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A rolling stone gathers no moss is a proverb, first credited to Publilius Syrus, who in his Sententiae states, "People who are always moving, with no roots in one place or another, avoid responsibilities and cares."
The proverb a rolling stone gathers no moss can either mean that it is a good idea to stay in one place to develop deep relationships and gain more experience and earn more money, or it can mean that traveling far and wide teaches you many new things and keeps you creative.
A rolling stone gathers no moss This proverb now has two meanings: people pay a price for being always on the move, in that they have no roots in a specific place (the original meaning); or people who keep moving avoid picking up responsibilities and cares.
What's the origin of the phrase 'A rolling stone gathers no moss'? This proverb refers to what is well known about mosses and lichens – that they are slow-growing organisms that don’t thrive on disturbance.
The speaker argues that moss is undesirable and that stones should instead embrace movement and experience. The poem contrasts the static nature of stones with the dynamism of life and suggests that avoiding complacency leads to a more fulfilling existence.
In 1546, a collection assembled by the English playwright John Heywood partly from the Erasmus anthology would include—in the immense opening poem rather than as one of the hundreds of proverbs that followed it—the line “the rollyng stone never gatherth mosse.”
said to mean that a person who is always travelling and changing jobs has the advantage of having no responsibilities, but also has disadvantages such as having no permanent place to live: Hal was a bit of a rolling stone before he married and settled down.
a rolling stone gathers no moss. proverb A person who wanders or travels often and at length will not be burdened by attachments such as friends, family, or possessions. Can be used as a negative (to suggest that such a person won't find a fulfilling place in life) or as a positive (to suggest that they will have a more interesting and ...
Meanings of “A Rolling Stone Gathers No Moss” This phrase, “a rolling stone gathers no moss” is one of the famous English proverbs. It is taken literally, and a rolling stone refers to a wanderer or traveler. Here, the moss is a symbol of patience, experience and persistence.
Idiom: A rolling stone gathers no moss Meaning: People say this to mean that an ambitious person is more successful than a person not trying to achieve anything.
