JAMAICAN PROVERBS & THEIR MEANINGS (May-08-2005) A new broom sweeps clean, but an old broom knows every corner". A profoundly witty statement that sums up any number of current situations, including the state of today's music.  A noh every mango got maggige. Every one are not the same. A noh siame diay leaf drop a river bottom it rotten. Time is the master. One will wait a long time to catch up with someonewho offends him or her. Ackee lub fat, ocra lub salt Every man to his taste Alligator lay egg, but 'im noh fowl. Things are not alwayswhat they seem. Not because people does similar thing, they shouldn't be judged solely on there similarities. Alligator shouldn' call hog long mout. One shouldn't belittle someone who's like them in some ways. Bad luck wos dan Obeah. Bad luck is worst than witchcraft. Befo’ darg go widout supper, him nyam cockroach. Any port in a storm Beggar beg from beggar him nebber get rich You cant get blood out of stone Bucket wid hole a battam have no business a riverside. Mind your own business. Chicken deh merry, Hawk deh near. Where there is too much merriment and excitement, danger lurks near. Chicken deh merry, Hawk deh near. Where there is too much merriment and excitement, danger lurks near. Cockroach nuh business inna fowl fight. If you can't add value to a situation or argument, don't get involved, because if you do, you will wish you didn’t. Cow non dead him wi shak him tail While there is life there is hope Cow sey “Tan upno mean rest” Appearances are deceitful Crab'n choke puppy. Don't be greedy, it will hurt you. Cuss-cuss noh bore hole a mi skin. Words cannot hurt me. Cyaa tan fur, t'row saal inna pat (Cannot stay far throw salt into a pot) Cannot stay far, and tell one sensitiveinformation. Darg-flea tell him pickeny him mustn’t say him dead till him ketch pon finger nail. While there is life there is hope. Dem give yu basket fi carry water. Someone give yu a raw deal. Di daakes' part a di night, a when diay soon light. When thing and times are the hardest, brighter times are near. Duppy knwo who fi frighten. Powerless person(s) knows who to intimidate. Ebery day a fishing-day, but no ebery day fe ketch fish. Reward does not always follow labour. Empty bag cyaa stan' up. A hungry man cannot work. Every cave-hole have him own duppy Everyone has his own troubles Every dog got dem diay, Every puss dem 4 O' clock. Every one have their time, to shine. Every mickle mek a mockle. Every little adds up. Feel like Gumbeh drum widout a goat-skin. To feel out of place. Finger stink you can’t cut it trow it wey. Don’t cut off your nose to spite your face. Fish-bone no lodge in a pickney troat alone Misfortune is no respecter of persons. Frog never gargle him troat till him tas’e fresh water. One does not rejoice without reason. Fry de bigh fish fust, te lilly one after. Attend to the most important matters first. Haad iyaz pick'ni bu'n a sun hot. Children (or anyone) who don't hear, (don't take good advice)(hard ears)will encounter great hardship in life. Han' go, paki come. When you reach out a hand good things come back to you. Heart No Leap", "See and Blind". Similar to "hear no evil, see no evil". hog run fe him life, darg run fe him character Different causes produce the same effect Hog say, di fus water 'im cetch 'im walla. meaning: Make use of the first opportunity. Hog say, di fus water im cetch, I'm walla. Make use of the first opportunity. Howdy an 'tenk yu, noh brok noh square. To say howdy and thank you is not a bad thing I cow dod did know how him troat hole ton him wouldn’t chance pear seed We do not always realize our limitations If you crape gourdy, you fin’ worm-hole If you hunt for faults you will find them. If you go a tump-a-foot dance, you must dance tump-a-foot. When in Rome do as the Romans If you want half a bread, beg smaddy buy it, but if yu want a wan, buy it yuself. If you want it done right, do it yourself. If you yearry debil a come, clear de way. Keepclear of trouble If yu cyaa tek di heat, get out a di kitchen. If you cannot take the pressure, get out of the situation. If yu de shit, an' si certain people/person a come; sidong inna it. You have to do your best to conceal any thing you're doing that you don't want everyone to know about, from people/person(s) with loose tongue(s) (people/person[s] talk too much). It' better fi lose yu timedan yu character. Keep your principles. Lickle bit a ram goat have beard an' big dull noh have nun. Little people/thingscan have grand attributes that big people/things don't. Lilly axe can cut down big tree Don’t judge a book by its cover Lilly billy-goat hab beard by big bull hab none Don’t judge a book by its cover Man hab cow him look fi milk He who pays the piper call the tune Man no hab gourdy, him satisfy wid bottle Half a loaf is better than none Man noh dead, noh call 'im duppy. As long as someone is alive, don't dismiss their potentials. Man noh done cross riva, noh fi cuss alligator long mout long. Don't cuss those who can block your path. Manners mek di man. Manners