• Listen

  What it means

  “He who won’t listen to his brother will have to listen to the whip.” Ignoring good advice from those close to you leads to harsher lessons from life or authority.

  English equivalent

  Forewarned is forearmed.

  Vocabulary

  • słuchać — to listen to, to obey
  • brat — brother
  • bat — whip

  Grammar note

  'Brata' and 'bata' are both genitive singular forms — 'słuchać' governs the genitive case.

  Cultural context

  The rhyme between 'brata' and 'bata' makes this memorable. Part of a family of proverbs warning against ignoring parental or family guidance.

  Beginner

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