if you want enemies excel others, if you want friends let others excel you
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Meaning · English
Outdoing others makes enemies, while allowing them to outdo you makes friends
Examples
If you want friends, let others excel you in conversations and achievements
AI-drafted example auto-approved by rule (illustrative, not a corpus attestation)
Sources & notes
Listed on English Wikiquote “English proverbs” (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-31). Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-07-31; pending editor spot-check.
Common questions
What does “if you want enemies excel others, if you want friends let others excel you” mean?
Outdoing others makes enemies, while allowing them to outdo you makes friends
Is “if you want enemies excel others, if you want friends let others excel you” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.