Meaning

There's no fool like an old fool

Categorised in: John Heywood ·A List Of 720 English Proverbs, With Their Meanings Explained

What's the meaning of the phrase 'There's no fool like an old fool'?

People of mature years, who are expected to know better, often do outrageously foolish things, especially regarding romantic liaisons.

Truth is stranger than fiction
Truth is stranger than fiction - caption

What’s the origin of the phrase ‘There’s no fool like an old fool’?

The proverbial saying ‘There’s no fool like an old fool’ is first found in a place we might expect to find it, that is, an early and comprehensive collection of English proverbs. There are a few of such but, in this case, it is John Heywood’s 1546 glossary A Dialogue conteinyng the nomber in effect of all the Prouerbes in the Englishe tongue:

But there is no foole to the olde foole, folke saie.

Apart from what it means and where it originated, there’s not a great deal more to be said about this proverb.

See also: the List of Proverbs.

Historical trend

“fool like an old fool” in printed material over time

Source: Google Books Ngrams (1800–2020).

180018201840186018801900192019401960198020002020
  • fool like an old fool