All Tsumo

Shona Proverbs

• Rwendo ndorwa apfiga imbaThe journey belongs to the one who has shut up his house behind him; only a person who has put his own affairs in order is free to set out.
• Rwendo ngerwe atwara butwa. (M)A trip belongs to the one who has already shouldered his bundle: talk of going is not going. We credit a person's intention only once we see him actually preparing or carrying it out.
• Rwendo rwomuranda runoziviwa nashe wake.
• Rwira warumwa nengwe / wenzara anoti ndakapona namano anguSave the one seized by the leopard, for the one you saved from hunger will claim he pulled through by his own cleverness. Snatching a person from death earns lasting gratitude, while feeding the starving is easily forgotten.
• Rwizi haruyeredzi mbwendeWhat can kill you is no subject for joking. Scoffing at a danger and saying you will just try it out to see can end a life. Know what you are dealing with first.
• Rwizi rukuru kupwa / mombe dzinonwepi?When the one who has been feeding, sheltering and caring for a group is gone, those who depended on him are left helpless, with nowhere else to turn for the same support.
• Rwizi rukuru rungozadzwa ngezvikohora.
• Rwizi runokura / nezvikovaA river only becomes large because of the streams that feed it, just as a chief's standing rests on the number of people who follow him. Strength in authority comes from the size of one's following.
• Rwizi ruzere haruedzwi negumboYou do not test a river that is in full flood by wading a leg into it. Some dangers are too great to be sampled or measured by trial.
• Rwomuranda rwakoneswa norwashe / rwashe rwakoneswa nemvura kunayaWhat the subject set out to do is thwarted by the chief, and what the chief set out to do is thwarted by falling rain. The chief may carry out whatever he wishes apart from what God thwarts; the subject, standing beneath the chief, is forbidden by the chief to carry out what he too wishes.
• Sadza huritamburira / hapana angaridya akatambararaFood comes only through effort and hardship; no one eats it by lying back with legs stretched out.
• Sadza naku ibvutidzanwaAnything of high quality sets people grabbing for it: well-cooked food has everyone fighting to eat it. The same happens with a beautiful girl, over whom young men compete.
• Samwoyochena / ndiye nyamutsvirwa nembaIt is the generous, good-hearted person whose house ends up burnt down. Kindness is often repaid with misfortune.
• Sanga harina rwendoRunning into someone by chance is not the same as making a journey to see him; an accidental encounter counts for nothing.
• Sango rinopa anetaThe bush hands over its game to the person who has worn himself out; the reward goes to the one who has spent himself in the effort.
• Savara harina matambo (mapfupa).
• Seka benzi waguma uraOnly laugh at a madman once your child-bearing days are over. While you can still have children, one of your own may turn out the same way.
• Seka urema wafaWait until you are dead before you mock another person's disability. As long as you are alive the same misfortune can still come to you.
• Shambakodzi yakarindwa / haiviriWhen you are watching and waiting for something to happen, it seems to take far longer than it really does. Eagerness makes the wait feel endless and people lose heart, thinking it has been delayed.
• Shavo imbonekwiGoods offered for sale must be put where people can see and handle them, and the seller cannot complain if they get soiled in the process.
• Shavo mesoTrading calls for eyes: buyer and seller should both be present and inspect the goods themselves so that neither can be cheated afterwards.
• Shiri huru haibatwi nehundiOffering something worthless will not land you anything of size — chaff is no lure for a bird of consequence.
• Shiri-ipinda haipedzi mhungaA bird that merely passes through cannot strip a field of millet; a brief visitor does no lasting damage.
• Shiri-nzvere inotamba yakaringa dendereKeeping its nest of new chicks in sight, the bird plays happily. Whoever is conscious of something in body or mind that needs watching adopts his own manner of going about things, and so escapes the laughter of others and failure in life.
• Shiri yomusaririra ndiyo yemhinaThe bird that lags behind the rest is the one that ends up hit by the blunt wooden-headed arrow.
• Shungu dzembwa dziri mumwoyo / kuhukura ndiko kududzaA dog keeps its feelings inside it, and barking is how those feelings come out.
• Shungu dzinomona kana musungo wapotsaWhen a person falls short of something they badly wanted, the heart is left churning with frustration. Deep disappointment follows a hope that fails.
• Shungu dzomuzvere / dzinodzikama musha wapararaThe anguish of a woman who has died just after giving birth settles only once the entire village has been laid waste.
• Shungu neganyu zvinodzimba wotandadza / asi chido chinomusimbisaFor a person already in anguish, bitterness and sighing only press harder on the wound; what gives him strength is being loved. So meet an angry companion with gentle, affectionate words that let him recover, not with words that feed his anger.
• Shure kweguva hakuna muteuroOnce a person has gone past the grave, no prayer or offering reaches him any more.
• Simba mate / haaperi mukanwaStrength is likened to saliva, which never runs out in the mouth; it keeps being replenished.
