Dictionary of Quotations from Ancient and Modern, English and Foreign Sources. Rev. James Wood
Bons mots n'épargnent nuls—Witticisms spare nobody. Fr. Pr.
Bon soir—Good evening. Fr.
Bon ton—The height of fashion. Fr.
Bonum ego quam beatum me esse nimio dici 55 mavolo—I would much rather be called good than well off. Plaut.
Bonum est fugienda aspicere in alieno malo—Well if we see in the misfortune of another what we should shun ourselves. Pub. Syr.
Bonum est, pauxillum amare sane, insane non bonum est—It is good to be moderately sane in love; to be madly in love is not good. Plaut.
Bonum summum quo tendimus omnes—That supreme good at which we all aim. Lucret.
Bonus animus in mala re dimidium est mali—Good courage in a bad affair is half of the evil overcome. Plaut.
Bonus atque fidus / Judex honestum prætulit 60 utili—A good and faithful judge ever prefers the honourable to the expedient. Hor.
Bonus dux bonum reddit militem—The good general makes good soldiers. L. Pr.
Bonus vir semper tiro—A good man is always a learner.
Bon vivant—A good liver. Fr.
Bon voyage—A pleasant journey or voyage. Fr.
Books are divisible into two classes, the books 65 of the hour and the books of all time. Ruskin.
Books are embalmed minds. Bovee.
Books are made from books. Voltaire.
Books cannot always please, however good; / Minds are not ever craving for their food. Crabbe.
Books generally do little else than give our errors names. Goethe.
Books, like friends, should be few and well chosen. Joineriana.
Books still accomplish miracles; they persuade men. Carlyle.
Books, we know, / Are a substantial world, pure and good. Wordsworth.
Boomen die men veel verplant gedijen zelden—Trees 5 you transplant often, seldom thrive. Dut. Pr.
Borgen thut nur einmal wohl—Borrowing does well only once. Ger. Pr.
Born to excel and to command! Congreve.
Borrowing from Peter to pay Paul. Cic.
Borrowing is not much better than begging; just as lending on interest is not much better than stealing. Lessing.
Bos alienus subinde prospectat foras—A strange 10 ox every now and then turns its eyes wistfully to the door. Pr.
Böser Brunnen, da man Wasser muss eintragen—It is a bad well into which you must pour water. Ger. Pr.
Böser Pfennig kommt immer wieder—A bad penny always comes back again. Ger. Pr.
Bos in lingua—He has an ox on his tongue, i.e., a bribe to keep silent, certain coins in Athens being stamped with an ox. Pr.
Bos lassus fortius figit pedem—The tired ox plants his foot more firmly. Pr.
Botschaft hör' ich wohl, allein mir fehlt der 15 Glaube—I hear the message indeed, but I want the faith. Goethe's "Faust."
[Greek: bouleuou pro ergôn, hopôs mê môra pelêtai]—Before the act consider, so that nothing foolish may arise out of it. Gr. Pr.
Bought wit is best, i.e., bought by experience. Pr.
Boutez en avant—Push forward. Fr.
Bowels of compassion. St. John.
Brag is a good dog, but Holdfast is better. 20 Pr.
Brain is always to be bought, but passion never comes to market. Lowell.
Brave men are brave from the very first. Corneille.
Bread at pleasure, / Drink by measure. Pr.
Bread is the staff of life. Swift.
Breathes there the man with soul so dead, / 25 Who never to himself hath said, / "This is my own, my native land?" Scott.
Breathe his faults so quaintly, / That they may seem the taints of liberty; / The flash and outbreak of a fiery mind. Ham., ii. 1.
Breed is stronger than pasture. George Eliot.
Brevet d'invention—A patent. Fr.
Breveté—Patented. Fr.
Breve tempus ætatis satis est longum ad bene 30 honesteque vivendum—A short term on earth is long enough for a good and honourable life. Cic.
Brevi manu—Offhand; summarily (lit. with a short hand).
Brevis a natura nobis vita data est: at memoria bene redditæ vitæ est sempiterna—A short life has been given us by Nature, but the memory of a well-spent one is eternal. Cic.
Brevis esse laboro, obscurus fio—When labouring to be concise, I become obscure. Hor.
Brevis ipsa vita est, sed longior malis—Life itself is short, but lasts longer than misfortunes. Pub. Syr.
Brevis voluptas mox doloris est parens—Short-lived 35 pleasure is the parent of pain. Pr.
Brevity is the body and soul of wit. Jean Paul.
Brevity is the soul of wit. Ham., iii. 2.
Bric-à-brac—Articles of vertu or curiosity. Fr.
Bricht ein Ring, so bricht die ganze Katte—A link broken, the whole chain broken. Ger. Pr.
Brief as the lightning in the collied night, / 40 That, in a spleen, unfolds both heaven and earth, / And ere a man hath power to say, "Behold!" / The jaws of darkness do devour it up. Mid. N.'s Dream, i. 1.
Briefe gehören unter die wichtigsten Denkmäler die der einzelne Mensch hinterlassen kann—Letters are among the most significant memorials a man can leave behind him. Goethe.
Briller par son absence—To be conspicuous by its absence. Fr.
Bring down my grey hairs with sorrow to the grave. Bible.
Bring forth men-children only! / For thy undaunted mettle should compose / Nothing but males. Macb., i. 7.
Broad thongs may be cut from other people's 45 leather. It. Pr.
Broken friendships may be sowthered (soldered), but never sound. Sc. Pr.
Brouille sera à la maison si