Obżarty brzuch rozumu bystrego nie czyni
Listen
What it means
“A stuffed belly does not make for a sharp mind.” Overeating dulls the intellect. Moderation at the table is a precondition for clear thinking.
English equivalent
A full belly makes a dull brain.
Vocabulary
- obżarty — stuffed, gorged (from obżerać się)
- brzuch — belly, stomach
- rozum — reason, mind, intellect
- bystry — sharp, keen, quick-witted
- czynić — to make, to do
Grammar note
'Rozumu bystrego' is the genitive of 'rozum bystry', used here as the object of negation after 'nie czyni' — negated verbs in Polish take the genitive.
Cultural context
A traditional admonition against gluttony, reflecting the value placed on intellectual sharpness in Polish proverbial wisdom.
Intermediate
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." No matter how kind a stepmother tries to …
- "For a wise head, two words are enough." A clever person needs only a brief hint to understand; …
- "A Pole is wise after the damage is done." Poles (or people in general) tend to learn from mistakes …
- "The wise will accept advice; the fool will scorn it." Intelligent people are open to counsel, while …