• Simba mukaka / rinosiniraStrength behaves like milk: it seeps back after being drawn off. What is spent is replenished in time.
• Simba rehove riri mumvuraA fish is strong only in the water. A person likewise feels bold and powerful when he is on his own home ground.
• Takabva noko / kumhunga hakuna ipwaEveryone who is now grown was once a child and did childish things, so no one can tell them anything new about childhood — we have come from that field and know there is no sugar cane among the millet.
• Tamba nezvimwe / moto ndimashonongoreFind other things to play with; fire ruins. Whatever can injure you, whatever carries danger, is not a thing to joke with, and anything hazardous calls for the greatest care in handling.
• Tambe-tambe / vanoda varivoWhere fairness is called for, the elders insist on handling the matter themselves.
• Taramukai / panotamba deraMake room where a coward is dancing — the timid one puts on a big show once given space.
• Tauchira madziva matsime achapwa.
• Tenda chaunacho / chesango hachisiri chakoBe thankful for what is already in your hands; whatever is still out in the bush does not belong to you.
• Tenda dzose pwere / hapana asiri munhuTake all the children as they come, for every one of them is a person. None of them should be dismissed or thought less of.
• Tenda muchero wadya zvinogadza mwoyo.Only give your approval to something once you have tasted it and seen the result for yourself.
• Tenda muchero wadya zvinotenza mwoyoOffer your thanks for the fruit once you have eaten your fill of it.
• Tenda nyakusvitsa / mupi haaipotseraGive your thanks to the one who actually brought the gift to you, since the giver could not have thrown it across to you himself. The person who carries something through deserves recognition too.
• Tenda waipiwa / pfuma yomukuwasha wenzenzaWhere the son-in-law is a dishonest one, let your trust wait until the lobola has reached your hands.
• Tenda wamira / musha unovakwa ngemhutsi. (M)Wait until the reckless man's home is standing, then believe him. Guard against placing confidence in the unreliable: their promises guarantee nothing, since some people like to please others with promising words and then never do the thing promised. What such a man actually does is the only basis on which to trust him.
• Tendai / muchero ugowisaShow thanks to the tree and it will drop more fruit for you. Gratitude is what keeps the giving coming.
• Totenda dzanwa / mombe dzaswera nebenziWith a fool herding the cattle, we will only be satisfied once the animals have actually drunk. Accept the result when it is in hand, not on the strength of who was supposed to deliver it.
• Totenda maruva / tadya chakataWe only put our trust in the blossom once we have eaten the chakata fruit it promised.
• Totenda nyemba / tanwira mvuraThe thanks for a dish of beans come once it has been eaten and washed down with water — that is, gratitude waits until the thing is finished.
• Totenda yabikwa / imba yepwereA young couple earns your trust only once they are actually keeping house properly.
• Totenda yavira / tsambakodzi yedemheWe will believe it once the pot has actually come to the boil — the pot in question being made from a broken gourd.
• Tsapata rukukwe / hazvienzani nokuvata pasiEven a tattered sleeping mat is preferable to lying on the bare ground.
• Tsenzi inogara yadziyaThe honey-guide only settles down once it has had its fill. Contentment comes before rest.
• Tsenzi inogara yatema.
• Tsenzi inogara yatema / muranda gara wasvika dzimbabweJust as the honey-guide only settles once it has finished leading the way, a servant should not rest until he has reached the chief's place. On arriving somewhere you first honour the elders — greeting them, clapping, offering your hands at the court — and only then are you received and made comfortable.
• Tsoro-ndamba / inotangwa ngewayo. (M)The one who opens the game sets its terms: people treat others well or badly according to how they have first been treated themselves.
• Tsotsonyo akazvara tiwuA small poke or slight can bring a heavy retaliation; the person you needle lightly may hit back hard. Better to avoid wronging someone even in a minor way.
• Tsuri itsva ingozvimbisa muromo.
• Tsuri itsva inozvimbisa muromoA newly made reed whistle is blown so eagerly that it swells the lips. People throw themselves at whatever is new and in vogue, then drop it the moment the novelty wears off.
• Tsuro haiponi rutsva kaviriA hare does not come through a bush fire unharmed a second time.
• Tsuro inozvifudza yogaEach person has to look out for themselves and provide for their own needs. This weighs most heavily on someone poor or orphaned who has no relatives to lean on.
• Tsuro iri pauzamba / inosunungurwa neakaibataCare is what anything risky or tricky demands of whoever takes it on.
• Tsuro kupeta nzeve kumbwa seisinganzwi / ziso riri kuvanaEars folded towards the dogs as though nothing reached them, the hare keeps its eye on its young.
• Tsuro {nherera) ina mukumbo wayo usaiseka.
