eat to live, not live to eat

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English[edit]

Alternative forms[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Often attributed to Socrates and Benjamin Franklin.

Proverb[edit]

eat to live, not live to eat

  1. (medicine, imperative) It is best not to be gluttonous; eating shouldn't be one's favorite activity, but one should eat only to supply health.
    • 2013, Carl H. Klaus, A Self Made of Words: Crafting a Distinctive Persona in Nonfiction Writing, →ISBN:
      Balance can be used to heighten matched pairs of ideas, as in the maxim "one should eat to live, not live to eat."

Usage notes[edit]

Often used as an advice or imperative.

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