A Dictionary of Proverbs (Oxford Paperback Reference)

(Marcin) #1
notice.. said in one long line: Loose stones travel slowly. Well, I dare say they do: rolling
stones, we know, gather no moss. constancy and inconstancy; human nature

When in ROME, do as the Romans do

Cf. ST. AMBROSE, quoted in ST. AUGUSTINE Letters xxxvi. 32 (Migne), quando hic
sum, non ieiuno sabbato; quando Romae sum, ieiuno sabbato, when I am here [i.e. Milan], I do
not fast on Saturday; when I am in Rome, I fast on Saturday; 1660 quoted in verse form in
JEREMY TAYLOR, Ductor Dubitantium (1851) I. i. 5. 5 cum fueris Romae, Romano vivito
more, cum fueris alibi, vivito sicut ibi, when you’re in Rome, then live in Roman fashion;
when you’re elsewhere, then live as there they live.


c 1475 in Modern Philology (1940) XXXVIII. 122 Whan tho herd hat Rome Do so of
ther the dome [when you are at Rome do as they do there]. 1552 R. TAVERNER tr.
Erasmus’ Adages (ed. 3) 51V That which is commonly in euery mans mouth in England
Whan you art at Rome, do as they do at Rome. 1766 in L. H. Butterfield et al. Adams
Family Correspondence (1963) I. 55 My advice to you is among the Romans, do as the
romans do. 1836 E. HOWARD Rattlin the Reefer I. xxii. ‘Do at Rome as the Romans do,’
is the essence of all politeness. 1960 N. MITFORD Don’t tell Alfred viii. ‘I thought the
English never bothered about protocol?’ ‘When in Rome, however, we do as the Romans
do.’ 2001 Washington Post 8 Dec. A25 One woman stationed there [Saudi Arabia] who
purports to be comfortable with the rules said, ‘When in Rome, do as the Romans do.’
But how far does that go? To feeding the lions? circumstances; conduct

ROME was not built in a day

Cf. medieval Fr. Rome ne fut pas faite toute en un jour, Rome was not made in one day.

1545 R. TAVERNER tr. Erasmus’ Adages (ed. 2) D1V Rome was not buylt in one
daye. 1546 J. HEYWOOD Dialogue of Proverbs I. xi. D4 Rome was not bylt on a daie
(quoth he) and yet stood Tyll it was fynysht. 1646 in Publications of Prince Society
(1865) I. 236 Rome was not built in a day. .. Let them produce any colonie.. where more
hath been done in 16 yeares. 1849 C. BRONTE Shirley I. vi. As Rome.. had not been built
in a day, so neither had Mademoiselle Gerard Moore’s education been completed in a
week. 2001 Times 2 6 Nov. 15 Even then, £14 million must still be found from private
sources. Not easy... Still, Rome wasn’t built in a day. haste; patience and impatience

Rome see also all ROADS lead to Rome; it is ill SITTING at Rome and striving with the
Pope.

Free download pdf