• Tsuro pfupi / haitemi uswa hurefuTall grass is past the reach of a short hare. Each person has some things within their range and many that are not, so stick to what you know you can handle rather than taking on what your strength or skill will not cover.
• Tsvaga zano iwe une rakowoGo looking for someone else's advice only once you already have an idea of your own.
• Tsvimborume chenga urarami / hama dzife ugogara nhakaAn unmarried man should look after himself and aim for a long life, since outliving his kin may leave him heir to what they leave behind — a wife included.
• Tsvimborume haina mugoni / inotuka waipa maseseA person in real need is often the hardest to please: instead of thanking whoever helps him, he belittles his helper.
• Tsvimborume kutandara nemvana / mwoyo uri kumhandara.However much someone busies himself with other company or concerns, the thing he truly loves stays at the front of his mind. The bachelor's attention may rest on the mvana, but his longing lies elsewhere.
• Tsvimborume kutenga duri / kuona mashoko kunakaA mortar bought by an unmarried man tells you his love affairs are going well.
• Tswanda huru / haitori chomuridziA large measuring container is no cause for alarm: nobody is obliged to fill it, and each person puts in only as much as has been agreed on or as much as they can manage.
• Twemudenhe tune ushorwi.Having only a scant amount left in the storage bin earns one scorn. As with the childless person of the parent saying, the one who lacks has no one to complain to and carries a constant private torment over the deficiency.
• Ubatebate hungourayisa. (M)Making a habit of pilfering small things or fooling around carelessly will eventually land you in front of a court. The same goes for a man who plays around with every woman he meets — trouble follows.
• Ubatebate hunopariraLight-fingered pilfering and tricky meddling bring consequences down on the one who does it.
• Uchauya naTsuro usina imbwa
• Uchenjeri hunoda n'anga / hahudi murapwaCleverness is the diviner's business, not the patient's.
• Ugaro mwena / kutevedza unogumaLiving is like a burrow in the ground: follow it far enough and you reach its end.
• Ukadya gora / mangwana rinofuma rokudyawoEat a wild cat and the day will come when it eats you in turn. Anyone who knowingly dares to break a prohibition will have to carry the consequences later.
• Ukadzinga tsuro mbiri / imwe inopunyukaGo after two hares at once and one of them is bound to get away.
• Ukagarosekerera hwiza / mangwana dzinokudyira muriwoIf you make locusts welcome, in due course they will devour your vegetable garden.
• Ukaimba rumbo rwenhamo / wapararaAnyone in hardship must keep his strength up, because endless self-pity and brooding drain away his ideas and leave him without any plan for helping himself. To dwell on your misery is to be ruined by it.
• Ukama hahugezwi
• Ukama hahusukwi nemvura hukabvaKinship is not something you can wash off with water; a blood tie stays whatever happens.
• Ukama hunonhuwaKinship gives off a scent: everyone knows his own relatives, and no one claims a person as kin without knowing him. Relatives are drawn to each other and, even meeting for the first time, soon discover the connection — while a tie that does not exist cannot be manufactured.
• Ukama hwokwamai hahukanirwi nhakaRelatives on the mother's side do not quarrel over an inheritance, since property and succession do not pass between them. That is why such relatives get on so well — there is no jealousy over estates or chieftainship to divide them.
• Ukama hwokwamai hahuna rwiranhakaTies on the mother's side give no ground for quarrelling over an inheritance.
• Ukama igasva / hunozadziswa nokudyaKinship on its own is only half a thing; it is completed by sharing food with one another. Visiting and eating together is what makes a relationship whole.
• Ukama ndihwo hukuru / kudya musvitsa. (M)Kinship counts for far more than what is set before you to eat; nobody should gauge his affection for a relative by the size of the meal. Real closeness and good company outweigh the food.
• Ukama urimbo / kudambura hahubviKinship behaves like bird lime: you may snap the strand, but the stickiness remains. Ties of blood are not dissolved by breaking them off.
• Ukanzwa bofu richiti rinorova / pane parakazendamaWhen a blind man boasts that he can strike you, it means he has something or someone propping him up.
• Ukaona tsuro yomisa nzeve / yonyera nhanga yokutizaA normally calm person who suddenly turns jumpy and odd is getting ready to dodge something — blame, shame or exposure.
• Ukapa munhu gavi refu / mangwana anozvisungiriraEach person should only be allowed as much latitude as his own judgement can handle, since some people who are given free rein end up harming themselves or disgracing themselves.
• Ukashaya nyama kumavhiyiro / hauchaiwani kumbaIf you come away empty-handed from the place where the beast was butchered, there will be nothing waiting for you back at the house. Every matter has its moment, and an opportunity missed while it lasts does not return.
• Umambo kutambidzana.Rulership is something handed from one person to the next; every ruler will one day leave the seat, by death or removal, so the office is never his own possession.
