| C E N T E R F O R T H E I N T E G R A T I V E S T U D Y O F A N I M A L B E H A V I O R |
| When we talk with each other, we often use figures-of-speech -- metaphors, proverbs, clichés, similes, idioms, and other kinds of word play -- to communicate our meaning. Here is a sample of commonly used English language proverbs and clichés that relate to animals. Most of these expressions accurately portray typical animal behavior, but other expressions are based on mistaken notions. Inaccurate expressions are marked with an asterick* and explained. |
| animal proverbs . animal clichés |
| A N I M A L P R O V E R B S |
Cervantes described proverbs as "short sentences drawn from long experience." |
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A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. It is risky to sacrifice one thing or accomplishment which has been attained, for the uncertain hope of gaining more. circa 1200s (Latin -- plus valet in manibus avis unica quam dupla silvis) Birds of a feather flock together. Like-minded people associate together, as do birds of the same species. circa 1500s (Ecclesiasticus xxvii.9 / 1545 W.Turner) The early bird catches the worm. The one who rises early and is diligent reaps the rewards; the lazy may not find many rewards. circa 1600s (England) It's the straw that broke the camel's back. When one is close to one's limits (of strength, tolerance, endurance, patience, etc.), an otherwise insignificant thing can surpass these limits and cause disaster. circa 1600s (England) When the cat's away, the mice will play. Those in charge do not see what their "underlings" do in their absence; the powerful know not what goes on behind their backs. Act when the opportunity presents itself. circa 1300s (French -- ou chat na rat regne -- where there is no cat, the rat is king) All cats appear grey in the dark. Darkness obscures distinguishing visual features, so that one may be easily mistaken / fooled. Under certain conditions, we all appear the same. circa 1549 (J.Heywood, Dialogue of Proverbs) Don't count your chickens before they hatch. One cannot rely on expectations or assumptions; it is better to only rely on what is certain. circa 1570 (T.Howell, New Sonnets) Curiosity killed the cat. Too much curiosity can cause one to abandon caution and encounter unseen danger. circa 1900s Curses, like chickens, come home to roost. Once uttered, words cannot be taken back; one's ill words may come back to cause one trouble. circa 1390 (Chaucer, Parson's Tale) He who lies down with dogs, rises with fleas. One who associates with people of bad character or habit are likely to pick up bad attitdudes and habits. circa 1500s Let sleeping dogs lie. Don't stir up trouble when all is calm. circa 1300s (French -- n'esveillez pas lou chien qui dort) You can't teach an old dog new tricks.* One keeps more habits and tastes acquired during youth than acquired after one is grown. Don't try to change someone who is set in their ways. * An old dog can learn new tricks, but it is much easier to train a puppy. circa 1500s (J. Fitztherbert, Husbandry) His bark is worse than his bite.* He sounds very fierce and threatening, but he won't actually do anything to hurt you. mid-1600s (England) * This does not describe a general rule: some dogs may bite and some may not. Be careful around a dog that is barking (not playfully) at you. There are plenty more fish in the sea. Don't be discouraged if you don't get the one you want -- others are available. circa 1816 (T.L. Peacock,Headlong Hall) What's good for the goose is good for the gander. People should be treated equally, regardless of their gender. circa 1670 (J.Ray,Collection of English Proverbs) Don't change horses in the middle of the stream. Changing one's mind in the middle of a task or event will cause more problems than if the task/event had been thought through beforehand. circa 1800s (Dutch, English, American) Don't look a gift horse in the mouth. Don't complain about the quality or newness of a gift. [ A horse's age can be judged by the condition of it's teeth. ] circa 400s (St. Jerome, Commentary on Epistle to the Ephesians) You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink. One may suggest something to another, but cannot force the other to do what he does not wish to do. circa 1175 (Old English Homilies) It's too late to close the stable door after the horse has bolted. It's too late to protect yourself after something bad has happened; take appropriate precautions. circa 1300s (French -- a tart ferme on l'estable, quant li chevaux est perduz) March comes in like a lion, and goes out like a lamb. The weather during the first of March is typically wild and windy, but by the end of March, all is calm. circa 1600s (England -- J. Fletcher, Wife for a Month) |
| A N I M A L C L I C H É S |
A cliché is an expression that has grown tiresome and trite due to overuse. Any figure-of-speech (simile, idiom, methaphor, proverb, etc.) can become cliché if overused. Expressions based mistaken notions are marked with an asterick * and explained. |
