Cambodian Proverbs

Cambodian Proverbs voice Khmer wisdom shaped by Angkor’s temples and rice‑growing life. They prize harmony, respect, and patient effort, showing how people endure hardship and rebuild community.

A husband should not talk of pretty girls in front of his wife.

Cambodian Proverb

Don't take rich people as examples.

Cambodian Proverb

Active hands, full bellies.

Cambodian Proverb

With water make rivers, with rice make armies.

Cambodian Proverb

Cultivate a heart of love that knows no danger.

Cambodian Proverb

If you are patient in a moment of anger, you will spare yourself one hundred days of tears.

Cambodian Proverb

The immature rice stalk stands erect, while the mature stalk, heavy with grain, bends over.

Cambodian Proverb

Don't let women who attract attention walk behind you.

Cambodian Proverb

The tiger depends on the forest; the forest depends on the tiger.

Cambodian Proverb

You can't claim heaven as your own if you are just going to sit under it.

Cambodian Proverb

Don't shoot people you hate; don't lend to those you love.

Cambodian Proverb

If you are doing wrong, make sure you don't get fat from it.

Cambodian Proverb

Negotiate a river by following its bends, enter a country by following its customs.

Cambodian Proverb

The elephant that is stuck in the mud will tear down the tree with it.

Cambodian Proverb

Stealing may bring profit, but hanging costs far more.

Cambodian Proverb

You don't have to cut a tree down to get at the fruit.

Cambodian Proverb

People give, but don't be in a hurry to take.

Cambodian Proverb

Don't reject the crooked road and don't take the straight one, instead take the one traveled by the ancestors.

Cambodian Proverb

For news of the heart, ask the face.

Cambodian Proverb

Don't take the straight path or the winding path. Take the path your ancestors have taken.

Cambodian Proverb

Don't take the straight path or the winding path.

Cambodian Proverb