 was for thee a hard school. Schiller.
Disappointment is often the salt of life. Theodore Parker.
Disasters, do the best we can, / Will reach both great and small; / And he is oft the wisest man / Who is not wise at all. Wordsworth.
Disce aut discede—Learn or leave.
Disce pati—Learn to endure.
Disce, puer, virtutem ex me, verumque laborem, 50 / Fortunam ex aliis—Learn, my son, valour and patient toil from me, good fortune from others. Virg.
Disciplined inaction. Sir J. Macintosh.
Discipulus est prioris posterior dies—Each succeeding day is the scholar of the preceding. Pub. Syr.
Discite justitiam moniti, et non temnere divos—Warned by me, learn justice, and not to despise the gods. Virg.
Discit enim citius, meminitque libentius illud / Quod quis deridet quam quod probat et veneratur—Each learns more readily, and retains more willingly, what makes him laugh than what he approves of and respects. Hor.
Discontent is like ink poured into water, which 55 fills the whole fountain full of blackness. It casts a cloud over the mind, and renders it more occupied about the evil which disquiets it than about the means of removing it. Feltham.
Discontent is the want of self-reliance; it is infirmity of will. Emerson.
Discontent makes us to lose what we have; contentment gets us what we want. Fretting never removed a cross nor procured a comfort; quiet submission doth both. Jacomb.
Discontents are sometimes the better part of our life. Feltham.
Discord oft in music makes the sweeter lay. Spenser.
Discreet women have neither eyes nor ears. 5 Fr. Pr.
Discrepant facta cum dictis—The facts don't agree with the statements. Cic.
Discretion / And hard valour are the twins of honour, / And, nursed together, make a conqueror; / Divided, but a talker. Beaumont and Fletcher.
Discretion is the perfection of reason, and a guide to us in all the duties of life. La Bruyère.
Discretion is the salt, and fancy the sugar, of life; the one preserves, the other sweetens it. Bovee.
Discretion of speech is more than eloquence, 10 and to speak agreeably to him with whom we deal is more than to speak in good words or in good order. Bacon.
Discretion, the best part of valour. Beaumont and Fletcher.
Disdain and scorn ride sparkling in her eye, / Misprising what they look on. Much Ado, iii. 1.
Diseased nature oftentimes breaks forth / In strange eruptions, and the teeming earth / Is with a kind of cholic pinch'd and vex'd / By the imprisoning of unruly wind / Within her womb, which, for enlargement striving, / Shakes the old bedlam earth, and topples down / Steeples and moss-grown towers. Hen. IV., iii. 1.
Diseases, desperate grown, / By desperate appliance are relieved, / Or not at all. Ham., iv. 3.
Diseur de bons mots—A sayer of good things; 15 a would-be wit. Fr.
Diseuse de bonne aventure—A mere fortune-teller. Fr.
Disgrace consists infinitely more in the crime than in the punishment. Bacon.
Disguise our bondage as we will, / 'Tis woman, woman rules us still. Moore.
Disguise thyself as thou wilt, still, Slavery, thou art a bitter draught. Sterne.
Dishonesty is the forsaking of permanent for 20 temporary advantages. Bovee.
Dishonest men conceal their faults from themselves as well as others; honest men know and confess them. Bovee.
Dishonesty will stare honesty out of countenance any day in the week, if there is anything to be got by it. Dickens.
Dishonour waits on perfidy. The villain / Should blush to think a falsehood; 'tis the crime / Of cowards. C. Johnson.
Disillusion is the chief characteristic of old age.
Disjecta membra—Scattered remains. 25
Disjecti membra poetæ—Limbs of the dismembered poet. Hor.
Disjice compositam pacem, sere crimina belli—Dash the patched-up peace, sow the seeds of wicked war. Virg.
Dismiss your vows, your feigned tears, your flattery; / For where a heart is hard, they make no battery. Shakespeare.
Disobedience is the beginning of evil and the broad way to ruin. D. Davies.
Disorder in a drawing-room is vulgar; in an 30 antiquary's study, not; the black stain on a soldier's face is not vulgar, but the dirty face of a housemaid is. Ruskin.
Disorder is dissolution, death. Carlyle.