• Umba hwehosi husina marevereThe chief's senior wife's barrenness is a thing nobody may bring up. A fault in a junior gets pounced on at once by an elder; let the elder slip in exactly the same way, and no word of correction will be tolerated.
• Umhizha hwejaha / huri pademo. (M)A young man's skill shows itself in how he handles an axe. Rather than sit and complain when he lacks something, a man should make himself competent with the tools of a trade so he can provide for himself.
• Unaki hwemukadzi / huri pamwanaA wife's worth in her husband's eyes is measured by the children she bears him, just as anyone values what repays him. A woman who bears no children often loses her husband's regard.
• Ungofa ngenyowa kudya charoyewa.
• Ungokutukira badza / ungokupa upfumi. (M)Wealth is what you are given by the person who urges you to take up a hoe for weeding.
• Unofa ukuruwo / badza risati raguka muguraYou will come to a sudden and unforeseen end, like a still-new hoe that snaps at its narrow end.
• Upenyu ihwaku-mukwaku / hapana dacha rinodakukira rimwe.Life is a series of leaps that each person has to make personally; no frog takes the jump on another frog's behalf.
• Upenzi imhepo / hunofamba nenguvaFolly comes and goes like the wind, arriving when it pleases. It describes someone whose behaviour swings without warning, decent one moment and troublesome the next.
• Uranda ndohwepfuma (zvipfuwo) / hwomunhu hunozvirwiraServitude is fit only for livestock and property. A human being will always fight his way out of it to freedom.
• Urombo hahudzingirwi ngetsvimboYou cannot drive poverty away by chasing it with a club. It is not the kind of thing force can be used against.
• Urombo hahuurayiBeing poor torments the heart, but it does not take a person's life away.
• Urombo hwamatede kuniwa nemvura / makurwe ari mumhatsoThose who look the sharpest are often the ones who come unstuck in the business of daily living, while the people nobody expects much of manage to look after themselves quite well.
• Urombo hwayo mhembwe / kufa iri pamusungoIt is bitter luck for a duiker to meet its death already caught fast in a snare.
• Urombo uroyi.
• Urombo uroyi / hahuudzwi munhuPoverty is like witchcraft: you do not tell a person about it to his face. Nobody enjoys being reminded that he is poor or lagging behind.
• Urombo usiyiranwaPoverty tends to be handed down from one generation to the next. The little a poor man has is the first to run out while those with plenty still have some left, just as his one beast is the first to die in a year of drought.
• Usabata matope / pasina mvuraWhere there is no water, keep your hands out of the mud.
• Usachenjerera n'anga / kurapwa uchakudaDo not try to be too smart with the healer while you still depend on his treatment.
• Usadzinganisa mhuka huru nomwoyosviba / haipindi muguruDo not chase large game in a rush of frustration, for it will not duck into a burrow the way a hare does. Big undertakings have to be followed patiently, bit by bit, over a long haul.
• Usaguta ukasunda duraDo not eat yourself so full that you end up knocking the granary over.
• Usaita hanya nakatsogodo / nyama yechidembo inodyiwa nowakachena mwoyoPay no attention to petty fault-finders: polecat meat goes to the one who is unbothered by what others say. Someone set on a course of action should disregard critics so long as he is satisfied that what he is doing is right.
• Usajaidza makudo neanokamhinaEven a baboon that limps should not be indulged. Whatever carries evil in it ought to be destroyed the moment it is seen, not reared.
• Usakusha mbeu mvura yaendaSearching for something you know for certain is gone brings no benefit. Sowing after the rains have passed is effort spent too late.
• Usanyengedza nyamukuta / kuzvara uchakudaDo not play the midwife false while you still hope to bear more children.
• Usapedza mapfumo mukubaya nhema / idzo nzou dzichauyaDo not use up all your spears on rhinoceroses while elephants may still come along. Keep something in reserve rather than spending everything on the lesser quarry.
• Usapepuka dete / gobvu rapindaDo not busy yourself sorting out trivial matters once weighty ones have arrived. The small thing gives way to the large.
• Usapinza munwe mumwena / unobuda warebaDo not push your finger into a hole; it will come out longer than it went in. Meddling where you do not belong leaves you worse off.
• Usarasa mutsakara / nokuona chitsvaDo not get rid of what is old simply because something new has come into view.
• Usaravidza chembere muto wegwaya / mangwana inofira mudzivaDo not give an old woman a taste of bream sauce, or tomorrow she will meet her death in the pool going after more. Once someone has tasted a delicacy beyond their reach, they will take reckless risks to get it again.
• Usaridze chikwee / usati wabira rwiziHold back the shout of triumph until the river is behind you. What is worked at jointly and called a benefit to the whole district may in the end bring you nothing of your own; it is your own property you should count on.
• Usaridze ngoma nedemoAn axe is no way to sound a drum. Put a tool to work where it does not belong, or take something up once its time has gone by, and you can wreck the whole job.
