when you hear hoofbeats, think of horses, not zebras
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Meaning · English
When diagnosing a patient's symptoms, common ailments should be considered as more probable than rare ones.
Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt
Khi chẩn đoán triệu chứng của bệnh nhân, nên xem xét các bệnh phổ biến trước
Machine-translated — suggest a fix
Register: informal
Where it’s used:
Used
American English
Sources & notes
Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30 via kaikki.org).
Common questions
What does “when you hear hoofbeats, think of horses, not zebras” mean?
When diagnosing a patient's symptoms, common ailments should be considered as more probable than rare ones.
Is “when you hear hoofbeats, think of horses, not zebras” formal or informal?
when you hear hoofbeats, think of horses, not zebras is generally informal.