Disorder makes nothing at all, but unmakes everything. Prof. Blackie.
Disponendo me, non mutando me—By displacing, not by changing me. M.
Disputandi pruritus ecclesiarum scabies—The itch for controversy is the scab of the Church. Wotton.
Dissensions, like small streams at first begun, / 35 Unseen they rise, but gather as they run. Garth.
Dissimulation in youth is the forerunner of perfidy in old age. Blair.
Dissimulation is but faint policy, for it asketh a strong wit and a strong heart to know when to tell the truth and to do it. Bacon.
Distance produces in idea the same effect as in real perspective. Scott.
Distance sometimes endears friendship, and absence sweeteneth it. Howell.
Distinction is an eminence that is attained but 40 too frequently at the expense of a fireside. Simms.
Distinction is the consequence, never the object, of a great mind. W. Allston.
Distinction, with a broad and powerful fan / Puffing at all, winnows the light away. Troil. and Cress., i. 3.
Distingué—Distinguished; eminent; gentlemanlike. Fr.
Distinguished talents are not necessarily connected with discretion. Junius.
Distortion is the agony of weakness. It is the 45 dislocated mind whose movements are spasmodic. Willmott.
Distrahit animum librorum multitudo—A multitude of books distracts the mind. Sen.
Distrait—Absent in mind. Fr.
Distressed valour challenges great respect, even from enemies. Plutarch.
Distringas—You may distrain. L.
Distrust and darkness of a future state / 50 Make poor mankind so fearful of their fate, / Death in itself is nothing; but we fear / To be we know not what, we know not where. Dryden.
Dites-moi ce que tu manges, je te dirai ce que tu es—Tell me what you eat, and I will tell you what you are. Brillat-Savarin.
Ditissimus agris—An extensive landed proprietor.
Di tutte le arti maestro è amore—Love is master of all arts. It. Pr.
Diversité, c'est ma devise—Variety, that is my motto. La Fontaine.
Dives agris, dives positis in fœnore nummis—Rich 55 in lands, rich in money laid out at interest. Hor.
Dives aut iniquus est aut iniqui hæres—A rich man is an unjust man, or the heir of one. Pr.
Dives est, cui tanta possessio est, ut nihil optet amplius—He is rich who wishes no more than he has. Cic.
Dives qui fieri vult, / Et cito vult fieri—He who wishes to become rich, is desirous of becoming so at once. Juv.
Divide et impera—Divide and govern.
Divina natura dedit agros, ars humana ædificavit 5 urbes—Divine nature gave the fields, man's invention built the cities. Varro.
Divination seems heightened to its highest power in woman. A. B. Alcott.
Divine love is a sacred flower, which in its early bud is happiness, and in its full bloom is heaven. Hervey.
Divine moment, when over the tempest-tossed soul, as over the wild-weltering chaos, it was spoken: Let there be light. Even to the greatest that has felt such a moment, is it not miraculous and God-announcing; even as, under simpler figures, to the humblest and least? Carlyle.
Divine Philosophy, by whose pure light / We first distinguish, then pursue the right; / Thy power the breast from every error frees, / And weeds out all its vices by degrees. Juv.
Divine right, take it on the great scale, is found 10 to mean divine might withal. Carlyle.
Divines but peep on undiscovered worlds, / And draw the distant landscape as they please. Dryden.
Divinity should be empress, and philosophy and other arts merely her servants. Luther.
Divitiæ grandes homini sunt, vivere parce / Æquo animo—It is great wealth to a man to live frugally with a contented mind. Lucr.
Divitiæ virum faciunt—Riches make the man.
Divitiarum et formæ gloria fluxa atque fragilis; 15 virtus clara æternaque habetur—The glory of wealth and of beauty is fleeting and frail; virtue is illustrious and everlasting. Sall.
Divitis servi maxime servi—Servants to the rich are the most abject.
Divorce from this world is marriage with the next. Talmud.
Dla przyjaciela nowego / Nie opuszczaj starego!—To keep a new friend, never break with the old. Russ. Pr.
Do as others do, and few will laugh at you. Dan. Pr.
Do as the bee does with the rose, take the 20 honey and leave the thorn. Amer. Pr.
