A Dictionary of Proverbs (Oxford Paperback Reference)

proof.. had gotten by greate experience the very mother and mastres of wisedome. 1581

G. PETTIE tr. S. Guazzo’s Civil Conversation I. 11 Experience is the father of wisedom,

and memorie the mother. 1788 American Museum III. 183 If it be true, that experience is

the mother of wisdom, history must be an improving teacher. 1981 P. O‘DONNELL

Xanadu Talisman ii. Experience is the father of wisdom, remember. experience;

wisdom

EXPERIENCE keeps a dear school

1743 B. FRANKLIN Poor Richard’s Almanack (Dec.) Experience keeps a dear

school, but Fools will learn in no other. 1897 C. C. KING Story of British Army vii. But

the British leaders were to learn the fact, they might have foreseen, in the ‘only school

fools learn in, that of experience’. 1938 E. O. LORIMER tr. W. Frischauer’s Twilight in

Vienna vii. The various Governments had.. to learn their lesson in blood and tears, for

‘experience keeps a dear school’. 2000 Washington Post 17 July C2 You are never going

to be any of these people—for which it says here you should be eternally grateful—but

that isn’t going to stop you from trying, is it? In the immortal words of (talk about

success gurus) Benny Franklin: ‘Experience keeps a dear school, but fools will learn in no

other.’ experience

EXTREMES meet

Opposite extremes have much in common. Cf. a 1662 PASCAL Pensées (new ed., 1835) I.
iv. 109 les extremes se touchent, extremes meet.

1762 J. WATTS in Collections of New York Hist. Society (1928) LXII. 48 But as

extremes meet we may possibly the sooner have a peace for it. 1822 SCOTT Nigel III. iii.

This Olifaunt is a Puritan?—not the less like to be a Papist.. for extremities meet. 1836 E.

HOWARD Rattlin the Reefer I. xiv. Let us place at least one ‘barring out’ [i.e. action of

schoolboys barricading themselves in a room] upon record, in order to let the radicals

see, and seeing hope, when they find how nearly extremes meet, what a slight step there

is from absolute despotism to absolute disorganization. 1905 J. B. CABELL Line of Love

vi. It is a venerable saying that extremes meet. 1978 Economist 16 Dec. 22 Groups of the

extreme left and extreme right are each other’s total opposites and avowed enemies. But

in some respects these extremes meet. human nature; opposites

extremity see MAN’S extremity is God’s opportunity.

What the EYE doesn’t see, the heart doesn’t grieve over