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The acorn doesn't fall very far from the tree

The acorn doesn't fall very far from the tree

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Every time the lives of offspring closely mirror the lives of their parents, one can point to it and say: "The acorn doesn't fall very far from the tree" and simply ignore the considerable but unknown number of counterexamples.

What other aphorisms can seem anecdotally plausible despite lacking more convincing evidence?


@fmf said
Every time the lives of offspring closely mirror the lives of their parents, one can point to it and say: "The acorn doesn't fall very far from the tree" and simply ignore the considerable but unknown number of counterexamples.

What other aphorisms can seem anecdotally plausible despite lacking more convincing evidence?
In Germany it is "Apple" and that is much mor rue. Acorn seed can travel considerable distances.
Since "apple" is also a euphemism for what horses and donkeys excrete there is another which claims, that those apples won't fall far from that animal...


@ponderable said
In Germany it is "Apple" and that is much mor rue. Acorn seed can travel considerable distances.
Since "apple" is also a euphemism for what horses and donkeys excrete there is another which claims, that those apples won't fall far from that animal...
In Germany it is "Apple" and that is much mor rue.

It can be "apple" in English too. But when British people say "The apple doesn't fall very far from the tree", they aren't implicitly referencing horse dung, even if that is the kind of thing the context suggests.

e.g. "Donald Trump Jr is such a jerk; it just goes to show that the apple [or acorn] doesn't fall very far from the tree".

That could be construed to mean they are both dunglike, but the apple in the adage does not symbolize apple-sized nodules of horse excrement.


@fmf said
What other aphorisms can seem anecdotally plausible despite lacking more convincing evidence?
I think "all's well that ends well" is way too sweeping. There can often be irreparable carnage en route to a desired result.


“If you want a thing done well, do it yourself.”

Perhaps not if you have to have your car serviced or an appendix removed.


@fmf said
I think "all's well that ends well" is way too sweeping. There can often be irreparable carnage en route to a desired result.
This proverb makes sense though:

Where there’s a will, there’s a way


@the-gravedigger said
“If you want a thing done well, do it yourself.”

Perhaps not if you have to have your car serviced or an appendix removed.
“If you want a thing done well, do it yourself.”

True, though, if I want so-and-so to get three red thumbs.


@torunn said
This proverb makes sense though:

Where there’s a will, there’s a way
Where there’s a will, there’s a way

Yes, it's got a true ring to it of the "never say never" kind.


@the-gravedigger said
“If you want a thing done well, do it yourself.”

Perhaps not if you have to have your car serviced or an appendix removed.
if "well" means in the precise way you envisioned it: yes.

But one can't built big things alone.


@fmf said
Where there’s a will, there’s a way

Yes, it's got a true ring to it of the "never say never" kind.
It says, if you really want something to happen you try everything without giving up.


@torunn said
It says, if you really want something to happen you try everything without giving up.
Both say: don't give up.


@fmf said
What other aphorisms can seem anecdotally plausible despite lacking more convincing evidence?
"Never put off till tomorrow what can be done today".

Too absolute. Not necessarily the right advice.


‘Sleep on it’ means taking a while before making a decision?

Not in my case! I lose sleep if I have something on my mind 🙁


@fmf said
What other aphorisms can seem anecdotally plausible despite lacking more convincing evidence?
"Blood is thicker than water".

Mostly true. Yes, there can be exceptions, but empirical research would probably say it almost always applies.


Happy wife, happy life”.
Took me a few tries to get that one right.😲

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