As gude ne'er a bit, as ne'er the better.
"Unless you make a thing the better for you, you had as good let it alone."-- Kelly.
A's gude that God sends.
A shave aff a new cut loaf's never missed.
A shor'd tree stands lang.
"Men do not die of threats."-- Dutch.
A short grace is gude for hungry folk.
A short horse is sune wispit.
A sillerless man gangs fast through the market.
A silly man will be slily dealt wi'.
"He that makes himself a sheep, shall be eaten by the wolf."-- English.
A sinking maister maks a rising man.
A skelpit bum breaks nae banes.
Ask the tapster if his ale be gude.
Ask your purse what you should buy.
As lang as a dog would be bound wi' a bluidy puddin'.
As lang as the bird sings before Candlemas he greets after it.
As lang as ye serve the tod ye maun carry his tail.
As lang lasts the hole as the heel leather.
"Spoken to them that quarrel with a hole in your coat or shoe: often applied otherways."-- Kelly.
As Lang lives the merry man as the sad.
As lang rins the tod as he has feet.
A slow hand maks a sober fortune.
A slow fire maks a sweat maut.
A sma' leak will sink a great ship.
As menseless as a tinkler's messan.
As merry's a mautman.
A smith's house is aye lowin'.
As mony beads as mony wits.
As muckle upwith as muckle downwith.
A's no help that's at hand.
A's no ill that's ill like.
A's no part.
A's no tint that fa's bye.
A's no tint that's in hazard.
As poor as a kirk mouse.
A spur in the head's worth twa in the heel.
As sair fights the wren as the crane.
As sure's death.
A steek in time saves nine.
As the auld cock craws the young cock learns.
As the day lengthens the cauld strengthens.
As the fool thinks the bell clinks.
As the market gangs the wares sell.
As the sow fills the draff sours.
A still sow eats a' the draff.
A's tint that's put in a riven dish.
All is lost that is put into a broken dish. Favours bestowed on ungrateful persons are thrown away.
As true as Biglam's cat crew, and the cock rocked the cradle.
"Spoken when we hear one call that true that we know to be a lye."-- Kelly
A sturdy beggar should hae a stout nae-sayer.
As wanton as a wet hen.
As weel be hang'd for a sheep as a lamb.
As weel be out o' the warld as out o' fashion.
As wight as a wabster's doublet, that ilka day taks a thief by the neck.
As ye are stout be merciful.
As ye mak your bed sae ye maun lie on't.
A taking hand will never want, let the world be e'er sae scant.
A tarrowing bairn was never fat.
A child that refuses or is slow in taking its food. People who will not take advantage as opportunities offer, cannot expect to prosper so well as those who do.
A tale never tines in the telling.
A' that's said in the kitchen shouldna be tauld in the ha'.
A' that's said shouldna be sealed.
A' that ye'll tak wi' ye will be but a kist and a sheet, after a'.
In allusion to the death of persons who may be proud of their possessions.
A' the claes on your back was ance in clues.
A' the keys of the country hang na in ae belt.
All the influence or power is not in one man's possession.
A' the speed's no in the spurs.
A' the winning's in the first buying.
A' the wit o' the world's no in ae pow.
A'thing angers ye, and the cat breaks your heart.
A' things thrive at thrice.
A'thing wytes that no weel fares.
A thoughtless body's aye thrang.
A thrawn question should hae a thrawart answer.
A thread will tie an honest man better than a rope will do a rogue.
At my leisure, as lairds dee.
"Fair and softly, as lawyers go to heaven."-- English.
A tocherless dame sits lang at hame.
A toolying tike comes limping hame.
"Toolying tike," quarrelsome dog.
A toom hand is nae lure for a hawk.
A toom pantry maks a thriftless gudewife.
A toom purse maks a thrawn face.
At open doors dogs gae ben.
A travelled man has leave to lee.
A tricky man's easiest tricket.
A turn weel done is sune done.
A twalpenny eat may look at a king.
Auld chimes and auld rhymes gar us think on auld times.
Auld folk are twice bairns.
Auld moon mist ne'er died o' thrist.
"Foggy weather in the last quarter of the moon is supposed to betoken moisture."-- Robert Chambers.
Auld sins breed new sairs.
Auld sparrows are ill to tame.
Auld springs gie me price.
Things out of fashion are valueless.
Auld wives and bairns mak fools o' physicians.
Auld wives were aye gude maidens.
A vaunter and a liar are near akin.
A wa' between best preserves friendship.
Meaning that friends are best separate.
A wad is a fule's argument.
"Fools, for argument, lay Wagers."- Butler.
A waited pat's lang o' boiling.
A wee house has a wide throat.
A wee house weel fill'd, a wee piece land weel till'd, a wee wife weel will'd, will mak a happy man.
A wee mouse will creep beneath a muckle corn stack.
A wee spark maks muckle wark.
A wee thing fleys cowards.
A wee thing puts your beard in a bleeze.
A wee thing ser's a cheerfu' mind.
A whang off a cut kebbuck's never miss'd.
A wight man ne'er wanted a weapon.
A wild goose ne'er laid tame eggs.
A wilfu' man should be unco wise.
