even from a foe a man may learn wisdom
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Meaning · English
One can learn from anyone, regardless of their intentions
Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt
Có thể học được từ bất kỳ ai, dù họ có ý định gì
Machine-translated — suggest a fix
Where it’s used:
Used
Widespread English
Sources & notes
Listed on Wikipedia “List of proverbial phrases” (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-29); definition pending editorial review. Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-07-30; pending editor spot-check.
Common questions
What does “even from a foe a man may learn wisdom” mean?
One can learn from anyone, regardless of their intentions
Is “even from a foe a man may learn wisdom” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.