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  • Hi this is Tutor Nick P and this is Proverbs 78. The proverb today is don't look a

  • gift horse in the mouth. Okay. Let's take a look at the note here. This proverb

  • could also be reworded as ' never look a gift horse in the mouth. ' So don't look a

  • gift horse in the mouth or never look a gift horse in the mouth. All right. Let's

  • continue. This proverb comes from the idea that it is possible to estimate a

  • horse's age by examining its teeth. As a horse gets older more teeth grow in. So

  • they actually have more teeth in their mouth and others change shape and move

  • forward. Move forward in the mouth. So I guess in the past, it may be somebody you

  • know, you're lucky somebody gave you a horse. Remember in the past horses were

  • very, very valuable. They were like cars. Remember even during the cowboy days,

  • they used to make it like a crime was like hanging for stealing a horse. So in

  • the past time, horse was the main transportation. So very valuable. So if

  • somebody gave you a horse you should be thankful. Don't start checking it out.

  • Don't start looking at its teeth. How old is this horse ? Is this a good horse ? You gave

  • me a used horse or something like that. So that's where the idea came from. So if

  • you looked a gift horse in the mouth it means you were inspecting it to see how

  • old it is , or checking out the quality of the horse. All right. Let's continue. The first

  • known sighting of this proverb was written in Latin by Saint Jerome in the

  • letter to the Ephesians around 400 AD. Okay, and this is how it went. In Latin

  • Noi Equi dentes inspicere donate. Which basically means

  • never inspect the teeth of a horse received as a present. So I think the noi

  • is never. Equus I know it's horses. dentes of course is teeth. We know anything

  • in dente. It always has to do with teeth Inspicere you know,

  • this obviously is inspect. Donate donated given. So, so again. Never inspect

  • the teeth of a horse received as a present. So it is the same idea today. Like if

  • somebody gives you a gift. You know, don't start looking at the gift and

  • start checking out the quality. Hey. You gave me this ? So how old is

  • this ? Is this used ? Is this is good ? Don't do that. Just take the gift. Say thank you. Oh

  • it's very nice. Thank you very much. Don't start inspecting it. So basically

  • that's what we mean. Let's look at the first example. If someone gives you an

  • unusual or questionable gift , don't ask too many questions about the quality of

  • the gift . Never look a gift horse in the mouth.

  • So that's basically what we mean. So just if you're questionable about it just

  • take the gift just say thank you very much this was very nice of you. Something

  • like that. Okay. Anyway I hope you got it. I hope it's

  • clear. Thank you for your time. Bye-bye

Hi this is Tutor Nick P and this is Proverbs 78. The proverb today is don't look a

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