the cobbler always wears the worst shoes
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Meaning · English
A skilled person often neglects their own needs
Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt
Người có kỹ năng thường bỏ qua nhu cầu của mình
Machine-translated — suggest a fix
Literally: a cobbler's own shoes being in poor condition
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 “the cobbler always wears the worst shoes” mean?
A skilled person often neglects their own needs Literally: a cobbler's own shoes being in poor condition
Is “the cobbler always wears the worst shoes” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.