• Usaruka nhava rutsva rwatsvaOnce fire has gone through the veld, that is no moment to take up the weaving of a string bag.
• Usasunge muromo wenzombe inopura zviyoKeep on good terms with anyone you are still going to need: annoy him today and tomorrow he may turn down your request. The same holds between borrower and lender — while the dependence lasts, quarrelling is foolish.
• Usasvora mbodza neinozvimbiraWhat looks poor and is generally looked down upon often turns out to be of far more use than what everyone admires. Equally, what is in fact harmful is not always recognised as such in time.
• Usaswerera kurwira chitundu chamakakanje / chehove chiripoPeople squander their wits and energy quarrelling over small things, so that nothing is left in them when a matter of real weight arrives.
• Usatanda hwiza / idzo tsuro dzichauyaDo not spend your effort chasing locusts when hares may still appear. Small gains are not worth exhausting yourself for when bigger ones may follow.
• Usatsindira mwena unobuda ishwaDo not stop up the hole that the flying ants come out of.
• Usatsvaga nhava muuswa / iro sora ratsvaDo not go hunting for a string bag in grass that has already burned. There is no sense searching where the thing you want could not possibly have survived.
• Usatuke verwendo / rutsoka haruna mhunoA foot has no nose; so keep your insults off the people you are travelling with.
• Usatya bhurukwa kusviba / iwe wakateya mariva murutsvaA man who has set his stone traps out in burnt grass has no business fearing soot on his trousers.
• Usatya ngwena / iwo makumbo ari mudzivaThere is no sense in dreading crocodiles once your legs are already standing in the pool.
• Usavaka danga pasina mombeDo not put up the structure for something you do not actually possess. Effort spent providing for what is not there is wasted.
• Usaverenga mbeva nemiduneDo not count shrews in with the mice. When a hard job has to be done, there is no point in numbering among your helpers those who can contribute nothing of substance.
• Usaverenga mbeva nemiswe (yadzo)When you tally up mice, leave the tails out of the reckoning.
• Usayeuka bako / waniwaBeing rained on is too late a point at which to let the cave come to mind.
• Usayeuka bindu / vamwe vakohwaOnce other people's harvest is already in, that is no time to turn your mind to ploughing the field. Take in the advice others give you while it can still help, instead of wailing "if only I had known" after the thing has happened.
• Usayeuka pwere waminyaThere is neither fairness nor duty in a generosity that begins only after you have filled your own stomach. Children are remembered when there is an errand to run, but overlooked when there is food to share.
• Ushamwari hwechembere / hunopera dzagumhana nemidonzvoThe companionship of old women finishes in a quarrel, with the two of them striking each other with their walking sticks.
• Ushamwari hwechikweyakweya / mangwana tichanzwa zvipini zvoriraA friendship that becomes excessively close is heading for trouble; before long the two will come to blows, with hoe handles heard breaking over each other.
• Ushe imhute / inoparara zuva rabudaChieftainship is like mist: it melts away as soon as the sun comes up, so authority is not a lasting thing.
• Ushe muzhanje / hunokuvaChieftainship is like a wild loquat that bears only in season: nothing lasts, everything has its end, and a person enjoying good times should not assume they will continue.
• Ushe ukokwa kuna vamweChieftainship is something other people call you to, not something you claim for yourself; good conduct, decency and a modest bearing are what win a person the respect of others. Humility in a leader is where greatness and popular support begin.
• Ushe varandaA man is only called chief because he has many trustworthy people under him; his rank rests entirely on his followers.
• Usikana ishonga kamwe / chikuru umvanaBeing a girl is finery for one short season; what really matters is becoming a mother.
• Usiku humwe chete hahupedzi usheSpending a single night somewhere lowly does not strip a person of his chieftainship. One brief episode cannot undo a person's standing.
• Usiku igore / zuva igoreA single day or night holds room for a great deal, good and bad alike; what begins well can still finish badly, and a passing happiness can turn into disappointment.
• Uswa hwenyati ndohuri mudumbu / huri pamuromo inofa nahwoThe buffalo's grass is the grass already in its stomach; whatever is still in its mouth can be lost with it when it dies. Only what you have genuinely secured counts as yours.
• Uti fare-fare tindike / vakuru igomoHowever much one is enjoying himself, he should not forget the respect owed to elders. Constantly fooling about with them is unwise, since you cannot tell at what point they will take offence.
• Utsi hwenyama hahutosvoriSmoke rising from meat being roasted does not sting the eyes.
• Uzivi hunoda varidziKnowledge or skill carries weight only when it comes from those who genuinely possess it.
• Vagara imba imwe / vava varumudzaniPeople sharing one household come to act toward one another like siblings born in close succession.
• Vakafa havana chavakaonaThose who are still alive reckon that the dead saw very little of what the world has to offer, since they departed before things had changed into what they are today.
• Vakafa / vakazororaThose who have died are at rest. The living regard the dead as free at last from the troubles of this world.
