ProverbPedia

“Malayalam Proverb:
നാറ്റാൻകൊടുത്താൽ നക്കരുതു”
— English Translation:
If offered something merely to sniff, do not lick it up. (Do not take improper, greedy liberties when someone extends only a limited, polite gesture.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
നായ്ക്കാഷ്ടത്തിനുണ്ടൊ ഇളന്തലയും മുതുതലയും”
— English Translation:
Does dog filth have a tender end and an aged end? (Dross is dross through and through; making pedantic distinctions among base, worthless things is absurd.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
നാലാംകുരുന്തല നഷ്ടം”
— English Translation:
The fourth terminal sprout brings only loss. (Folk agricultural wisdom warning that over-harvesting or pushing growth into a fourth cycle leads to diminishing returns and ruin.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
നായെ പേടിച്ചോടീട്ടു നരിയുടെ വായിൽ”
— English Translation:
Fleeing in panic from a barking dog straight into the jaws of a tiger. (Out of the frying pan into the fire; escaping a petty annoyance only to fall into mortal peril.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
നാലാമത്തെ ആണു നാടുപിടിക്കും”
— English Translation:
A fourth son will conquer the realm. (A traditional folk belief that the fourth male child possesses exceptional drive, daring, and fortunes.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
നായ്ക്കാഷ്ടത്തിനു ധൂപംകാട്ടൊല്ല”
— English Translation:
Never wave fragrant incense before dog dung. (Do not squander honor, reverence, or precious gifts upon vile and undeserving rogues.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
നാലാമത്തെപെണ്ണു നടപൊളിക്കും”
— English Translation:
A fourth daughter will disrupt family custom. (A traditional folk superstition cautioning against the disruptive impact of birth order upon household traditions.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
നായ്ക്കാഷ്ടത്തിനു മേൽകാഷ്ടം ഉണ്ടെങ്കിൽ നായ്ക്കാഷ്ടവും വിലക്കുപോകും”
— English Translation:
If there is a filth even viler than dog dung, even dog dung will fetch a price. (In an atmosphere of complete degradation, the lesser evil becomes prized; everything is relative when compared to a worse catastrophe.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
നാലുക്കൊപ്പംവേണംതാനും നാഴിക്കൊരുകോപ്പുമില്ല”
— English Translation:
Insisting on standing equal with the four grand houses, while lacking even grain to fill a measuring cup. (Absurd social posturing and aristocratic pretensions maintained amid complete destitution.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
നായകംപറിച്ച പതക്കൻപോലെ”
— English Translation:
Like a medallion stripped of its central gemstone. (Devoid of its primary virtue, guiding light, or essential strength; hollowed out and ruined.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
നാക്കുള്ളവൻ കഴുവേറുകയില്ല”
— English Translation:
He who is gifted with eloquence will never mount the gallows. (Quick wit, diplomacy, and persuasive speech can talk a person out of the deadliest perils.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
നായാട്ടുനായ്ക്കൾ തമ്മിൽകടിച്ചാൽ പന്നി കുന്നുകയറും”
— English Translation:
If the hunting dogs fight among themselves, the wild boar escapes up the hill. (When allies quarrel with each other, the common adversary slips away unnoticed.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
നാടില്ലാത്തവൻ ആനവളർത്തരുതു”
— English Translation:
He who owns no broad lands should not keep an elephant. (Do not undertake grand, expensive luxuries unless you possess the underlying wealth to sustain them.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
നായർക്കു കണ്ടംകൃഷിയുണ്ടെങ്കിൽ അച്ചിച്ചിക്ക് പൊലികടവും ഉണ്ടു”
— English Translation:
If the Nair farmer has wetland crops, the lady of the house has harvest-time grain loans to manage. (Mutual domestic and agricultural interdependency; rights, yields, and debts are shared across the household.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
നാടുവിട്ടരാജാവും ഊർവിട്ടപട്ടിയും ഒരുപോലെ”
— English Translation:
An exiled king and a stray dog driven from its village are equals. (Stripped of one's domain, institutional backing, and roots, even the highest monarch is reduced to a helpless wanderer.)

“Malayalam Proverb:
നായായിപിറക്കിലും തറവാട്ടിൽപിറക്കണം”
— English Translation:
Even if born as a dog, let it be in a noble ancestral manor. (Better to be a humble dependent in an affluent, secure home than a destitute free agent in squalor.)