Do as the lassies do; say "No" and tak' it. Sc. Pr.
Dobrze to w kazdym znale['s]['c] przyjaciela!—How delightful to find a friend in every one. Brodzinski.
Docendo discimus—We learn by teaching.
Dochters zijn broze waren—Daughters are fragile ware. Dut. Pr.
Doch werdet ihr nie Herz zu Herzen schaffen / 25 Wenn es auch nicht von Herzen geht—Yet will ye never bring heart to heart unless it goes out of your own. Goethe.
Dociles imitandis / Turpibus ac pravis omnes sumus—We are all easily taught to imitate what is base and depraved. Juv.
Docti rationem artis intelligunt, indocti voluptatem—The learned understand the principles of art, the unlearned feel the pleasure only. Quinct.
Doctor Luther's shoes don't fit every village priest. Ger. Pr.
Doctor utriusque legis—Doctor of both civil and canon law.
Doctrina sed vim promovet insitam / Rectique 30 cultus pectora roborant—But instruction improves the innate powers, and good discipline strengthens the heart. Hor.
Doctrine is nothing but the skin of truth set up and stuffed. Ward Beecher.
Does Homer interest us now, because he wrote of what passed beyond his native Greece, and two centuries before he was born; or because he wrote what passed in God's world, which is the same after thirty centuries? Carlyle.
Do faita dicha, por demas es diligencia—Diligence is of no use where luck is wanting. Sp. Pr.
Dogmatic jargon, learn'd by heart, / Trite sentences, hard terms of art, / To vulgar ears seem so profound, / They fancy learning in the sound. Gay.
Do good and throw it into the sea; if the fish 35 know it not, the Lord will. Turk. Pr.
Do good by stealth, and blush to find it fame. Pope.
Do good to thy friend to keep him, to thy enemy to gain him. Ben. Franklin.
Dogs should not be taught to eat leather (so indispensable for leashes and muzzles). Ger. Pr.
Dogs that bark at a distance ne'er bite at hand. Sc. Pr.
Doing good is the only certainly happy action 40 of a man's life. Sir P. Sidney.
Doing is activity; and he will still be doing. Hen. V., iii. 7.
Doing is the great thing; for if people resolutely do what is right, they come in time to like doing it. Ruskin.
Doing leads more surely to saying than saying to doing. Vinet.
Doing nothing is doing ill. Pr.
Dolce far niente—Sweet idleness. It. 45
Dolci cose a vedere, e dolci inganni—Things sweet to see, and sweet deceptions. Ariosto.
Dolendi modus, timendi non autem—There is a limit to grief, but not to fear. Pliny.
Doli non doli sunt, nisi astu colas—Fraud is not fraud, unless craftily planned. Plaut.
Dolium volvitur—An empty vessel rolls easily. Pr.
Dolori affici, sed resistere tamen—To be affected 50 with grief, but still to resist it. Pliny.
Dolus an virtus, quis in hoste requirat?—Who inquires in an enemy whether it be stratagem or valour? Virg.
Dolus versatur in generalibus—Fraud deals in generalities. L.
Domandar chi nacque prima, l'uovo o la gallina—Ask which was first produced, the egg or the hen. It. Pr.
Domestic happiness is the end of almost all our pursuits, and the common reward of all our pains. Fielding.
Domestic happiness! thou only bliss / Of happiness 55 that has survived the Fall. Cowper.
Domi manere convenit felicibus—Those who are happy at home should remain at home. Pr.
Domine, dirige nos—Lord, direct us!
Domini pudet, non servitutis—I am ashamed of my master, but not of my condition as a servant. Sen.
Dominus illuminatio mea—The Lord is my light. M.
Dominus providebit—The Lord will provide. M. 5
Dominus videt plurimum in rebus suis—The master sees best in his own affairs. Phæd.
Dominus vobiscum, et cum spiritu tuo—The Lord be with you, and with thy spirit.
Domitæ naturæ—Of a tame nature.
Domus amica domus optima—The house of a friend is the best house.
Domus et placens uxor—Thy house and pleasing 10 wife.
Domus sua cuique tutissimum refugium—The safest place of refuge for every man is his own home. Coke.
