The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Proverbs (37 page)
Read The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Proverbs Online
Authors: John Andrew Simpson,
BOOK: The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Proverbs
13.01Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
The BEST things come in small packages
Parcels
sometimes replaces
packages
. Cf. 13th-cent. Fr.
menue[s] parceles ensemble sunt beles
, small packages considered together are beautiful;
1659
J. HOWELL
Proverbs
(French) 10 The best ointments are put in little boxes.
1877
Letter
22 Jan. in
Nursery in Nineties
(1935) v.
As the best things are (said to be) wrapped in small parcels (proverb), I select the smallest sheet of paper I can find .. to make you acquainted with the .. state of affairs.
1979
Eighth Dwarf
xviii.
‘The little gentleman.’.. ‘The best things sometimes come in small packages,’ Jackson said, wincing at his own banality.
great and small
sometimes replaces
packages
. Cf. 13th-cent. Fr.
menue[s] parceles ensemble sunt beles
, small packages considered together are beautiful;
1659
J. HOWELL
Proverbs
(French) 10 The best ointments are put in little boxes.
1877Letter
22 Jan. in
Nursery in Nineties
(1935) v.
As the best things are (said to be) wrapped in small parcels (proverb), I select the smallest sheet of paper I can find .. to make you acquainted with the .. state of affairs.
1979
Eighth Dwarf
xviii.
‘The little gentleman.’.. ‘The best things sometimes come in small packages,’ Jackson said, wincing at his own banality.
great and small
The BEST things in life are free
1927et al.
Best Things in Life are Free
(song) 3
The moon belongs to ev'ryone, The best things in life are free, The stars belong to ev'ryone, They gleam there for you and me.
1948
in
Home-Book of Proverbs
887
In gloomy tones we need not cry: ‘How many things there are to buy!’ Here is a thought for you and me: ‘The best things in life are free.’
1955
Recognitions
II. ii.
Someone once told them the best things in life are free, and so they've got in the habit of not paying.
1985
Diamond Rock
xv.
‘That's the first time I ever paid anyone for a kiss,’ she said … ‘I didn't take the money.’ ‘The best things in life are free,’ she said.
good things;
money
It is BEST to be on the safe side
1668&
Sir Martin Mar-all
v. i.
I'm resolv'd to be on the sure side.
1811
Sense & Sensibility
III. iv.
Determining to be on the safe side, he made his apology in form as soon as he could say any thing.
1847
Children of New Forest
I. xi.
Be on the safe side, and do not trust him too far.
1935
Little House on Prairie
iii.
Best to be on the safe side, it saves trouble in the end.
1981
Economist
28 Nov. 100
The Rowland-Molina hypothesis about the damaging effects of CFCs has not been disproved, so it is best to be on the safe side.
prudence;
security
Other books
The Catlady by Dick King-Smith
The Montauk Monster by Hunter Shea
Down & Dirty by Jake Tapper
Yarn Harlot by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee
The Warning Voice by Cao Xueqin
Bloodfire by John Lutz
Always You by Jill Gregory
Tapestry by J. Robert Janes