• Vakanaka havararami.
• Vakarima vanodyiwa navoBy custom the produce of the fields is not kept for the cultivator alone; whoever works the land will share what he has grown and eat together with others.
• Vakukutu havatsvagi n'anga / asi vanorwaraPeople in good health have no reason to go looking for a healer; it is the sick who go searching.
• Vamwe ndivamwe / munajenga kutaura.Close friends count as a single person, so watch your tongue when speaking about one of them — what you say about the one reaches the other.
• Vane mwoyochena havararami.
• Vanyambare havapfutidzirani motoPeople who already carry burn scars do not fan the fire up for one another.
• Vari kuno vanoviga nherera mhenyu / vachisiya muzvare afaPity usually goes to whoever has the smaller trouble instead of whoever has the greater one. A man from a big household can be felt sorry for and given help, while the one who is genuinely destitute, and who has the claim on that help, goes without. The second of the two proverbs puts it that an orphan counts for nothing with people, so they will never do for an orphan what they do for a chief's child.
• Vari pachavo chikurikuri / vanorezva mwana nomuswePeople who are close to you will quietly tug at you to warn you, the way one teases a hyena's cub by its tail. A person should keep friends, for they pull each other out of trouble and share in each other's joy.
• Varoorana / vava varumudzaniA married pair fall into the manner of siblings who follow each other in birth order.
• Varume havadyi nyimo dzepfuko yokugwangurwaRound-nuts that have been boiled to cure a new clay pot are not touched by men. Odd or unwelcome habits make others avoid a person's company, so anyone whose ways clash with accepted custom should keep to them alone.
• Varume ndivamwe / kutsva kwendebvu vanodzimuranaMen are of one kind and should stand by one another, putting out each other's burning beards; helping someone in trouble today is what earns you help tomorrow.
• Varume tumbwanana / kurova tunodzokaA man who fails to obtain something he badly wants will not accept refusal as final; he comes back and tries again.
• Varume twumbwanana, kurova twunodzokera.
• Vataitururira matohwe / nhasi ndivo votiseka maparapadzwaIt cuts deeply to be mocked by the very person you once pulled out of trouble, especially when the injuries you now carry were got in the act of helping him. Kindness earns no gratitude.
• Vatsva vetsambo (chena) / kudzisungira vanozviringaSomeone who at last gets hold of a thing he had long gone without can hardly take his eyes off it, going about as though he were walking on air. People naturally parade whatever is new to them.
• Vaviri-vaviri / wechitatu muzvinaguhwaTwo people make a pair; bring in a third and you have brought in a gossip.
• Vaviri, vaviri wetatu muzvinaguhwa
• Wabva gwindingwi / haachadyiwi namadzisheWhoever refuses to answer the chief's call or to work in his fields is made to pay a fine, and constant refusal eats away at a person's wealth.
• Wabvunza / watsvara mhosvaThe one who asks questions is the one who brings an offence out into the open. Blurting things out is what allows a crooked matter to be straightened, since exposing what is hidden is what settles a case.
• Wacho ndowacho / kuwanikwa nomumwe chinopinda napamweThe one marked out for misfortune keeps meeting it, while the same trouble simply passes on by when it falls to somebody else.
• Wadya imbwa / idya gonoIf you are going to eat a dog, let it be a male one.
• Wadya zai / wadya nhiyo yachoWhoever eats the egg has eaten the chick inside it too. Taking someone on means taking on everything and everyone attached to them, not just the obvious part.
• Wadzvova agutaA belch signals a full stomach; in the same way, someone who lets go of a thing he once loved does so because he has had his fill of it, and too much of anything ends in boredom and discontent.
• Wakagarika ngewakafa / mupenyu pfumo riri mushureOnly the dead are truly settled; for anyone still living, the spear of trouble is always close behind. The person of means enjoys security while the poor man is ground down by want, yet nobody lasts for ever like a stone.
• Wakanganwa chazuro ngehope.
• Wanzi baba / wada kamusha kakeHaving a homestead of his own is what a man has opted for once people call him father.
• Wapamba wepo guvhu rapadera.
• Warara / warara nomuromo wake. (M)One who is dead or asleep no longer has needs that concern us; it is the living who must keep working, because they are the ones who will need to eat. Nor should anyone let the idle hold them back from their own work.
• Wareva gotsi / wareva mamboTo speak ill of the back of someone's head as he walks away is to insult a chief. Once a person turns his back on the homestead or sets off on a journey, he has no way of knowing what goes on behind him.
• Watsindira bako / mvura ichanayaDo not turn on someone who helps you while you still depend on that help. Ingratitude towards a benefactor is foolish when the hard times are not yet behind you.
• Watungamira haatori nziraSomeone who goes ahead of others does not carry the road away with him, so there is no shame in asking about what you do not understand. Admitting ignorance and seeking advice is the surest route to knowledge.
