Proverbs

Mansunsu Keechi mutwene.

Shoulders cannot go above the head.

The young should not disregard the authority of the old.


kaonde Proverb Zambian
December 23, 2019

Kuja kwanomba kuuma mukanwa.

The eating of a singer is to be sharp on the mouth.

Prosperity depends upon hard work.


kaonde Proverb Zambian
December 23, 2019

Munda mukyabu.

A womb is a bridge.

A family may consist of both good and bad people and hence; it should not be condemned wholesale for the mistake of one of its members.


kaonde Proverb Zambian
December 23, 2019

Wakolwa munda yeulwa nakinzhilo.

He who has a ………..fights with the door

A person in difficulty should not wait for others to assist them come out of it.


kaonde Proverb Zambian
December 23, 2019

Mumuchima wamukwenu munkundwe.

Your friend’s heart is a wilderness.

You cannot tell another person’s thoughts.


kaonde Proverb Zambian
December 23, 2019

Kanwa kaalobeele mutwe.

The mouth put the head in trouble.

A person should be careful of what he says in order to avoid problems.


kaonde Proverb Zambian
December 23, 2019

Fukafuka uja twabakulu talala wajamo kub

kneeling you eat with the elders, keep standing you have nothing.

You learn a lot of things from elders when you are humble but not when you are rude.


kaonde Proverb Zambian
December 23, 2019

Kuboko kulonda kuboko kukwabo.

An arm follows another arm.

A person helps he who helps him.


kaonde Proverb Zambian Help
December 23, 2019

Bichi biji pamo byoishenkana.

Trees that are together brush against each other.

It is normal for people living together to quarrel.


kaonde Proverb Zambian
December 23, 2019

Kuca masipa a litaka zahao.

To eat your peer’s faeces.

To fail in life.


lozi Zambian Proverb
December 28, 2019

Kukena mwa kazuma kakasina mwalo.

To enter a small basket that has no exit.

To be in great trouble.


lozi Zambian Proverb
December 28, 2019

Kunatela kwa toho.

To hit on the head.

To state the very truth of the matter.


lozi Zambian Proverb
December 28, 2019

Kukutisa lizoho.

To return a hand.

To do good to a person who did something good for you.


lozi Zambian Proverb
December 28, 2019

Akaloti.

That which does not drip.

A stingy person.


lozi Zambian Proverb
December 28, 2019

Sikampafwa.

A bat.

An unpredictable person.


lozi Zambian Proverb
December 28, 2019

Kupepa wa kulu.

To bear children as the tortoise does.

To be negligent of one’s children.


lozi Zambian Proverb
December 28, 2019

Kuba ni mala aboli.

To have rotten intestines.

To have wicked and useless children.


lozi Zambian Proverb
December 28, 2019

Mezi amata mwasikuka saona.

Water flows in its channel.

A person asks for help from his relatives and /or close friends.


lozi Zambian Proverb
December 28, 2019

Kuatula si-Libonda.

To pass judgment after the manner of the Libonda people.

To give a biased or an unfair judgment.


lozi Zambian Proverb
December 28, 2019

Kuleka kweta.

To buy favour.

o give someone money, or some other precious thing, in order for him/ her to witness, or judgement in ones favour.


lozi Zambian Proverb
December 28, 2019

Kufalaza mutu.

To make a person flee his village or country.

To take almost everything if not all of a person’s food money or possessions in general.


lozi Zambian Proverb
December 28, 2019

Kututisa kalabo.

To shift kalabo to another site.

Something impossible to do.


lozi Zambian Proverb
December 28, 2019

Mutu wa mwehae lubilo.

A person in a village cannot run fast.

A person should not react too harshly to inconveniences or minor offenses committed against him by neighbors, since he too might offend them in due course.


lozi Zambian Proverb
December 28, 2019

Mwahanu kimwa sicani.

A woman is a thick bush.

What a person says may not be necessarily be true.


lozi Zambian Proverb
December 28, 2019

Kupotoloha kacacani ka mwangalala.

To go around a mwangalala bush.

To go mad.


lozi Zambian Proverb
December 28, 2019

Mukwati-kwati wanyama koolwa kanyinga ku

Whoever handles meat must have blood on his fingers.

Every worker is entitled to a fair reward.


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 10, 2020

Mukwanwa kamukulu munuko kola bo kamukab

An Old’s mouth stinks, yet nothing false issues from it.