Dona præsentis cape lætus horæ, et / Linque severa—Gladly enjoy the gifts of the present hour, and banish serious thoughts. Hor.
Donatio mortis causa—A gift made in prospect of death. L.
Don de plaire—The gift of pleasing. Fr.
Donec eris felix multos numerabis amicos; / 15 Tempora si fuerint nubila, solus eris—So long as you are prosperous you will reckon many friends; if fortune frowns on you, you will be alone. Ovid.
Done to death by slanderous tongues. Much Ado, v. 3.
Donna di finestra, uva di strada—A woman at the window is a bunch of grapes by the wayside. It. Pr.
Donna è mobile come piume in vento—Woman is as changeable as a feather in the wind. Verdi.
Donner de si mauvaise grâce qu'on n'a pas d'obligation—To give so ungraciously as to do away with any obligation. Fr.
Donner une chandelle à Dieu et une au diable—To 20 give one candle to God and another to the devil. Fr. Pr.
Donnez, mais, si vous pouvez, épargnez au pauvre, la honte de tendre la main—Give, but, if possible, spare the poor man the shame of holding out the hand. Diderot.
Dono dedit—Gave as a gift.
Do not allow your daughters to be taught letters by a man, though he be a St. Paul or a St Francis of Assisi. The saints are in heaven. Bp. Liguori.
Do not ask if a man has been through college. Ask if a college has been through him. Chapin.
Do not, as some ungracious pastors do, / Show 25 me the steep and thorny way to heaven, / Whilst, like a puffed and reckless libertine, / Himself the primrose path of dalliance treads, / And recks not his own rede. Ham., i. 3.
Do not flatter your benefactors. Buddhist Pr.
Do not, for one repulse, forego the purpose / That you resolv'd to effect. Tempest, iii. 2.
Do not give dalliance / Too much the rein; the strongest oaths are straw / To the fire i' the blood. Be more abstemious, / Or else good night your vow. Tempest, iv. 1.
Do not halloo till you are out of the wood. Pr.
Do not lose the present in vain perplexities 30 about the future. If fortune lours to-day, she may smile to-morrow. Sir T. Martin.
Do not refuse the employment which the hour brings you for one more ambitious. Emerson.
Do not talk Arabic in the house of a Moor. Sp. Pr.
Do not tell a friend anything that you would conceal from an enemy. Ar. Pr.
Do not think of one falsity as harmless, and one as slight, and another as unintended. Cast them all aside; it is better our hearts should be swept clean of them. Ruskin.
Do not train boys to learning by force or harshness; 35 but direct them to it by what amuses their minds, so that you may be the better able to discover with accuracy the peculiar bent of the genius of each. Plato.
Do not trouble yourself too much about the light on your statue; the light of the public square will test its value. Michael Angelo to a young sculptor.
Don't be a cynic and disconsolate preacher. Don't bewail and moan. Omit the negative propositions. Nerve us with incessant affirmatives. Don't waste yourself in rejection, nor bark against the bad, but chant the beauty of the good. Emerson.
Don't be "consistent," but be simply true. Holmes.
Don't budge, if you are at ease where you are. Ger. Pr.
Don't despise a slight wound or a poor relative. 40 Dan. Pr.
Don't dissipate your powers; strive constantly to concentrate them. Genius thinks it can do whatever it sees others doing, but it is sure to repent of every ill-judged outlay. Goethe.
Don terrible de la familiarité—The terrible gift of familiarity. Mirabeau.
Don't fly till your wings are fledged. Ger. Pr.
Don't hate; only pity and avoid those that follow lies. Carlyle.
Don't put too fine a point to your wit, for fear 45 it should get blunted. Cervantes.
Don't quit the highway for a short cut. Port. Pr.
Don't reckon your chickens before they are hatched. Pr.
Don't throw away the old shoes till you've got new ones. Dut. Pr.
Donum exitiale Minervæ—The fatal gift to Minerva, i.e., the wooden horse, by means of which the Greeks took Troy. Virg.
