Kto nie słucha brata, słuchać będzie bata
Listen
What it means
“He who won’t listen to his brother will have to listen to the whip.” Ignoring good advice from those close to you leads to harsher lessons from life or authority.
English equivalent
Forewarned is forearmed.
Vocabulary
- słuchać — to listen to, to obey
- brat — brother
- bat — whip
Grammar note
'Brata' and 'bata' are both genitive singular forms, 'słuchać' governs the genitive case.
Cultural context
The rhyme between 'brata' and 'bata' makes this memorable. Part of a family of proverbs warning against ignoring parental or family guidance.
Beginner
Noticed a typo, a wrong translation, or anything that doesn't look right? We'd love to fix it — just let us know via the contact page. Thank you!
More Polish proverbs
- "A stepmother, even if made of sugar, is always bitter." However kind she may be, a stepmother may …
- "For a wise head, two words are enough." A clever person needs only a short hint to understand. Long …
- "A Pole is wise after the damage is done." Poles, or people in general, often learn from mistakes …
- "The wise will accept advice; the fool will reject it with scorn." Wise people listen to advice, …