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adage

[ad-ij]
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noun
  1. a traditional saying expressing a common experience or observation; proverb.
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Origin of adage

1540–50; < French < Latin adagium, equivalent to ad- ad- + ag- (stem of āio I say) + -ium -ium
Related formsa·da·gi·al [uh-dey-jee-uh l] /əˈdeɪ dʒi əl/, adjective
Can be confusedadage aphorism apothegm axiom maxim proverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for adages

Historical Examples

  • "Avoid a man who neither drinks nor smokes," was one of Don's adages.

    The Orchard of Tears

    Sax Rohmer

  • He speaks to the same purpose in the Adages, c. 189, as Jortin observes.

  • As an example of Palmer's exposition, we will give that based on two adages of like import.

    Proverb Lore

    F. Edward Hulme

  • The adages or proverbs of all nations are the outgrowths of their first attempts at civilization.

  • One seems to detect several grades or qualities of friendship in these adages.

    Proverb Lore

    F. Edward Hulme

British Dictionary definitions for adages

adage

noun
  1. a traditional saying that is accepted by many as true or partially true; proverb
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Word Origin

C16: via Old French from Latin adagium; related to āio I say
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for adages

adage

n.

1540s, Middle French adage, from Latin adagium "adage, proverb," apparently from adagio, from ad- "to" (see ad-) + *agi-, root of aio "I say," from PIE *ag- "to speak." But Tucker thinks the second element is rather ago "set in motion, drive, urge."

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper