proverb

A short pithy saying in frequent and widespread use that expresses a basic truth or practical precept.

To utter in the form of a proverb; speak of proverbially; make a byword of.

To provide with a proverb.

To utter proverbs.

A short pithy sentence, often repeated colloquially, expressing a well-known truth or a common fact ascertained by experience or observation; a popular saying which briefly and forcibly expresses some practical precept; an adage; a wise saw: often set forth in the guise of metaphor and in the form of rime, and sometimes alliterative.

A byword; a reproach; an object of scorn or derision.

In Scripture, an enigmatical utterance; a mysterious or oracular saying that requires interpretation.

plural [capitalized] One of the books of the Old Testament, following the Book of Psalms. The full title is Proverbs of Solomon (i. 1).

A dramatic composition in which some proverb or popular saying is taken as the foundation of the plot. Good examples are — “A Door must be either Open or Shut,” Alfred de Musset; “Still Water Runs Deep,”