A Witty List of Barbadian Proverbs

A colourful exchange of thoughts in Barbadian heritage, Barbadian proverbs aren’t heard and used as often as they were in yesteryear Barbados.

Barbadian proverbs are sayings that paint a good picture of the personalities and traits of Barbadian life.

Many aspects of traditional Barbados culture and heritage form proverbs in some way, utensils(mortar & pestle), advice on interpersonal relationships, food etc.

These expressions are filled with sharp wit, richly articulated through the use of Bajan dialect, they maintain points of views or truths of the individual, shared from generation to generation.

I’ve listed some popular phrases, while highlighting some of the Barbadian proverbs imparted on me by my grandmother and mother when I was growing up.

Barbadian Proverbs and Sayings For Your Leisure

A eyeful en' a bellyful.
Seeing is one thing, having it in your possession is another thing.

Cat luck en' dog luck.
What one person may get away with, may cause problems for another.

Dead man can't run from ‘e coffin.
It is impossible to run from your responsibilities.

De sea ain't got nuh back door.
The sea is not that safe a place; take every precaution necessary.

Don't rush de brush and trow 'way de paint.
Do not allow haste to create problems for you.

Only a dog does return to 'e vomit.
Once free of an offensive situation, you should avoid returning to it.

De berry don' drop too far from de tree.
Children inherit traits and attitudes from their parents.

Rat mout does sell 'e head.
A loose tongue can be dangerous.

De dog dat bring a bone will kaah one.
The very person who gossips with you about other persons may also gossip with them about you.

De las' calf kill de cow.
Attempting to repeat the same action too often may result in disaster.

Don' wait till de horse get out de stable to shut de door
Don't wait until the situation gets out of control then to take corrective action.

De same mout dat court yuh, don' marry yuh.
He who encourages you to do certain things, is never around when you desperately need their help.

Every fool got ‘e sense.
No matter how dull and ignorant, everybody is knowledgeable in one area or the other.

Evah skin-teet en' a laugh.
Not all outward signs of friendliness should be taken as genuine.

Don' leh nuhbody rub shit in yuh mout and tell yuh it is pudding.
Don't let anyone do or say anything harmful or insulting, under the guise that they are being nice.

Hurry-hurry never done.
Do not do things in a hurry, you may have to re-do it all.

Yuh don' buy cow when yuh can get free milk.
Why bother to get married when you are already enjoying the privileges of married life.

Yuh can' be in de church an' de chapel too.
You can't be in more than one place at the same time, so you can't know everything.

Yuh head ain't mek fuh hat alone.
You should always used your common sense.

Lime juice can' spoil vinegar.
An individual can't be corrupted by another who is less corrupt .

And I’ve heard these Barbadian proverbs and Barbadian sayings all quite often over the years:

“Duh is more in de mortar dan de pestle.
There is more to the issue than what appears on the surface.

Hard ears yuh won' hear, own way yuh gine feel.
Persistent disobedience will eventually result in pain.

“ One-smart dead at two-smart door”.
No matter how smart you think you are, there is somebody who can out-smart you. (there is always someone ahead of you in the game).

“De Devil does find work fuh idle hands”.
People with nothing to do get themselves into mischief.

“De more yuh peep, de less yuh sih”.
Spying on others is a waste of time, as they will soon devise ways to fool the spy.

Do fuh Do en’ no obeah
One should not be offended if treated the same way he or she has treated other people.

Day does run til night catch it
Things that are done in secret or disguise will eventually be revealed for what they truly are. OR
One can continue to hide and do something but there will come a time when they won’t be able to hide and do it anymore.

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