The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Proverbs

Did you know that "A Change Is As Good As A Rest" and A Trouble Shared Is A Trouble Halved" are not recorded before the 20th century? Or that "A Watched Pot Never Boils" first occurs as late as 1848? Proverbs are a part of the living language, from computers ("Garbage In, Garbage Out) to economics ("There's No Such Thing As A Free Lunch"). 100 new proverbs have been added for this new edition - old sayings which have reappeared in the 20th century and brand new ones ("If It Ain's Broke, Don't Fix It"; "A Rising Tide Lifts All The Boats"; "Different Strokes For Different Folks"; "No Cure No Pay"; "Less Is More"). This guide to proverbs in current use comprises a key word system and numerous cross-reference entries. Each proverb is given with its main variants, definition where the meaning is obscure, and quotations from its first occurrence (including Greek, Latin and French antecedents) to the present day.