Dictionary of Quotations from Ancient and Modern, English and Foreign Sources. Rev. James Wood
DICTIONARY OF QUOTATIONS.
A.
A' are guid lasses, but where do a' the ill wives come frae? Sc. Pr.
A' are no freens that speak us fair. Sc. Pr.
A aucun les biens viennent en dormant—Good things come to some while asleep. Fr. Pr.
Ab abusu ad usum non valet consequentia—The abuse of a thing is no argument against its use. L. Max.
Ab actu ad posse valet illatio—From what has 5 happened we may infer what may happen.
A bad beginning has a bad, or makes a worse, ending. Pr.
A bad dog never sees the wolf. Pr.
A bad thing is dear at any price. Pr.
Ab alio expectes, alteri quod feceris—As you do to others, you may expect another to do to you. Laber.
A barren sow was never good to pigs. Pr. 10
A bas—Down! down with! Fr.
A beast that wants discourse of reason. Ham., i. 2.
A beau is everything of a woman but the sex, and nothing of a man beside it. Fielding.
A beau jeu beau retour—One good turn deserves another. Fr. Pr.
A beautiful form is better than a beautiful 15 face, and a beautiful behaviour than a beautiful form. Emerson.
A beautiful object doth so much attract the sight of all men, that it is in no man's power not to be pleased with it. Clarendon.
A beautiful woman is the "hell" of the soul, the "purgatory" of the purse, and the "paradise" of the eyes. Fontenelle.
A beggarly account of empty boxes. Rom. and Jul., v. 1.
A beggar's purse is always empty. Pr.
A belief in the Bible, the fruit of deep meditation, 20 has served me as the guide of my moral and literary life. I have found it a capital safely invested, and richly productive of interest. Goethe.
Abends wird der Faule fleissig—Towards evening the lazy man begins to be busy. Ger. Pr.
A beneficent person is like a fountain watering the earth and spreading fertility. Epicurus.
Aberrare a scopo—To miss the mark.
Abeunt studia in mores—Pursuits assiduously prosecuted become habits.
Ab extra—From without. 25
Abgründe liegen im Gemüthe, die tiefer als die Hölle sind—There are abysses in the mind that are deeper than hell. Platen.
Ab honesto virum bonum nihil deterret—Nothing deters a good man from what honour requires of him. Sen.
A big head and little wit. Pr.
Ab igne ignem—Fire from fire.
Abiit, excessit, evasit, erupit—He has left, gone 30 off, escaped, broken away. Cic. of Catiline's flight.
Ability to discern that what is true is true, and that what is false is false, is the characteristic of intelligence. Swedenborg.
Ab incunabilis—From the cradle.
Ab initio—From the beginning.
Ab inopia ad virtutem obsepta est via—The way from poverty to virtue is an obstructed one. Pr.
Ab intra—From within. 35
Ab irato—In a fit of passion.
A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. Pr.
A bis et à blanc—By fits and starts. Fr.
A bitter and perplex'd "What shall I do?" is worse to man than worst necessity. Schiller.
A black hen will lay a white egg. Pr. 40
A blind man should not judge of colours. Pr.
A blockhead can find more faults than a wise man can mend. Gael. Pr.
A blue-stocking despises her duties as a woman, and always begins by making herself a man. Rousseau.
Abnormis sapiens—Wise without learning. Hor.
A bon chat bon rat—A good rat to match a good 45 cat. Tit for tat. Pr.
A bon chien il ne vient jamais un bon os—A good bone never falls to a good dog. Fr. Pr.
A bon droit—Justly; according to reason. Fr.
A bon marché—Cheap. Fr.
A book may be as great a thing as a battle. Disraeli.
A book should be luminous, but not voluminous. 50 Bovee.
Ab origine—From the beginning.
About Jesus we must believe no one but himself. Amiel.
Above all Greek, above all Roman fame. Pope.
Above all things reverence thyself. Pythagoras.
Above the cloud with its shadow is the star with its light. Victor Hugo.
Ab ovo—From the beginning (lit. from the egg).
Ab ovo usque ad mala—From the beginning to 5 the end (lit. from the egg to the apples).
A bras ouverts—With open arms. Fr.
A brave man is clear in his discourse, and keeps close to truth. Arist.
A brave spirit struggling with adversity is a spectacle for the gods. Sen.
A breath can make them, as a breath has made. Goldsmith.
Abrégé—Abridgment. Fr. 10
Absence lessens weak, and intensifies violent, passions, as wind extinguishes a taper and lights up a fire. La Roche.
Absence makes the heart grow fonder. Bayly.
Absence of occupation is not rest; / A mind quite vacant is a mind distress'd.