A willing mind maks a light foot.
A winking cat's no aye blind.
A winter day and a wintry way is the life o' man.
A winter night, a woman's mind, and a laird's purpose, aften change.
"Women, wind, and luck soon change."-- Portuguese.
A wise head maks a close mouth.
A wise lawyer ne'er gangs to law himsel.
A wise man gets learning frae them that hae nane o' their ain.
A wise man wavers, a fool is fixed.
A woman's gude either for something or naething.
A word is enough to the wise.
A working mither maks a daw dochter.
Another rendering of "A light-heeled mother," &c.
Aye as ye thrive your feet fa's frae ye.
"Unexpected interruptions occur in business."-- Kelly.
"The farther you go, the farther behind."-- English.
Aye flether away ;--since I'll no do wi' foul play, try me wi' fair.
Aye takin' out o' the meal pock and ne'er puttin' in't soon comes to the bottom.
Aye tak the fee when the tear's in the ee.
Aye to eild, but never to wit.
That is, he is always growing older, but never any wiser.

BACHELORS' wives and auld maids' bairns are aye weel bred.
Bad legs and ill wives should stay at hame.
Bairns are certain care, but nae sure joy.
Bairns speak i' the field what they hear i' the ha'.
Baith weal and woe come aye wi' world's gear.
"'And I positively must not ask you how you have come by all this money?' said the clergyman. . . . . 'Is it anything that distresses your own mind?' 'There is baith weal and woe come wi' warld's gear, Reuben: but ye maun ask me naething mair.--This siller binds me to naething, and can never be speered back again."'-- Heart of Midlothian.
Baked bread and brown ale winna bide lang.
Bannocks are better than nae bread.
"Half a loaf is better than no bread."-- English.
Barefooted folk shouldna tread on thorns.
"Those who live in glass houses should not throw stones."-- English.
Bare gentry, bragging beggars.
Bare words mak nae bargain.
Bastard brood are aye proud.
Be a friend to yoursel, and others will.
Bear and forbear is gude philosophy.
Bear wealth weel, poortith will bear itsel.
Beauty, but bounty's but bauch.
Beauty is but skin deep.
Beauty's muck when honour's tint.
Beauty is worthless when honour is lost.
Be aye the thing you would be ca'd,
"Because" is a woman's reason.
"I have no other but a woman's reason: I think him so, because I think him so."-- Shakespeare.
Beds are best, quo' the man to his guest.
We presume he said so on the score of economy, i.e., to evade supplying supper.
Beefsteaks and porter are gude belly mortar.
Bees that hae honey in their mouths hae stings in their tails.
Before an ill wife be gude, even if she was a' turned to tongue.
Before, I ween'd; but now, I wat.
Before, I only suspected; now, I am certain. "Spoken on the full discovery of some malefice, which before we only suspected."-- Kelly.
Before the deil gaes blind, and he's no blear e'ed yet.
Before ye choose a friend, eat a peck o' saut wi' him.
Be gaun, the gate's before you.
Be going, the road lies before you. A jocose or surly hint to go.
Beg frae beggars and you'll ne'er be rich.
Beggars breed, and rich men feed.
Beggars downa bide wealth.
Beggars shouldna be choosers.
Begin wi' needles and preens, and end wi' horn'd nowte.
That is, beginnings apparently trifling may lead to very great results. Used here as a caution against dishonesty.
Be it better, be it worse, be ruled by him that has the purse.
Be it sae, is nae banning.
Used in yielding a point in dispute because you are either unwilling or unable to argue further; but also indicating that you do not admit yourself to be in the wrong.
Be lang sick, that ye may be soon hale.
Believe a' ye hear, an' ye may eat a' ye see.
Belyve is twa hours and a half.
A jocular allusion to the fact that if a person says he will be back, or done with anything "belyve," that is, immediately, or in a little, the probability is he will be longer than expected.
Be ready wi' your bonnet, but slow wi' your purse.
Be slow in choosing a friend, but slower in changing him.
Best to be off wi' the auld love before we be on wi' the new.
Be thou weel, or be thou wae, yet thou wilt not aye be sae.
Better a bit in the morning than a fast a' day.
Better a clout in than a hole out.
That is, a patched garment is better than one with holes in it.
Better a dog fawn on you than bark at you.
Better ae e'e than a' blind.
Better ae wit bought than twa for nought.
Better a finger aff as aye wagging.
"The first night is aye the warst o't. I hae never heard o' ane that sleepit the night afore the trial, but of mony a ane that sleepit as sound as a tap the night before their necks were straughted. And it's nae wonder--the warst may be tholed when it's kend: Better a finger aff as aye wagging."-- Heart of Midlothian.
Better a fremit friend than a friend fremit.
Better have a stranger for your friend than a friend turned stranger.
Better a gude fame than a fine face.
Better alane than in ill company.
Better a laying hen than a lying crown.
Better a lean horse than a toom halter.
Better a poor horse than no horse at all.
Better a mouse in the pat than nae flesh.
Better an auld man's darling than a young man's warling.
"Used as an argument to induce a young girl to marry an old man, to the doing of which no argument should prevail."-- Kelly.