Sayings/B

"Bad news" means news about "bad" things like accidents, death, illness etc. People tend to tell this type of news quickly. But "good news" (passing an exam, winning some money, getting a job etc) travels more slowly.

Don't be afraid of dogs that bark or people that threaten you (say they will do something bad to you) - in both cases they rarely take action.

Different people see beauty in different ways. What one person finds beautiful may not appeal to another person.

Physical beauty is superficial. A pleasing exterior is no guide to a person's interior or character.

Many men owe their achievements in life to women.

We should be careful in a dangerous situation. It is better to stay safe than to have an accident (and be sorry about it). The full "grammatical" sentence would be: "It is better to be safe than to be sorry."

It is better to take a bad step in walking than to say the wrong thing in talking. We can do a lot of damage when we say something by mistake. The elliptical nature of this saying may make it difficult to understand. The full version might be something like: "It is better that your foot should slip than that your tongue should slip."

This proverb drops the verb "to be" (It is better to be untaught than ill taught). We understand: "It is better not to be taught at all than to be taught badly." It's better not to learn something than to learn it badly.

A large expanse of water that is still and does not move is often deep and dangerous. We should be careful of it. In the same way, we should be careful with a person who does not talk much.

The implication is that the anger of people who are normally slow to anger is, when it eventually comes, terrible.

"Birds of a feather" means "birds of the same type". The whole proverb means that people of the same type or sort stay together. They don't mix with people of another type.

This somewhat humorous saying is often used to excuse male behaviour (of both boys and adult men).

The real art of speaking (especially when speaking humorously) is to use as few words as possible.