old habits die hard

English

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

• Audio (General Australian):

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Proverb

old habits die hard

1. Established habits are difficult to change.
   • 1884, Arthur Reade, Tea and Tea Drinking, London: S. Low, Marston, Searle & Rivington, page 12:

     Old habits die hard. The stronger beverage of English ale had been so long in use that the old folks could not be induced to relinquish it for a foreign herb.

Translations

established habits are difficult to change

• Arabic:

  Gulf Arabic: بو طبيع ما يوز عن طبعه

• Bengali: পুরনো অভ্যাস যেতে চায় না (puronō obbhaś jete caẏ na)
• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 死性不改 (sei² sing³ bat¹ goi²)

  Mandarin: ^{(please verify)} 死性不改 (sǐxìngbùgǎi)

• Czech: zvyk je železná košile
• Danish: man kan ikke lære en gammel hund nye kunster
• Finnish: vanhoista tavoista on vaikea luopua
• French: qui a bu boira (fr), les vieilles habitudes ont la vie dure, chassez le naturel, il revient au galop (fr)
• Georgian: ჩვევა რჯულზე უმტკიცესიაო (čveva rǯulze umṭḳicesiao)
• Greek: πρώτα βγαίνει η ψυχή και μετά το χούι (próta vgaínei i psychí kai metá to choúi)
• Hungarian: nagy úr a szokás, nagy úr a megszokás, a régi szokásoktól nehéz szabadulni, a régi szokásokat nehéz levetkőzni
• Icelandic: það er erfitt að kenna gömlum hundi að sitja (teaching an old dog to sit is a daunting task)
• Italian: il lupo perde il pelo ma non il vizio
• Kannada: ಹುಟ್ಟು ಗುಣ ಸುಟ್ಟರೂ ಹೋಗೋಲ್ಲ (huṭṭu guṇa suṭṭarū hōgōlla)
• Korean: 세 살 버릇 여든까지 간다 (se sal beoreut yeodeunkkaji ganda)
• Malayalam: ചൊട്ടയിലെ ശീലം ചുടലവരെ (coṭṭayile śīlaṁ cuṭalavare)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: gammel vane er vond å vende (no) (old habits are hard to change)

  Nynorsk: gammal vane er vond å vende

• Portuguese: velhos hábitos nunca morrem
• Romanian: lupul își schimbă părul, dar năravul ba
• Russian: привы́чка — втора́я нату́ра (privýčka — vtorája natúra) (a habit is a second nature), от ста́рой привы́чки тру́дно изба́виться (ot stároj privýčki trúdno izbávitʹsja)
• Sicilian: U lupu perdi u pilu ma no u vizziu
• Turkish: can çıkar huy çıkmaz (tr)

See also

• Einstellung
• you can't teach an old dog new tricks

References

• Gregory Y. Titelman, Random House Dictionary of Popular Proverbs and Sayings, 1996, →ISBN, p. 259.
• Jennifer Speake, editor (2015), “OLD habits die hard”, in Oxford Dictionary of Proverbs, 6th edition, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 234.