18 Proverbs in German

Proverbs in German (Sprichwörter) are used quite often in day-to-day. Many of them are applied in the education of children, as they bring good principles and lessons of past generations. Not all the proverbs are sweet and happy, on the contrary, they may even be provocative. Some are very similar to those of other cultures, so we decided to list a few below for you to know them!

“Allein ist besser als mit Schlechten im Verein.”
“Better be alone than in bad company.”

“Andere Länder, andere Sitten.”
“Different countries, different customs.”

“Anfangen ist leicht, beharren eine Kunst.”
“To begin is easy, to persist is an art.”

“Berühre nicht alte Wunden.”
“It is not wise to open old wounds.”

“Besser arm in Ehren als reich in Schanden”
“A good name is the best of all treasures.”

“Bellende Hunde beißen nicht.”
“Barking dogs seldom bite.”

“Böses mit Gutem vergelten.”
“If life gives you lemons, make lemonade.”

“Das Billige ist immer das Teuerste.”
“If you buy cheaply, you pay dearly.”

“Der Apfel fällt nicht weit vom Stamm.”
“The apple does not fall far from the tree.”

“Die Ersten werden die Letzten sein.”
“The last will be first, and the first last.”

“Geschenk vom Feind ist nicht gut gemeint.”
“Beware of Greeks bearing gifts.”

“Leichter gesagt als getan.”
“Saying is one thing, doing is another.”

“Lügen haben kurze Beine.”
“A lie has no legs.”

“Man soll kein Öl ins Feuer giessen.”
“Don’t add fuel to the fire.”

“Pech im Spiel, Glück in der Liebe.”
“Unlucky at gambling, lucky in love .”

“Schlimmer geht immer!”
“There’s nothing so bad that can’t get worse!”

“Was dich nicht umbringt, macht dich stark!”
“What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger!”

“Wenn du deinen Teller leer isst dann gibt es morgen schönes Wetter.”
“If you eat everything, tomorrow there will be good weather.”

This is a fairly common theme in the German day-to-day, that’s why we brought to our blog! Do you like proverbs and know others not listed here? Tell us your favorites!

See also the list from Wikiquote, with hundreds of proverbs in German!