Do on the hill as ye do in the ha'. Sc. Pr. 50
Do right; though pain and anguish be thy lot, / Thy heart will cheer thee when the pain's forgot; / Do wrong for pleasure's sake, then count thy gains, / The pleasure soon departs, the sin remains. Bp. Shuttleworth.
Dormit aliquando jus, moritur nunquam—A right is sometimes in abeyance, but never abolished. L.
Dormiunt aliquando leges, nunquam moriuntur—The law sleeps sometimes, but never dies. L.
Dos d'âne—Saddleback (lit. ass's back). Fr.
Dos est magna parentum / Virtus—The virtue 55 of parents is a great dowry. Hor.
Dos est uxoria lites—Strife is the dowry of a wife. Ovid.
[Greek: Dosis d' oligê te, philê te]—Gift both dainty and dear. Hom.
Dos linajes solo hay en el mundo, el "tener" y el "no tener"—There are but two families in the world, those who have, and those who have not. Cervantes.
[Greek: Dos moi pou stô kai tên gên kinêsô]—Give me where to stand, and I will move the earth. Archimedes.
Dost thou love life? Then do not squander 5 time, for that is the stuff life is made of. B. Franklin.
Dost thou love me? I know thou wilt say aye; / And I will take thy word. Yet if thou swear'st, / Thou may'st prove false; at lovers' perjuries / They say Jove laughs. Rom. and Jul., ii. 2.
Dost thou love pictures? We will fetch thee straight / Adonis painted by a running brook; / And Cytherea all in sedges hid; / Which seem to move and wanton with her breath; / Even as the waving sedges play with wind. Tam. the Shrew, Ind. 2.
Dost thou think, because thou art virtuous, there are to be no more cakes and ale? Twelfth Night, ii. 3.
Do that which is assigned you, and you cannot hope too much or dare too much. Emerson.
Do the duty that lies nearest to you. Every 10 duty which is bidden to wait returns with seven fresh duties at its back. Kingsley.
Do the duty which lies nearest to thee. Thy second duty will already have become clearer. Carlyle.
Do thine own task, and be therewith content. Goethe.
Doth not the appetite alter? A man loves the meat in his youth that he cannot endure in his age. Much Ado, ii. 3.
Doth the eagle know what is in the pit, / Or wilt thou go ask the mole? William Blake.
Do thy little well, and for thy comfort know, / 15 Great men can do their greatest work no better than just so. Goethe.
Double, double, toil and trouble, / Fire burn, and caldron bubble. Macb., iv. 1.
Double, double toil and trouble; that is the life of all governors that really govern; not the spoil of victory, only the glorious toil of battle can be theirs. Carlyle.
Double entendre—A double meaning. Fr.
Double entente—Double signification. Fr.
Doubting the reality of love leads to doubting 20 everything. Amiel.
Doubting things go ill often hurts more / Than to be sure they do. Cymbeline, i. 7.
Doubt is an incentive to truth, and patient inquiry leadeth the way. H. Ballou.
Doubt is the abettor of tyranny. Amiel.
Doubt is the vestibule which all must pass before they can enter into the temple of wisdom. Colton.
Doubtless the pleasure is as great / Of being 25 cheated as to cheat. Butler.
Doubt of any sort cannot be removed except by action. Goethe.
Doubt thou the stars are fire; / Doubt that the sun doth move; / Doubt truth to be a liar; / But never doubt I love. Ham., ii. 2.
Douceur—A bribe. Fr.
Do ut des—I give that you may give. Maxim of Bismarck.
Doux yeux—Tender glances. Fr. 30
Dove bisognan rimedj, il sospirar non vale—Where remedies are needed, sighing is of no use. It. Pr.
Dove è grand'amore, quivi è gran dolore—Where the love is great the pain is great. It. Pr.
Dove è il Papa, ivi è Roma—Where the Pope is, Rome is. It. Pr.
Dove è l'amore, là è l'occhio—Where love is, there the eye is. It. Pr.
Dove entra il vino, esce la vergogna—When 35 wine enters modesty goes. It. Pr.
Dove la voglia è pronta, le gambe son leggiere—When the will is prompt, the legs are light. It. Pr.
Do weel and doubt nae man; do ill and doubt a' men. Sc. Pr.
