never put off till tomorrow what you can do today
- never put off till tomorrow what you can do today
The proverb is often humorously reversed (see quots. 1869 and 1980). Cf. mid 14th-cent. Fr. le bien que tu peus faire au matin, n’attens pas le soir ne l’endemain, do not wait for the evening or the next day (to do) the good which you can do in the morning.
c 1386 CHAUCER Tale of Melibee 1. 1793 An olde proverbe..seith that ‘the good-nesse that thou mayst do this day, do it, and abide nat ne delaye it nat til to-morwe’.
1616 T. DRAXE Adages 42 Deferre not vntill to morrow, if thou canst do it to day.
1633 J. HOWELL Familiar Letters 5 Sept. (1903) II. 140 Secretary Cecil..would ofttimes speak of himself, ‘It shall never be said of me that I will defer till tomorrow what I can do to-day.’
1749 CHESTERFIELD Letter 26 Dec. (1932) IV. 1478 No procrastination; never put off til to-morrow what you can do to-day.
1869 C. H. SPURGEON John Ploughman’s Talk vii. These slow coaches think that to-morrow is better than to-day, and take for their rule an old proverb turned topsy-turvy—‘Never do to-day what you can put off till tomorrow.’
1980 J. LEES-MILNE Harold Nicolson xv. Lord Sackville was..a lovable, easy-going but indolent peer whose philosophy is best summarized in one of his pet sayings: ‘Never do today what you can possibly put off until tomorrow.’
2002 Washington Post 16 Feb. C13 (Born Loser comic strip) ‘Brutus, weren’t you going to take down the Christmas lights this weekend?’ ‘No... Next weekend, Gladys! Never put off till tomorrow what you can put off till next weekend!’
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tomorrow — see tomorrow is another day tomorrow never comes eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die jam tomorrow and jam yesterday, but never jam today what Manchester says today, the rest of England says tomorrow … Proverbs new dictionary
today — see today you; tomorrow me jam tomorrow and jam yesterday, but never jam today what Manchester says today, the rest of England says tomorrow never put off till tomorrow what you can do today … Proverbs new dictionary
put — see don’t put the cart before the horse never put off till tomorrow what you can do today don’t put all your eggs in one basket you can’t put new wine in old bottles you cannot put an old head on young shoulders … Proverbs new dictionary
Oxford Dictionary of Proverbs, Thematic Index — absence absence makes the heart grow fonder he who is absent is always in the wrong the best of friends must part blue are the hills that are far away distance lends enchantment to the view out of sight, out of mind … Proverbs new dictionary
lateness — I (New American Roget s College Thesaurus) Coming after the expected time Nouns 1. lateness, tardiness, slowness, unpunctuality; delay, procrastination, deferring, deferment, postponement, adjournment, prorogation, retardation, respite;… … English dictionary for students
Morton Freedgood — (1913 April 16, 2006) was an American author who wrote The Taking of Pelham One Two Three and many other detective and mystery novels under the pen name John Godey. Biography Freedgood was born in Brooklyn, New York City, New York in 1913 and… … Wikipedia
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John Godey — Morton Freedgood (* 1913 in Brooklyn, New York, NY, USA; † 16. April 2006 in West New York, New York) war ein US amerikanischer Autor und Schriftsteller. Freedgood begann in jungen Jahren das Schreiben. In den 1940er Jahren hatte er bereits in… … Deutsch Wikipedia
