it is a good friend that is always giving, though it be never so little
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Meaning · English
A true friend is one who consistently shows kindness, no matter how small
Literally: a good friend is always giving
Examples
It is a good friend that is always giving, though it be never so little, like my neighbor who often shares vegetables from her garden
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 “it is a good friend that is always giving, though it be never so little” mean?
A true friend is one who consistently shows kindness, no matter how small Literally: a good friend is always giving
Is “it is a good friend that is always giving, though it be never so little” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.