Do we not all submit to death? The highest sentence of the law, sentence of death, is passed on all of us by the fact of birth; yet we live patiently under it, patiently undergo it when the hour comes. Carlyle.
Dower'd with the hate of hate, the scorn of scorn, / The love of love. Tennyson, of the poet.
Do what he will, he cannot realise / Half he 40 conceives—the glorious vision flies; / Go where he may, he cannot hope to find / The truth, the beauty pictured in the mind. Rogers.
Do what we can, summer will have its flies; if we go a-fishing, we must expect a wet coat. Emerson.
Down, thou climbing sorrow; / Thy element's below. King Lear, ii. 4.
Downward to climb and backward to advance. Pope.
Downy sleep, death's counterfeit. Macb., iii. 2.
Do you think the porter and the cook have no 45 anecdotes, no experiences, no wonders for you? Emerson.
Do you wish to find out the really sublime? Repeat the Lord's Prayer. Napoleon.
Dramatis personæ—Characters represented.
Draw thyself from thyself. Goethe.
Dream after dream ensues, / And still they dream that they shall still succeed / And still are disappointed. Cowper.
Dream delivers us to dream, and there is no 50 end to illusion. Emerson.
Dreams are but interludes which fancy makes. / When monarch reason sleeps, this mimic wakes; / Compounds a medley of disjointed things, / A mob of cobblers and a court of kings; / Light fumes are merry, grosser fumes are sad; / Both are the reasonable soul run mad. Dryden.
Dreams are excursions into the limbo of things, a semi-deliverance from the human prison. Amiel.
Dreams are the bright creatures of poem and legend, who sport on the earth in the night season, and melt away with the first beams of the sun. Dickens.
Dreams are the children of an idle brain, / Begot of nothing but vain phantasy; / Which are as thin of substance as the air, / And more inconstant than the wind. Rom. and Jul., i. 4.
Dreams, books, are each a world; and books, we know, / Are a substantial world, both pure and good; / Round these, with tendrils strong as flesh and blood, / Our pastime and our happiness will grow. Wordsworth.
Dreams, indeed, are ambition; for the substance of the ambitious is merely the shadow of a dream. Ham., ii. 2.
Dreams, in general, take their rise from those incidents that have occurred during the day. Herodotus.
Dreams in their development have breath / 5 And tears and torture and the touch of joy; / They leave a weight upon our waking thoughts; / They take a weight from off our waking toils; / They do divide our being; they become a portion of ourselves as of our time, / And look like heralds of eternity. Byron.
Dreigers vechten niet—Those who threaten don't fight. Dut. Pr.
Dress has a moral effect upon the conduct of mankind. Sir J. Barrington.
Drinking water neither makes a man sick nor in debt, nor his wife a widow. John Neal.
Drink nothing without seeing it, sign nothing without reading it. Port. Pr.
Drink not the third glass, which thou canst 10 not tame / When once it is within thee; but before, / May'st rule it as thou list; and pour the shame, / Which it would pour on thee, upon the floor. G. Herbert.
Drink to me only with thine eyes, / And I will pledge with mine; / Or leave a kiss but in the cup, / And I'll not look for wine. Ben Jonson.
Drink waters out of thine own cistern, and running waters out of thine own well. Bible.
Drive a coach and six through an act of parliament. Baron S. Rice.
Drive a cow to the ha', and she'll run to the byre. Sc. Pr.
Drive thy business, let not thy business drive 15 thee. Franklin.
Droit d'aubaine—The right of escheat; windfall. Fr.
Droit des gens—Law of nations. Fr.
Droit et avant—Right and forward. Fr.
Droit et loyal—Right and loyal. Fr.
Drones hive not with me. Mer. of Ven., ii. 5. 20
Drowsiness shall clothe a man with rags. Bible.
Drudgery and knowledge are of kin, / And both descended from one parent sin. S. Butler.
Drunkenness is the vice of a good constitution or of a bad memory;—of a constitution so treacherously good than it never bends till it breaks; or of a memory that recollects the pleasures of getting intoxicated, but forgets the pains of getting sober. Colton.
Drunkenness is voluntary madness. Sen.
[Greek: Dryos pesousês pas anêr xyleuetai]—When an 25 oak falls, every one gathers wood. Men.
