ETYM Old Eng. proverbe, French proverbe, from Latin proverbium; pro before, for + verbum a word. Related to Verb.
A condensed but memorable saying embodying some important fact of experience that is taken as true by many people; SYN. adage, saw, byword.
Piece of received, traditional wisdom expressed in a pithy, often metaphorical manner (“a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush”; “a stitch in time saves nine”).
im Volk geläufige, meist in einem kurzen Behauptungssatz formulierte Lebensweisheit, die in eine anschaul., leicht verständl. u. oft witzige Form gefaßt ist.
To speak of proverbially