• Wavaka musha / wavaka nzouTo raise a homestead is to have built something on the scale of an elephant. A man who has done it is settled, and he goes through life sure of himself.
• Wazarira bako / mvura ichada kunayaThe rain is still coming down, and already you have shut up the cave.
• Wegudza ndowegudza / kufuga gumbeze rinotsvaWhoever is destined for a bark blanket must make do with one; should he cover himself with a woollen blanket, it will end up burnt.
• Wenhamo haachatyi kufamba murimaSomeone who has already had his fill of hardship no longer fears what would frighten others, such as walking in the dark. Repeated suffering wears down fear until trouble simply feels like part of ordinary life.
• Wotofa uchidya chedemo. kuramba chebanga unofa uchichipanga.
• Yambiro hwowa / kutanha isarura-udeWarnings are like mushrooms: everyone is free to gather them, but each person picks only the ones that appeal to him. Advice is offered openly and out of goodwill, yet few are willing to take it.
• Yaruma sei nzara / hurudza kurarira hute?Hunger must be biting very hard indeed when even a master farmer goes to bed on wild plums.
• Yatsika dope / yanwaAn animal that has left its feet in the mud has plainly been down at the water drinking. The traces it leaves behind tell you what it has done.
• Yatsika musheche / yanwaOnce the animal has trodden in the wet sand, it has already drunk; taking any part at all, however small, makes you a participant. Someone who got only a single leftover cup at a feast cannot claim to have had nothing.
• Yeuka hama / mutorwa ane hanganwaAlways be ready to help your own kin, because they are the ones who will stand by you in a crisis. Outsiders forget you and leave you stranded at the moment you need them.
• Zambuko rowakarambwa / rinomera soraNothing keeps its renown forever; everything comes to an end one way or another. A good name is a fragile thing and will fall apart if it is not looked after.
• Zamu idamba richadzika
• Zano moto / rinogokwa kuna vamweOne person alone cannot accomplish work that calls for many hands; nobody can rely on his own efforts only. In life a person must seek help from others in both affairs and labour.
• Zano sure nyi, kuvinde mbuya.
• Zano vaviri / zano ndoga akatsvira mudumbaSound counsel takes two heads; the man who trusted only his own thinking came to grief, burning in the hut.
• Zarura rehanga nderimwe cheteWhen others are visibly steering clear of a danger, you should back away with them rather than press on alone. Such warnings usually rest on hard experience, so certain things and certain places are best left untouched.
• Zhara inodyisa mutupoHunger will drive a person to eat the flesh of his own clan totem.
• Zhou hairemerwi nenyanga dzayoHowever heavy its tusks may be, an elephant never finds them a burden. What properly belongs to you is not a weight to you.
• Zigadzi kunyangara / asi kuroya harigoniA big woman may look unpleasant, but that does not make her a witch. People can look thoroughly equipped for a contest and still come up empty when the moment arrives.
• Ziitakamwe / gava kudambura musungoIt is a thing done only the once, like a fox tearing itself free of a snare. Such a feat is not to be repeated.
• Ziitakamwe / mimba yousikanaSome experiences are so painful that nobody wants to repeat them; once hurt, a person learns to be careful and avoid falling into the same trap again. This version simply notes that a girl's first pregnancy is a one-off event in every woman's life.
• Zimuonde ziguru kupunzika / pwere dzinovanda pai?When a great fig tree comes down, the young ones are left with nowhere to shelter.
• Zimutsa bope / kudyidzana nembwaSharing your food with a dog is asking for a quarrel.
• Zimvura guru rakatunza kubaThieves set out when rain is coming, trusting it to wash away their tracks; people are emboldened to do wrong when circumstances seem to guarantee they will not be found out. Those convenient conditions can fail and leave the deed exposed.
• Zinatsawafa / kugadzira hama nemombeSlaughtering an ox at a relative's magadziro is done for the benefit of the dead, not the living. The magadziro is the rite at which a person's final funeral observances are performed and their estate shared out.
• Zino irema / rinosekerera anorivengaA tooth has no sense: it grins even at the person who hates it.
• Zinyakurasikirwa anotsvaga uta nomugateA man who has mislaid his bow goes searching for it inside a clay pot. Someone who has suffered a loss hunts for the missing thing in places where it could not possibly be.
• Zinzwa wakanzwa.
• Zipfuko rambuya / ziramba watonhaWhat the old woman offers from her pitcher is only turned down once you have tasted it.
• Zirume kutswinya mwana padama / kuti vari mumba vanzweA grown man who pinches a child on the cheek is not really aiming at the child — he wants the people inside the hut to hear and respond. The blow is struck at one person so that another will feel it.
• Ziso rimwe chete harina ukombaA single eye on its own gives nothing impressive to look at.
• Ziso rinokunda akabvisa mombe.