| I D I O M C L I C H É S | S I M I L E C L I C H É S | |
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to bark up the wrong tree to be mistaken; to go off in the wrong direction (1800s) racoon hunters train dogs to bark at the tree where a racoon is found |
as bald as a coot * describes someone who has a completely bald head * Coots (birds of the genus Fulica) are not bald; their feather/beak pattern only gives the appearance of baldness |
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bone of contention the cause of a dispute (1800s) refers to a bone that is fought over by two or more dogs |
to drink like a fish * describes one who drinks too much alcoholic beverages (1600s)* Fish do not drink in the sense that humans do; fish breath by taking water in through the mouth and out the gills. |
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to rain cats and dogs * refers to a heavy downpour of rain (1700s) * origins of phrase unknown. Under unusual conditions, it has "rained frogs" -- frogs lifted into the air by tornado-like action, which subsequently fall to the earth. |
like a fish out of water describes someone uncomfortable in an unfamiliar situation or context (1800s) a fish out of it's element (water) cannot breath |
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to fly the coop As in "He flew the coop." -- to leave; to escape refers to a coop (penned enclosure) in which chickens are kept |
as eager as a beaver / to work like a beaver describes an industrious, hard-working person (1900s) beavers are known for their remarkable feats of tree-felling and dam-building activities |
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the pecking order describes the relative rank or importance of someone within a group refers to hens establishing a dominance hierarchy by pecking |
to eat like a pig / to be as fat as a hog decribes someone who eats a large quantity of food / is overweight refers to swine being omnivorous and willing eat almost anything |
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to feather one's nest describes providing for one's own comfort; sometimes while engaged in some activity not meant for this purpose. (1700s) birds sometimes line their nests with opportunistically found materials (hair) |
like water off a duck's back describes someone remaining unbothered by events or circumstances refers to the oily coating on duck feathers that sheds water easily |
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to stick in your craw describes a problem that is annoying and/or won't go away refers to a bird's craw (gullet), in which food is ground by sand eaten for this purpose |
as the crow flies describes a direct, straight path from one location to another refers to birds flying over obstacles that we must travel around |
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to kill two birds with one stone describes accomplishing two separate tasks in a single effort refers to the possibility of killing two birds with a slingshot |
as free as a bird describes someone who lacks responsibilities which limit one's options refers to birds ability to fly away quickly in any direction they choose |
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(to go on) a wild goose chase describes pursuit of something that can't be obtained refers to what a difficult task it is for a person to catch a wild goose |
as brave as a lion describes great bravery and courage refers to lions having few predators, thus "unafraid" |
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to take the bull by the horns to take charge of a difficult or dangerous situation; a decision to take action (1800s) refers to the difficulty of a human guiding a bull by taking hold of his horns |
deaf as an adder * describes someone who is very hard of hearing or completely deaf * snakes do not have an eardrum, but do perceive sound via the quadrate bone |
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to chomp at the bit describes someone who is anxious to proceed; who can't wait to do something refers to a horse biting on his bit in nervous anticipation of the start of a race |
gentle as a lamb describes a gentle, harmless personality or person refers to the non-aggressive disposition of sheep |
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to have ants in your pants describes someone who is figety, restless, can't sit still refers to the animated actions one takes when ants have invaded one's trousers |
happy as a clam (at high tide) describes someone who is extremely happy and content clams are dug from their sand bed at low tide, and are only safe at high tide |
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in two shakes of a sheep's tail describes a very quick passage of time refers to the length of time it takes for a sheep to shake it's tail twice |
as quiet as a mouse describes someone who is very quiet or completely silent (1500s) refers to a mouse remaining quiet in the presence of a cat |
