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What are some common sayings or proverbs that contradict each other?

For example:
Absence makes the heart grow fonder / Out of sight is out of mind.
10 Answers
Liz Pullen
Liz Pullen, Sociologist, Ethnographer
  • Look before you leap or All good things come to those who wait / Those who hesitate are lost.
  • If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. /Don't beat your head against a stone wall.
  • Never put off till tomorrow what you can do today. / Don't cross the bridge until you come to it.
  • Two heads are better than one. / Paddle your own canoe.
  • Haste makes waste. / Time waits for no man.
  • You're never too old to learn. / You can't teach an old dog new tricks.
  • A word to the wise is sufficient. / Talk is cheap.
  • It's better to be safe than sorry. / Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
  • Don't look a gift horse in the mouth. / Beware of Greeks bearing gifts.
  • Do unto others as you would have others do unto you. / Nice guys finish last.
  • Hitch your wagon to a star. / Don't bite off more that you can chew.
  • Many hands make light work. / Too many cooks spoil the broth.
  • Don't judge a book by its cover. / Clothes make the man.
  • The squeaking wheel gets the grease. / Silence is golden.
  • A stitch in time saves nine / If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
  • Fools rush in where angels fear to tread. / Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
  • Seek and ye shall find. / Curiosity killed the cat.
  • The best things in life are free. / There’s no such thing as a free lunch.
  • Save for a rainy day. / Tomorrow will take care of itself.
  • Life is what we make it. / What will be, will be.
  • Opposite attracts. / Birds of the same feather flock together.
  • Faint heart never won fair lady. The meek shall inherit the  earth.
  • With age comes wisdom. / Out of the mouths of babes come all  wise sayings.
  • Two is company, three is a crowd. / The more, the merrier.
Visakan Veerasamy
Visakan Veerasamy, blogs @ visakanv.com
Here are two that "contradict" themselves!

"There are no absolutes."

"Change is the only constant."

The interesting thing about them is that they can be valid in a practical sense, yet render themselves invalid- so they're true, but false. Self-referencing always causes problems, paradoxes, and I find them to be a fascinating insight into the human condition (being both the sculptor and the sculpture, observer and participant, etc)

"This statement is false."
Ava Mohsenin
Ava Mohsenin, Current student at McGill University
Actions speak louder than words / The pen is mightier than the sword
Knowledge is power / Ignorance is bliss
What will be, will be / Life is what you make it
Many hands make light work / Too many cooks spoil the broth
Parke Muth
Parke Muth, Founder, Parke Muth Consulting, former Dean, Director of International Admission
Festina lente
"make haste slowly' has the advantage of contradiction self-contained making it both paradoxical and profound
I have had to resort to archaic sayings because Liz Pullen has covered it
  • Never look a gift horse in the mouth/ beware of gifts from Greek
  • The proof of the pudding is in the eating/seeing is believing
  • You can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear/ Make do and manage
  • A cat may look at a king/ know your place
  • A fool wonders what a wise man asks / it is better to appear an idiot than open your mouth and remove all doubt
  • Go down with all guns blazing/ Know when to leave the table
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