The old always have good judgement.


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 10, 2020

Mukanwa mu syatwato.

A mouth is worn-out canoe.

A person can say something he did not intend to say.


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 10, 2020

Siambelwa kule kasikolwa ashimbululi.

Something spoken in a far-off place cannot fail to get people to transmit it.

Do not speak ill of other people just because they are away.


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 10, 2020

Sifupa sakena nositunda kunyama.

A bone may be white, yet, it once had meat on it.

Although an old man may look wretched, he had a strong and industrious life during his youth.


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 10, 2020

Limbuta lihonga mweelo.

A crowd cheats a fool.

A person should be cautious of what is said at gathering.


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 10, 2020

Kwezi kamuhinonga, angi kaana nyoko.

The moon is not day-light, many people are not your mother’s children.

A person should not provoke situations because he happens to be in a group; since he may end up facing the consequences of his actions alone.


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 10, 2020

Musilazi ni mung’ole.

In tranquility lies danger.

A person should not take chances


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 10, 2020

Sakufangenda ka sikepaa ndambo.

What kills a visitor does not kill a local man.

Problems or hardships a visitor to a place may experience are not problems at all to the local people.


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 10, 2020

Payili pawa.

Where there are two, it is good.

It is better for two or more people to witness an even.


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 10, 2020

Sakutwa sakwila kasikasiye mandunga.

It is sharp, it boils and reaches the deepest parts of the river.

A person who is extremely strong or highly artistic.


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 10, 2020

Ngombe mukutwaleta inywa meyi Makena.

The first cow drinks clean water.

A person who begins something e.g. a kind of business usually succeeds.


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 10, 2020

Kanuke kasiambela kulungamene tumone.

A child who cannot be told let us wait and see.

Experience is the best teacher.


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 10, 2020

Panakotamene mbwa panalepe, ulimi wambwa

A dog has been bending for too long, yet its agricultural yield is never seen.

Wasting one’s time on a useless or an unprofitable venture.


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 10, 2020

Liyoka lyafa kale kulishangeza lingomba.

To accuse lingomba (a kind of bird) for the death of a snake that died a long time ago.

To accuse someone for mistakes made by others before him.


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 10, 2020

Kupita kumwezi kulyangako.

To visit a sick person is to be feeding from his home.

There is need to work hard and produce much food.


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 10, 2020

Sibuisa likundu ka wamwanjano, mwamba yo

He who uses a small paddle cannot go far; a person who has no witness cannot win a case.

A person cannot win a case unless he has strong facts and witnesses


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 10, 2020

Nde alyamui ahatandwa peunja yolya muwa.

When a lion eats a bad person and it is not killed, tomorrow it will eat a good person

A person who troubles the weak should be restrained, lest he turns upon the strong and respected later on.


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 10, 2020

Sando sakulupala sinepaa anenge.

A reed-mat may be old, yet it had killed a lot of barbell fish.

Old people should not be despised or neglected because they had done a lot in their prime.


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 10, 2020

Ndungulume mapa mulozi

A treacherous person is a relative of a witch.

Treachery is very wicked


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 10, 2020

Ndungulume mapa mulozi

A treacherous person is a relative of a witch.

Treachery is very wicked


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 10, 2020

Wakwanga kuita ongwele kuihimba.

If you cannot serve in the active forces join the carrier corps

A person should not be completely lazy and unproductive


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 10, 2020

Lyakufa luwawa kakawana musa wakuonza .

The day the jackal dies, it won’t find a musa tree under which to take shade

A bad person will not find assistance in his time of need.


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 10, 2020

Sato sakufa mbasikaula ngombe

A broken canoe will not buy a cow

Damaging a person’s property may cost a fortune.


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 10, 2020

Ndiala mbayupela kuwa nyinawae

An orphan learns through the admonitions given to a child that has it’s mother

A child should take heed of pieces of advice directed to others


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 11, 2020

Kukwatela ndombe kuusila

To get hold of a barbel fish by the tail

To advance a weak argument in a court case


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 11, 2020

Abuwa mbaafweke, aamba mbaakumeke

Those who paddle normally land, those who speak normally come to a stop

Everything has an end


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 11, 2020

Mukulu ni likona

An old person is like a big mukona tree

Old people can be relied upon because of their experience


lozi Zambian Proverb
January 11, 2020

SHIBUKA IS WRITTEN BY YOU

Add a Proverb