make the man. Manners tek yu thru' di worl'. Good manners take you thru' the world. Me no call you no come Don’t go where you are not wanted Mi come here fi drink milk, mi noh come here fi count cow". A reminder to conduct business in a straightforward manner. Monkey mus' know weh 'im gwine put 'im tail, before 'im order trousiz. One must know one's self before doing what others are doing. Nanny-goat neber ‘cratch him back till him see wall Await the proper opportunity Neva si, come si Someone who is not use to having nice things and makes too much of apublic show and excitement about it. No all foot in a boot a good foot Don’t judge a book by its cover No ebery chain you hear a fe rollin’calf Don not jump to conclusions No hang you clothes all pon one nail. Don’t put all your eggs in one basket. No Ketchie, ho habie. If you don’t catch you won’t have No mek one donkey choke you Don’t be misled by a fool. No put youself in a barrel when match box can hol you Don’t pretend to be more important than you are Noh care how boar hog try fi hide under sheep wool, 'im grunt always betray 'im. Don't care how much disguise someone puts on, their true self will surface. Noh cup noh brok, noh coffee noh trow weh. If you survive unharmed, everything is fine. Noh put yu cap whé yu caang reach it. Don't live aboveyour means. One finger can’t ketch louse One always need assistance. One, one cocoa full basket. Easy does it;a little at a time. Peppa bu'n hot, but ih good fi curry. Everything has its usefulness. Play wid puppy, Puppy lick yu mouth Familiarity breeds contempt Pretty rose got macca jook. There is a bad side to seemingly good situation. Pudden cyaa bake widout fiah. You need the right toolsfor the job. Puss an' Dog noh have di same luck! What will work for some folks, don't for some. Rat belly full, potato have skin. When your are not in need, you are choosey. Rockstone a riva battam noh know' sun hot. If you are in a sheltered situation, you don't know what hardship is. Sarry fi maaga dog, maaga dog tu'n 'roun' bit yu. Sometimes you help someone in an unfortunate stiuation and they act ungrateful, even hurt you. Sensa fowl no wan fedder, but him want carn. Appearances are not essential to existence. Ston a riva battan nuh know sun hat You cannot relate to someone's experience if you are not in similar conditions. The higher the monkey climbs the more him expose". The higher up you go, the more responsible you must become. Tideh fi mi, tomorrow fi yu. Time and place for every thing. T'ief no love fi si t'ief carry long bag. Thief don't like to see other thieves seem like they're florishing. Too much callaloo, mek peppa-pot stew bitter. Too much of a good thing, can spoil everything. Walk better dan sidong. To walk is better than to sit down. Used when someone goes somewhere and receives something he or she needs or can use, that he or she might not have received, staying home. Want all, loose all. If one is greedy, one loses everything. Want i' want i', cyaa get i' an' get i' get i', no want i'. Those who are in need, can't get it and those who have it don't want it. We run t'ings, t'ings noh run we. Control your own destiny. Wha costs nutting gib good weight. We are generous with what costs us nothing Wha' noh poison, fatten. meaning: If an experience doesn't distroys you, you can benifit greatly from it. Wha' noh poison, fatten. If an experience doesn't destroys you, you can benefit greatly from it. Wha sweet nanny-goat a go run him belly. Often things we like are not good for us. What darg see him bark all night, ramgoat see it no trouble him Things affect people differently When ashes cole darg sleep in dey Circumstances alter cases When bull ole him feed a fence side Caution comes with age When cockroach get in a trouble, him well glad fe fun go hide a fowl-house. Any port in a storm When crab walk too much him los’ him claw. A rolling stone gathers no moss When crab walk too much, 'im lose 'im claw. Overuse will eventually cause breakage. When herring mauger him bone show Evil deeds will reveal themselves When Jackass back strong, dem overload 'im hamper. The best worker always get the hardest task. When Jackass smell corn, 'im gallop. People respond to the right encouragement. When kitchen dresser tumble dung, maaga dog laugh. The deprived will laugh at the misfortune of the fortunate. When rat like fi romp 'roun' puss jaw, one diay 'im gwine en up inna puss craw. When one flirts too much with danger, soon he or she will get hurt. When visitors come a wi fireside, wi mek wi pot smell nice. When you have guests,you treat them the best you can. When water trow weh i' cyaa pick up. You can't turn backthe hands of time. When yu go a fireside an' see food, eat half an' lef' half. Don't speak all that you know. (speak half and leave half). When yu go a Jackass yard, yu noh fi chat 'bout big iyaz. Don't criticize others in their presence. You nebber see kicking’ cow widout kickin’calf Like father like son You nebber see pop-gun kill alligator Don’t send a boy ona man’s errand.