爲了學好英語，特別是爲了提高英語寫作和翻譯水平，瞭解和熟悉一些英文諺語和格言十分必要。這些諺語源遠流長，反映了前人在生活實踐中所積累的經驗和教訓，既富有知識性和哲理性，又形象生動、通俗易懂。由於諺語大多韻律和諧，讀來朗朗上口，聽來印象深刻，所以比較容易記憶。如果再與我國相應的諺語和成語加以比較，就更易於人們全面掌握、正確使用。下文，本站小編爲大家整理了英文諺語與西方文化，歡迎借鑑參考。
(1)A fool at forty is a fool indeed.
孔子云：四十而不惑。又云：年四十而見惡焉，其終也已。 (The person who at the age of forty still evokes the dislikes of others is a hopeless case.) 西諺談的也是這個意思，只不過換了一種說法。正如另一句西諺所說，Life begins at forty.
E.g. John never lived up to the expectations of his family. Twenty years after college, he has accomplished nothing, which reminds us of the proverb, "A fool at forty is a fool indeed!"
(2)Those who live in glass houses should not throw stones.
孔子有相似的論斷，但境界更高：“己所不欲，勿施於人”。在西方，《聖經》中也有類似的警句。
E.g. Washington likes to accuse other governments of violating human rights. However, those who live in glass houses should not throw stones. Why not try, instead，to eliminate the numerous human rights violations in the United States?
(3)Old habits die hard.
這句諺語說的是一個習慣問題。如果要找出一個相應的中文成語來匹配的話，那就是“江山易改，本性難移。” 當然，中文這個成語裏有些許貶義，但英文這句話本身的使用卻不受褒貶的限制，有時還可能有自嘲的意思。
E.g. A: Why, I have told Joe millions of times that he should leave his dirty shoes outside, but it seems that he is just turning a deaf ear to my advice!
B: Come on, calm down. Old habits die hard, you know.
(4)Everybody's business is nobody's business.
一個和尚挑水吃，兩個和尚還能擡水吃，而三個和尚卻落得個“沒水吃”, 不正是此意嗎?
E.g. It is commonly said that everybody's business is nobody’s business. Just look at the graffiti pollution on public buildings, and you'll see that although nobody likes it, no one has done anything to get rid of it.
(5)Bad news travels fast.
正所謂 “好事不出門 , 壞事傳千里。” 這也許與人們的獵奇心理有關，越是有爭議的話題越能得到人們的關注，bad news 自然就會大有市場，令人們奔走相告。
E.g. A: Newman missed the championship by a mere 0.1second. The news just came out at noon, but now the whole city seems to be talking about it!
B: Yeh, bad news travels fast.
(6)There is truth in wine.
東方與西方在“酒後吐真言”這一點上達到了驚人的共識。
E.g. A: Listen, Julia! You may not believe it, but it did happen! Yesterday, after several glasses of beer, Peter told me he's been wanting to marry me for quite some time but just didn't have enough courage to say so.
B: Oh, how could it be so dramatic? Congratulations then! There is truth in wine!
(7)Great oaks from little acorns grow.
請注意，這是“Great oaks grow from little acorns ”的倒裝句。再大的橡樹也是從小小的種子開始發芽、成長的，任何事物的發展都有個由少到多、由小到大逐漸積累的過程。
E.g. We have just heard a marvelous performance. She is sure to become a great pianist. Great oaks from little acorns grow, as the saying goes.
(8)Many a little makes a mickle.
mickle 一詞現今只存在於蘇格蘭語中，意思是：a good quantity or amount。
這一句與上一句有相通之處，都有“ 積少成多” 的意味。
E.g. No matter how little you've learned, keep on learning and absorbing. Many a little makes a mickle, you are sure to achieve more.
(9) Man proposes, God disposes.
這個說法最早見於 14 世紀，起初以“If man proposes evil, God disposes of it”的形式出現，意思是上帝會阻止想要爲惡的人。就像我們常說的“盡人事，聽天命”、“謀事在人，成事在天”一樣，盡力而爲之後，還要順從自然的規律。
E.g. A: Bob, how about tomorrow's driving test? Sure to pass, huh?
B: I don't how. I've done enough, I'd say. Anyway，man proposes, God disposes. I am praying for good luck.
(10) It is a sin to steal a pin.
