Adage ***

adage







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n. (名詞 noun)



          1.    諺語;格言;古語;箴言





The Columbia Guide to Standard American English



aphorism, (old) adage, apothegm, maxim, proverb, (old) saw, saying (nn.) 

 

All these overlap with one another, sometimes a little, sometimes a lot, sometimes completely.



An [aphorism] is a short statement expressing a piece of wisdom, often wittily put. 



An adage is an old saying that has become accepted as a truth. 



An [apothegm] (pronounced AP-uh-THEM and also spelled apophthegm) is a terse, witty saying. 



A [maxim] is a concise statement of a principle, a truth, or a rule of conduct. 



A proverb is a short pithy (有髓的) saying, expressing a folksy truth that is widely accepted. 



An (old) saw is a familiar saying, much worn and sometimes distorted through long use. 



And a saying is almost any of these. 





see 

terse aphoristic

gnomic









　　

There is an [old] adage that defines the difference between "plot" and "story." 

The plot is that the queen dies and then the king dies, 

but the story is that the queen dies and then the king dies of a broken heart.



Ben Affleck's directorial debut, an adaptation of Dennis Lehane's novel Gone Baby Gone gets the plot right, but neglects the story.