Italian Proverbs II

1. Con niente non si fa niente. With nothing you can make nothing. You can’t make something from nothing.
2. Del senno di poi (ne) son piene le fosse. Ditches are full of hindsight.
3. Detto fatto. Said & done.
4. Dopo la pioggia viene il bel tempo. After the rain comes good weather. Every cloud has a silver lining.
5. Fermo come una statua. Still as a statue.
6. Fidarsi e’ bene, non fidarsi e’ megio. To trust is good, not to trust is better.
7. Gli estremi si toccano. Extremes touch one another.
8. Il bugiardo vuola buona memoria. The liar needs a good memory.
9. Il mondo e’ bello perche e’ vario. The world is beautiful because it is varied. Viva la difference!
10. Il primo amore non si scorda mai. You never forget your first love.
11. Il riso fa buon sangue. Laughter makes good blood. Laughter is the best medicine.
12. Il silencio e’ d’oro e la parola e’ d’argento. Silence is golden, words are silver.
13. Il tempo e’ denaro. Time is money.
14. Il tempo guarisce tutti i mali. Time heals all wounds.
15. Il tempo viene per chi sa aspettare. The time comes for he who knows how to wait. All things come to those who wait.
16. La buona moglie fa il buon marito. A good wife makes a good husband.
17. La gatta frettolosa fece i gattini ciechi. The cat in a hurry made blind kittens. Haste makes waste.
18. La gente in case di vetro non dovrebbe gettare le pietre. People in glass houses should not throw stones.
19. La lingua non ha osso ma rompe l’osso. The tongue has no bone but it breaks bone.
20. La moglie e’ la chiave di casa. A good wife is the key to a good home.
21. La pratica vale piu’ della grammatica. Experience is the best teacher.
22. La prima e’ matrimonio, la seconda e’ compagnia, la terza un’eresia. The first woman you marry is your wife, the second a companion, the third is nonsense.
23. La speranza e’ l’ ultima a morire. Hope is the last thing to die.
24. L’abito non fa il monaco. The habit does not make the monk. Clothes don’t make the man.
25. L’amore domina senza regole. Love rules without rules.
26. L’amore e cieco. Love is blind.
27. Le bugie hanno le gambe corte. Lies have short legs.
28. Le ore del mattino hanno l’oro in bocca. The hour of the morning have gold in their mouth. The morning hours are the most precious of the day.
29. Lontano dagli occhi, lontano dal cuore. Far from the eys far from the heart. Out of sight, out of mind.
30. L’uomo propone ma Dio dispone. Man proposes but God disposes.
31. Matrimoni e viscuvati, di lu celu su mannati. Weddings and spiritual matters are heaven sent.
32. Meglio essere invidiati che compatiti. Better to be envied than pitied.
33. Meglio il marito senz’amore, che con gelosia. Better to have a husband without love than one who is jealous.
34. Meglio l’uovo oggi, che la gallina domani. Better an egg today than a chicken tomorrow. A bird in hand is worth two in the bush.
35. Meglio tardi, che mai. Better late than never.
36. Meglio un giorno da leone che cento da pecora. Better one day as a lion than a hundred as a sheep. (Mussolini)
37. Moglie e buoi dei paesi tuoi. Wife and oxen from your own country. Marry a woman from your own neighborhood.
38. Morto un papa, se ne fa un altro. The pope is dead another is made. Life goes on.

Read our other articles about Italian proverbs and Italian sayings: Italian Proverbs I and Italian Proverbs III.