Czym skorupka za młodu nasiąknie, tym na starość trąci
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What it means
What the shell soaks up in youth, it smells of in old age — the habits, values, and knowledge absorbed in childhood stay with a person for life.
English equivalent
As the twig is bent, so grows the tree.
Vocabulary
- skorupka — little shell, eggshell
- nasiąknąć — to soak up, to become saturated
- za młodu — in youth
- starość — old age
- trącić — to smell of, to reek of
Grammar note
'Czym … tym' — correlative construction: 'what … that'. 'Na starość' — 'in old age', directional use of 'na' + accusative.
Cultural context
One of the most quoted Polish proverbs about upbringing and early education.
Intermediate
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