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cat got your tongue? said to one (esp. a child) who gives no reply to a question or command (1800s) might refer to cats' liking to be near the face in order to feel breath being exhaled |
sick as a dog * describes someone who is very sick or feels really bad * no reason to think that dogs get sick or are more sick than other animals |
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M E T A P H O R C L I C H É S |
as slippery as an eel describes someone difficult to hold accountable for his actions refers to the slipperyness of an eel |
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the black sheep (of the family) describes someone who is very different from the rest of his or her family refers to an occasional black sheep being born among white sheep |
as sly as a fox describes someone clever and coniving in obtaining what s/he wants refers to the fox's well-known hunting abilities |
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the dark horse describes someone who has hidden or unexpected abilities / qualities (1800s) horseracing term: a horse about whose past record little is known |
as strong as an ox describes great physical strength refers to the strengh of an ox -- a draft animal of the genus Bos |
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a big fish in a small pond describes someone who prefers respect within a small community, where there is little competition, to a lack-of-standing in a larger community (where he would be a little fish in a big pond) |
as mean as a snake * describes someone cold, heartless, "low-down", and malicious * meanness cannot be attributed to snakes; the allusion is to the cold (snakes are poikilotherms) and hurtful (they bite when molested) nature of snakes |
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a lone wolf describes someone who is unusually solitary or independent (1800s) refers to wolves being social animals and hunting in packs |
as blind as a bat describes someone with very poor eyesight or someone completely blind refers to bats depending less on their eyesight than on sonar for detecting prey (this phrase is an alliteration) |
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a wolf in sheep's clothing describes a dangerous person who appears gentle and mild, raising no suspician (1400s) refers wolves as predators and sheep as their unaggressive prey |
as busy as a bee describes an industrious, always active person refers to worker bees in a hive, who are constantly active (this phrase is an alliteration) |
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no spring chicken describes a woman who is no longer young (1800s) refers to a chick hatched in the spring of the year |
as proud as a peacock describes one "puffed up" with pride, too full of pride refers to the spectacular display of a male peacock (this phrase is an alliteration) |
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dog eat dog / it's a dog-eat-dog world describes a situation highly competitive to the point of desperation cannablism is unusual, but has been documented in canids and humans |
as drunk as a skunk * describes someone who is falling-down drunk, completely intoxicated * skunks are not known to imbibe; the meaning is only in the rhyme (this phrase is an alliteration) |
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look what the cat dragged in describes the rough appearance of one coming in from heavy drinking and/or fighting (1800s) refers to some cats' practice of bringing half-eaten carcasses to their owners |
as smug as a bug in a rug describes someone happy in his/her safe, comfortable, secure situation smugness cannot be attributed to bugs; phrase is simply a catchy alliteration |
| F I G U R E S O F S P E E C H |
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alliteration cliché figure-of-speech idiom metaphor proverb simile |
-- when two or more words in a phrase begin with the same letter, or the same sound examples: "blind as a bat" ; "smug as a bug in a rug" -- a trite, common phase that has lost originality by overusage (French, to stereotype) example: "He was as sick as a dog." -- an expression that uses words in an unusual or nonliteral way (e.g., metaphor, simile, etc.) example: any of the expressions found on this page -- an accepted phrase or expression having a meaning different from the literal example: "to take the bull by the horns " means "to take hold of a situation" -- a figure-of-speech that equates one thing with another example: "He is a big fish in a small pond." -- a short, popular saying that expresses an obvious truth and/or useful advice example: "Let sleeping dogs lie." -- figure-of-speech in which two unlike things are compared, using "like" or "as" example: "He's as strong as an ox." |
| Educational resource by M.K. Holder, Ph.D. |
| animal proverbs . animal clichés |
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