Sayings about Foolishness & Wisdom
The wise man asks questions of himself; the fool questions others. ~ Chinese Proverb
Penny wise and pound foolish. ~ Scottish Proverb
When the fool knows when to be silent, he would be sitting among the wise. ~ Czech Proverb
Wise men philosophize as the fools live on. ~ Korean Proverb
Useless wisdom is double foolishness. ~ Icelandic Proverb
What use is wisdom when folly reigns? ~ Yiddish Proverb
The wise man says what he knows; the fool doesn’t know what he is saying. ~ Turkish Proverb
When a fool has the cow by the horns, the wise man can milk it. ~ Yiddish Proverb
In the moment of crisis, the wise build bridges and the foolish build dams. ~ Nigerian proverb
A foolish fox is caught by one leg, but a wise one by all four. ~ Serbian Proverb
Boasting begins where wisdom stops. ~ Japanese Proverb
Were fools silent, they would pass for wise. ~ Dutch Proverb
A fool says what he knows, and a wise man knows what he says. ~ Yiddish Proverb
Wisdom is born; stupidity is learned.~ Russian Proverb
A spoon does not know the taste of soup, nor a learned fool the taste of wisdom.~ Welsh Proverb
What a fool does in the end, the wise man does in the beginning. ~ American Proverb
Reason is the wise man’s guide, example the fool’s. ~ Welsh Proverb
Foolish boys, wise men. ~ Italian Proverb
Even from a foe a man may learn wisdom. ~ Greek Proverb
It is a wise man who lives with money in the bank, it is a fool who dies that way. ~ French Proverb
Be wise, but pretend to be ignorant. ~ Russian Proverb
What wise men suppose is worth more than the certainties of fools. ~ Arabian Proverb
The believer is happy; the doubter is wise. ~ Hungarian Proverb
We start as fools and become wise through experience. ~ Tanzanian Proverb
A wise man will not rebuke a fool. ~ Chinese Proverb
Fools build houses, and wise men buy them. ~ English Proverb
A wise man changes his mind, a fool never will. ~ Spanish Proverb
A fool by chance may say a wise thing. ~ Dutch Proverb
To the world wisdom is folly; to the wise the world is foolish. ~ Indian Proverb
A fool can ask more questions in an hour than a wise man can answer in seven years. ~ English Proverb
Men can acquire knowledge, but not wisdom. Some of the greatest fools ever known were learned men. ~ Spanish Proverb
The fool has to do at last what the wise did at first. ~ Italian Proverb
A wise man’s day is worth a fool’s life. ~ Arabian Proverb
The fool sings a love song to his wife, the wise man will talk about his dog. ~ Turkish Proverbs
For a wise man a fool is a good advisor. ~ French Proverb
As the wise man looks for a bridge the fool crosses the river. ~ Iranian Proverbs
The foolish sayings of a rich man pass for wise ones. ~ Spanish Proverb
The wise man learns more from his enemies than a fool does from his friends. ~ Chinese Proverb
Riches serve a wise man but command a fool. ~ English Proverb
The wise man says “I am looking for truth”; and the fool, “I have found truth.” ~ Russian Proverb
The hot sun melts away the snow; when anger comes, does wisdom go.~ Indian Proverbs
He that’s a wise man by day is no fool by night. ~ English Proverbs
Better a wise man’s servant than an idiot’s master. ~ Vietnamese Proverb
A fool who can keep silent is counted among the wise. ~ Yiddish Proverb
One idiot can ask more questions than ten wise men can answer. ~ Mongolian Proverb
When a hundred men call a wise man a fool, then he becomes a fool. ~ Albanian Proverb
The wise understand; fools follow the reports of others. ~ Tibetan Proverb
The fool speaks, the wise man listens. ~ Ethiopian proverb
There is no wise response to a foolish remark. ~ Slovak Proverb
The speaker may well be a fool but the listener is wise. ~ Japanese Proverbs
The wise man, even when he holds his tongue, says more than the fool when he speaks. ~ Yiddish Proverb
A miser’s money takes the place of wisdom. ~ Dutch Proverb
What a fool can spoil, ten wise men cannot repair. ~ Yiddish Proverb
Better a slap from a wise man than a kiss from a fool. ~ Yiddish Proverb
It is better to weep with wise men than to laugh with fools. ~ Spanish Proverbs
He alone is wise who can accommodate himself to all contingencies of life; but the fool contends, and struggling, like a swimmer, against the stream. ~ Latin Proverb
No woman can make a wise man out of a fool, but every woman can change a wise man into a fool. ~ Argentine Proverb
A wise man never knows all, only fools know everything. ~ African Proverb
Everyone is wise until he speaks. ~ Irish Proverbs
A fool is a wise man’s ladder. ~ South African Proverb
It is better to be in hell with a wise man than in heaven with an idiot. ~ Yiddish Proverb
The wise man is father of the fool. ~ African Proverb
The biggest fools are those who are paid to be wise. ~ German Proverbs
It is easier to wage war with wise enemies than be at peace with foolish friends. ~ Afghan Proverb
The heart of a fool is in his mouth and the mouth of the wise man is in his heart. ~ Ethiopian Proverb
The fool does what he can’t avoid, the wise man avoids what he can’t do. ~ Chinese Proverb
Quotations about Wisdom & Foolishness
Every man is a damn fool for at least five minutes every day; wisdom consists in not exceeding the limit. ~ Elbert Hubbard
Some folks are wise and some are otherwise. ~ Tobias Smollett
The fool doth think he is wise, but the wise man knows himself to be a fool.. ~ William Shakespeare
Travel makes a wise man better, and a fool worse. ~ Thomas Fuller
The wise man says it cannot be done, but the fool goes and does it. ~ Author Unknown
There is this difference between happiness and wisdom: he that thinks himself the happiest man is really so; but he that thinks himself the wisest is generally the greatest fool. ~ Francis Bacon
The beginning of wisdom is the knowledge of folly. ~ Norman Macdonald
The wise man questions the wisdom of others because he questions his own, the foolish man, because it is different from his own. ~ Leo Stein
A wise man may look ridiculous in the company of fools. ~ Thomas Fuller
When wisdom leaves the house folly enters it. ~ Edward Counsel
He dares to be a fool, and that is the first step in the direction of wisdom. ~ James Gibbons Huneker
The mistakes of the fool are known to the world, but not to himself. The mistakes of the wise man are known to himself, but not to the world. ~ Charles Caleb Colton
It takes a wise man to handle a lie; a fool had better remain honest. ~ Norman Douglas
If wisdom were on sale in the open market, the stupid would not even ask the price. ~ Author Unknown
Wisdom is often counted folly by the unwise. ~ Edward Counsel
A wise man learns more from his enemies than a fool from his friends. ~ Baltasar Gracian
A wise man can see more from the bottom of a well than a fool can from a mountain top. ~ Author Unknown
Few things are necessary to make the wise man happy while no amount of material wealth would satisfy a fool. ~ Og Mandino
A man remains ignorant because he loves ignorance, and chooses ignorant thoughts; a man becomes wise because he loves wisdom and chooses wise thoughts. ~ James Allen
He that walks with wise men shall be wise, but a companion of fools shall be destroyed. ~ Bible
A wise man fights to win, but he is twice a fool who has no plan for possible defeat. ~ Louis L’Amour