該句的字面意思是：即使是偷一根針也是一種罪過。還記得那句古訓嗎?“勿以惡小而爲之，勿以善小而不爲。”冀望之切，溢於言表。
E.g. Honesty is the best policy. Never covet what is not yours, for it is a sin to steal a pin.
(11) If you play with fire, you get burnt.
正如西方諺語所說：Fire is a good servant but a bad master 。所謂“玩火者必自焚，鋌而走險的盲目舉動會招致無窮禍患。
E.g. The abuse(濫用) of power has sent many people into jail(監獄), which shows that playing with fire could get you burnt.
(12) Revenge is a dish that could be eaten cold.
很形象的一句諺語。所有的菜餚都必須趁熱吃，唯獨revenge 是個例外。“君子報仇，十年未晚。”
E.g. He has done serious wrong to his friends. You just wait and see. They will not let him go scot- free(免於受罰的). Revenge is a dish that could be eaten cold.
(13) There is no smoke without fire.
無風不起浪，有水才行船。做人、謀事，謹慎爲佳。
E.g. “No smoke without fire," said the detective.
"Smoke signals can be misread," countered Sloan.
(14) Every dog has its day.
這裏的day,是指opportunities(機遇)，即成功的.機會;而dog則泛指那些地位低下、似乎沒有出息的人。
(又作All dogs have their days)
E.g. You must not look down upon him. Though poor and gloomy, he could turn out to be outstanding one day. As the saying goes, every dog has its day.
(15) If you lie down with dogs, you will get up with fleas(跳蚤).
這是一句很經典的諺語，也就是我們中文裏說的“近朱者赤，近墨者黑”。在這條英文諺語中體現出來的只是“近墨者黑”的一面。
E.g. --Harry! How come you're back so late? Where have you been?
一Just to a friend's.
一 To a friend. Just for a glass of liquor, huh? You're going to be drowned in 1iquor(酒). I'd say! If you lie down with dogs, you'll get up with millions of fleas!
(16) It is easy to find a stick to beat a dog.
人非聖賢，孰能無過。人們總會犯一些錯誤，也許做者無心但觀者有意。有些小人，自己抱殘守缺，不幹實事，卻挖空心思，找別人的缺點和麻煩。
E.g. 一 Did you know that Jeff's been fired?
-- No. What for?
-- Jeff sometimes had ideas different from our boss's.
-- Yeah, but Jeff hasn't done anything wrong, has he?
-- Well, boss is boss. It is always easy to find a stick to beat a dog.
(17) You can't teach old dogs new tricks.
這句諺語說的是：人老了思想容易僵化，對新生事物很難接受。
E.g. Don't forget Wang is already 80. At his age, you can't expect him to learn the tap dance. You can't teach old dogs new tricks, you know.
從以上幾則諺語我們可以觀察到中西文化的一個有趣的區別。西方人經常用狗來比喻人，如，lucky dog(幸運兒)，因爲他們並不歧視狗。而在漢語中，有不少涉及狗的諺語和成語都是貶義的，如“狗改不了吃屎”、“掛羊頭賣狗肉”、“狗仗人勢”、“狗嘴裏吐不出象牙”等。當然，英文中dog一詞有時也帶有貶義，但往往含義與中文不盡相同，我們使用時切忌望文生義。如It is a dog's life Chris is leading.某位教授認爲“a dog's life”的意思是“悲慘的生活”，因而在一篇論及中英文化差別的文章中將其譯成“過着牛馬不如的生活”。其實“a dog's life”指的是“爭吵不休，過着不安寧的日子”。這類成語很多，如 go to the dogs(每況愈下),dog-eat-dog (狗咬狗的，損人利己的),dog in the manger (佔着茅坑不拉屎的人)。還有一些沒有任何褒貶涵義的用法，如 dog days (大熱天),doggy bag (餐館裏的打包袋),據說，早先人們礙於面子，不願明說要把剩菜帶回家吃，佯稱要帶給狗吃，所以叫doggy bag 。
(18) One swallow does not make a summer.
swallow 是燕子。西諺說，一隻燕子飛來不能代表夏天的來臨。而中國成語卻說，一葉知秋。兩種說法各有其智慧。“One swallow does not make a summer”，強調的是要區別一般性與特殊性的辯證哲理;而“一葉知秋”體現的則是從細微的端倪窺見總體趨勢的睿智。
E.g. -- Hey, look! The scores are a1ready 2:1! Liverpool is sure to win, I bet!
-- I don't think so. One swallow does not make a summer. Miracles(奇蹟) always happen the last minute.