Dry light is ever the best, i.e., from one who, as disinterested, can take a dispassionate view of a matter. Heraclitus.
Dry shoes won't catch fish. Gael. Pr.
Duabus sedere sellis—To sit between two stools.
Du bist am Ende was du bist—Thou art in the end what thou art. Goethe.
Dubitando ad veritatem pervenimus—By way 30 of doubting we arrive at the truth. Cic.
Dubiam salutem qui dat afflictis, negat—He who offers to the wretched a dubious deliverance, denies all hope. Sen.
Ducats are clipped, pennies are not. Ger. Pr.
Duce et auspice—Under his guidance and auspices. M.
Duces tecum—You must bring with you (certain documents). L.
Duce tempus eget—The time calls for a leader. 35 Lucan.
Du choc des esprits jaillissent les étincelles—When great spirits clash, sparks fly about. Fr. Pr.
Ducis ingenium, res / Adversæ nudare solent, celare secundæ—Disasters are wont to reveal the abilities of a general, good fortune to conceal them. Hor.
Ducit amor patriæ—The love of country leads me. M.
Du côté de la barbe est la toute-puissance—The male alone has been appointed to bear rule. Molière.
Ductor dubitantium—A guide to those in doubt. 40
Ducunt volentem fata, nolentem trahunt—Fate leads the willing, and drags the unwilling. Sen. from Cleanthes.
Du fort au faible—On an average (lit. from the strong to the weak). Fr.
Du glaubst zu schieben und du wirst geschoben—Thou thinkest thou art shoving and thou art shoved. Goethe.
Du gleichst dem Geist, den du begreifst / Nicht mir—Thou art like to the spirit which thou comprehendest, not to me. Goethe.
Du hast das nicht, was andre haben, / 45 Und andern mangeln deine Gabe; / Aus dieser Unvollkommenheit / Entspringt die Geselligkeit—Thou hast not what others have, and others want what has been given thee; out of such defect springs good-fellowship. Gellert.
Du haut de ces pyramides quarante siècles nous contemplent—From the height of these pyramids forty centuries look down on us. Napoleon to his troops in Egypt.
Dulce domum—Sweet home. A school song.
Dulce est desipere in loco—It is pleasant to play the fool (i.e. relax) sometimes. Hor.
Dulce est miseris socios habuisse doloris—It is a comfort to the wretched to have companions in misfortune.
Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori—It is 50 sweet and glorious to die for one's country. Hor.
Dulce periculum—Sweet danger. M.
Dulce sodalitium—A pleasant association of friends.
Dulcibus est verbis alliciendus amor—Love is to be won by affectionate words. Pr.
Dulcique animos novitate tenebo—And I will hold your mind captive with sweet novelty. Ovid.
Dulcis amor patriæ, dulce videre suos—Sweet 55 is the love of country, sweet to see one's kindred. Ovid.
Dulcis inexpertis cultura potentis amici; / Expertus metuit—The cultivation of friendship with the great is pleasant to the inexperienced, but he who has experienced it dreads it. Hor.
Dull, conceited hashes, / Confuse their brains in college classes; / They gang in stirks, and come oot asses, / Plain truth to speak. Burns.
Dull not device by coldness and delay. Othello, ii. 3.
Dumb dogs and still waters are dangerous. Ger. Pr.
Dumbie winna lee. Sc. Pr. 5
Dumb jewels often, in their silent kind, / More than quick words do move a woman's mind. Two Gent. of Ver., iii. 1.
Dum deliberamus quando incipiendum incipere jam serum est—While we are deliberating to begin, the time to begin is past. Quinct.
Dum fata fugimus, fata stulti incurrimus—While we flee from our fate, we like fools rush on it. Buchanan.
Dum in dubio est animus, paulo momento huc illuc impellitur—While the mind is in suspense, a very little sways it one way or other. Ter.
Dum lego, assentior—Whilst I read, I assent. 10 Cic.
Dum loquor, hora fugit—While I am speaking, time flies. Ovid.
Dummodo morata recte veniat, dotata est satis—Provided she come with virtuous principles, a woman brings dowry enough. Plaut.
