can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear

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Be unable to turn something ugly or inferior into something attractive or of value, as in No matter how expensive his clothes, he still looks sloppy—you can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear. This expression was already a proverb in the mid-1500s.

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ARE YOU A TRUE BLUE CHAMPION OF THESE "BLUE" SYNONYMS?

We could talk until we're blue in the face about this quiz on words for the color "blue," but we think you should take the quiz and find out if you're a whiz at these colorful terms.

Question 1 of 8

Which of the following words describes “sky blue”?

navy

beryl

azure

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Words nearby can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear

cantina, canting, canting arms, cantle, cantling, can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear, can't make head or tail of, canto, canto fermo, canton, Canton crepe

How to use can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear in a sentence

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