respect is not given, it is earned
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Meaning · English
One must prove themselves worthy to receive respect
Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt
Lễ phép không được cho không, mà phải được chứng minh xứng đáng
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 “respect is not given, it is earned” mean?
One must prove themselves worthy to receive respect
Is “respect is not given, it is earned” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.