Portuguese proverbs - Žydrūnė Lisauskaitė

1. Quem ri por último, ri melhor.

English translation: He laughs best who laughs last.

Lithuanian equivalent: Juokiasi tas, kas juokiasi paskutinis.

This proverb warns us not to express joy or triumph, too soon.

2. Não deixe para amanhã o que você pode fazer hoje.

English translation: Do not put off for tomorrow what you can do today.

Lithuanian equivalent: Neatidėk rytdienai to, ką gali padaryti šiandien;

Darbo nedėk kitai dienai;

Ką gali atlikti tuoj, niekad nesakyk – rytoj.

This proverb should be understood directly: do not put off (necessary) things until later, it is always better to do things immediately.

3. Nem tudo que brilha é ouro.

English translation: All that glitters is not gold.

Lithuanian equivalent: Ne viskas auksas, kas auksu žiba.

What look good on the outside may not be so in reality or not everything is what it appears to be. This proverb was written by William Shakespeare in The Merchant of Venice, act II, scene 7.

In summary, it was nice experience for me to find out how many proverbs and expressions both languages have. Without doubts we have many proverbs with the same or similar meaning and it is not just a case of the Portuguese and Lithuanians but all languages, especially in Europe.