Summer Sale! Save 25% off a BookBrowse Membership, offer ends soon!

Why do we say "Better safe than sorry"?

Well-Known Expressions

Better safe than sorry

Meaning:

It's better to take precautionary measures to prevent something bad from happening.

Background:

The earliest known use of this proverb is by the Irish novelist Samuel Lover (1797-1868) who used it in his book Rory O'More (1837). Another form of the expression is 'better be sensible than sorry'.

More expressions and their source

Challenge yourself with BookBrowse Wordplays

BookBrowse Book Club

  • Book Jacket
    The Ghostwriter
    by Julie Clark
    From the instant New York Times bestselling author of The Last Flight and The Lies I Tell comes a dazzling new thriller.
1
2
3
PrevNext

Members Recommend

  • Book Jacket

    Ordinary Love
    by Marie Rutkoski

    A riveting story of class, ambition, and bisexuality—one woman risks everything for a second chance at first love.

    Read the Reviews
  • Book Jacket

    Making Friends Can Be Murder
    by Kathleen West

    Thirty-year-old Sarah Jones is drawn into a neighborhood murder mystery after befriending a deceptive con artist.

    Read the Reviews
1
2
PrevNext
Who Said...

Discovery consists of seeing what everybody has seen and thinking what nobody has thought.

Click Here to find out who said this, as well as discovering other famous literary quotes!

Wordplay

Solve this clue:

B a L

and be entered to win..

Your guide toexceptional          books

BookBrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and nonfiction—books that not only engage and entertain but also deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.