• Ziso rinokunda wakabvisa mombeA lingering look gets more out of a woman than the man who paid cattle for her. Some men eye other men's wives more covetously than the husbands themselves do, and take more pleasure from looking than the married men do.
• Ziso romukadzi womumwe / rinodonha uchiAnother man's wife seems to have honey dripping from her eye. People tire of what is familiar and overrate what belongs to someone else, forgetting that it is really no better than what they already have — as a husband does when he covets another man's wife.
• Ziva kwawakabva / nokuti mudzimu weshiri uri mudendereKeep your origins in mind, just as a bird's mudzimu stays in the nest it came from. A person ought to hold on to the customs and traditions he was born into even after moving elsewhere.
• Ziva ngemwoyo kusambira kwembwa.
• Zizi kurungwa munyu / roti ndava hukuwoWhen an owl is seasoned with salt it imagines it has become a fowl.
• Zundu kugara mundove / hunzi neni ndava mombewoA worm that lives in cattle dung imagines that it too is a cow. Mere proximity to something greater does not make one its equal.
• Zuva igore / rinodoka rava namarevo mavi namauyaA single day is like a whole year: by sunset it has brought both welcome and unwelcome tidings.
• Zuva rimwe haripedzi duraA single day does not empty a granary. One day's worth of eating makes little difference to a full store.
• Zuva rimwe haripedzi nyayaFailing to do something on the day it was meant to be done does not mean it can never be done. There are plenty of days ahead in which to finish what you intend.
• Zuva rimwe hariradzi mundaBeing away for a single day is not enough to leave your field neglected.
• Zuva rina meso / deko rine nzeveWhatever is done in secret, whether by day or by night, cannot stay concealed forever — it comes out as though someone had been lying in wait watching it. Sooner or later everyone will hear of it.
• Zvaboora mwoyo tsuro (nherera) haiti ndaguta
• Zvaita sei dzvatsvatsva, kufamba wakatakura ura?It's a miracle to see someone doing something they are not known for.
• Zvaita sei kuti chembere yorasika / bere rorutsa imvi?How does it come about that an old woman goes missing and at the same moment a hyena brings up grey hair?
• Zvakanakira gwavava nomukadzi wake mubako / nokuti hakuna anoziva mumwe kuti ane makwatiA rock lizard and his mate are well matched in their cave, since neither one takes any notice of the other's scaly hide.
• Zvakarimwa navamwe mudyo / zvikazodyiwa navane boshweThose who do the labouring are often not the ones who enjoy what it produces; a few toil while many others live off the result. One person plants and another harvests.
• Zvamangwana zvinozivikanwa nebenziA sensible person finishes today's work today, knowing tomorrow may bring obstacles; only a fool claims to know what tomorrow holds and puts things off waiting for better conditions.
• Zvamina / hazvina mafi. (M)No grudge arises out of a person's own affairs. Where the planning and the doing were yours alone, the hurt that follows is yours alone to put up with, and there is nobody you would want to lay the fault on.
• Zvapachihwerure hazviendi kumba.
• Zvatosvorana / gonzo nachin'aiIt is unusual for people who normally get on well to start insulting one another, so when friends fall to quarrelling it startles onlookers.
• Zvatumwa wabvira / chembere kutumwa mutsago nashe, svike yopereka nendiroIt is a fine sight when an old woman, sent to bring the chief's headrest, arrives presenting it on a plate. Someone who goes far beyond what an errand required is angling for favour and thanks from the one who sent them.
• Zvigapu hazviburaniOne pot of relish cannot lift another off the fire; each must stand on its own. Obligations do not cancel one another out — one debt cannot be settled by pointing to another.
• Zvikomo zvemutunhu mumwe zvinotambidzana mhute.
• Zvikondorani ndizvo zviwadzani.
• Zvikoni-zvikoni / amai havaroodzwiWhat cannot be done simply cannot be done: a mother is not given away in marriage.
• Zvinakisi ndizvo zvikondori zvomwoyoThe things that please us most are the very ones that end in letting us down, once they are taken to excess.
• Zvine mashura / gudo kuputsika mumutiA baboon dropping out of a tree would be a strange thing to witness. In the same way, people are taken aback by a man who was once rich and is now so badly off that he begs, and such a turn of events points to great hardship in the land.
• Zvinhu zviedzwa / chembere yakabika mabweThings have to be attempted — even an old woman once put stones on to boil. Do not shrink from a difficulty before trying it; make your best effort first, and only let go once you have seen it cannot be done.
• Zvino munyu ndizvo zvinei / chidokohori chikagodyiwa wani?Why insist on salted relish when pounded groundnuts will serve just as well? Someone who knows hardship takes whatever comes and does not pick and choose.
• Zvinofa negore / mukonde kufa zisoThe mukonde tree's growing bud is slow to die because thorns shield it; likewise some people seem protected and long-lasting in their comfort.