Dummodo sit dives, barbarus ipse placet—If he be only rich, a very barbarian pleases us. Ovid.
Dum ne ob malefacta peream, parvi æstimo—So be I do not die for evil-doing, I care little for dying. Plaut.
Du moment qu'on aime, on devient si doux—From 15 the moment one falls in love, one becomes sweet in the temper. Marmontel.
Dum se bene gesserit—So long as his behaviour is good. L.
Dum singuli pugnant, universi vincuntur—While they fight separately, the whole are conquered. Tacit.
Dum spiro, spero—While I breathe, I hope. M.
Dum tacent, clamant—While silent, they cry aloud, i.e., their silence bespeaks discontent. Cic.
Du musst steigen oder sinken, / Du musst herrschen 20 und gewinnen, / Oder dienen und verlieren, / Leiden oder triumphiren, / Amboss oder Hammer sein—Thou must mount up or sink down, must rule and win or serve and lose, suffer or triumph, be anvil or hammer. Goethe.
Dum vires annique sinunt, tolerate labores: / Jam veniet tacito curva senecta pede—While your strength and years permit, you should endure labour; bowed old age will soon come on with silent foot. Ovid.
Dum vitant stulti vitia, in contraria currunt—While fools shun one set of faults, they run into the opposite one. Hor.
Dum vivimus, vivamus—While we live, let us live. M.
D'une vache perdue, c'est quelque chose de recouvrer la queue—When a cow is lost, it is something to recover the tail. Fr. Pr.
Duo quum faciunt idem non est idem—When 25 two do the same thing, it is not the same. Ter.
Duos qui sequitur lepores neutrum capit—He who follows two hares is sure to catch neither. Pr.
Dupes indeed are many; but of all dupes there is none so fatally situated as he who lives in undue terror of being duped. Carlyle.
Durante beneplacito—During good pleasure.
Durante vita—During life.
Dura più incudine che il martello—The anvil 30 lasts longer than the hammer. It. Pr.
Durate, et vosmet rebus servate secundis—Be patient, and preserve yourself for better times. Virg.
Durch Vernünfteln wird Poesie vertrieben / Aber sie mag das Vernüftige lieben—Poetry loves what is true in reason, but is scared away (dispersed) by subtlety in reasoning. Goethe.
Durum et durum non faciunt murum—Hard and hard (i.e., without mortar) do not make a wall.
Durum! Sed levius fit patientia / Quicquid corrigere est nefas—'Tis hard! But that which we are not permitted to correct is rendered lighter by patience. Hor.
Durum telum necessitas—Necessity is a hard 35 weapon. Pr.
Du sollst mit dem Tode zufrieden sein. / Warum machst du dir das Leben zur Pein?—Thou shouldst make peace (lit. be content) with death. Why then make thy life a torture to thee? Goethe.
Dusting, darning, drudging, nothing is great or small, / Nothing is mean or irksome: love will hallow it all. Dr. Walter Smith.
Dust long outlasts the storied stone. Byron.
Dust thou art, and unto dust thou shalt return. Bible.
Du sublime au ridicule il n'y a qu'un pas—There 40 is but one step from the sublime to the ridiculous. Napoleon.
Dutchmen must have wide breeches. Fris. Pr.
Duties are but coldly performed which are but philosophically fulfilled. Mrs. Jameson.
Duties are ours; events are God's. Cecil.
Duty by habit is to pleasure turn'd; / He is content who to obey has learn'd. Sir E. Brydges.
Duty demands the parent's voice / Should sanctify 45 the daughter's choice, / In that is due obedience shown; / To choose belongs to her alone. Moore.
Duty, especially out of the domain of love, is the veriest slavery in the world. J. G. Holland.
Duty has the virtue of making us feel the reality of a positive world, while at the same time it detaches us from it. Amiel.
Duty is a power which rises with us in the morning, and goes to bed with us in the evening. Gladstone.
Duty is the demand of the passing hour. Goethe.
Duty scorns prudence, and criticism has few 50 terrors for a man with a great purpose. Disraeli.
Duty—the command of Heaven, the eldest voice of God. Kingsley.
Dux fœmina facti—A woman the leader in the deed. Virg.