even Homer nods

English

WOTD – 31 March 2010

A bust of the (possibly legendary) Ancient Greek poet Homer in the gardens of the Achilleion in Corfu, Greece

Alternative forms

• even Jove nods, even Homer sometimes nods, Homer nods, Homer sometimes nods, Jove nods

Etymology

even + Homer + nods (“be momentarily inattentive or inaccurate”), alluding to line 359 of Horace’s Ars Poetica indignor quandoque bonus dormitat Homerus (“I become annoyed when the great Homer is being drowsy”). The English translation Homer nods has become standard following Pope (1709), but is due to Dryden (1677).

Pronunciation

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Proverb

even Homer nods

1. Not even the most vigilant and expert are immune to error.
   • 1677, John Dryden, “The Authors Apology for Heroique Poetry; and Poetique Licence”, in The State of Innocence, and Fall of Man: An Opera. Written in Heroique Verse, and Dedicated to Her Royal Highness, the Duchess, London: Printed by T[homas] N[ewcomb] for Henry Herringman, at the Anchor in the Lower Walk of the New Exchange, →OCLC:

     Horace acknowledges that honeſt Homer nods ſometimes: He is not equally awake in every Line: […]

   • 1709, Alexander Pope, An Essay on Criticism, London: Printed for W. Lewis in Russell-street, Covent-Garden; and sold by W. Taylor at the Ship in Pater-Noster-Row, T. Osborn in Grays-Inn near the Walks, and J. Graves in St. James's-Street, published 1711, →OCLC, page 12:

     Thoſe are but Stratagems which Errors ſeem, / Nor is it Homer Nods, but We that Dream.

   • 1713, [Jean] de la Bruyere, N[icholas] Rowe, “Of M. de la Bruyere’s Book, entitul’d, The Characters: Or the Manners of the Present Age”, in The Works of Monsieur De La Bruyere. In Two Volumes. Containing, I. The Moral Characters of Theophrastus. II. The Characters, or, The Manners of the Present Age. III. M. Bruyeres Speech upon His Admission into the French Academy. IV. An Account of the Life and Writings of M. Bruyere. By Monsieur Coste. [...] Revis’d by the Paris Edition: With an Original Chapter, Of the Manner of Living with Great Men: Written after the Method of M. Bruyere, by N. Rowe, Esq., 6th edition, volume I, London: Printed for E[dmund] Curll, at the Dial and Bible, and J. Pemberton, at the Buck and Sun; both against St. Dunstan's Church in Fleetstreet, →OCLC, page 102:

     He [de Vigneul-Marvin] knows that Homer nods sometimes, and that Faults are found in the beſt writers. He is an Author himself, and conſequently may commit an Over-ſight as well as Pindar, Virgil, Horace, and all the moſt celebrated Ancient and Modern Authors.

   • 2009 April 27, James Taranto, “When Pigs Flu: But … but … Mexico has Socialized Medicine!”, in The Wall Street Journal‎^[1], archived from the original on 22 March 2016:

     And Homer nods: The Arizona Cardinals and Philadelphia Eagles played in this year's NFC championship, not NFL championship as we said in a Friday follow-up (since corrected).

Translations

no one is immune to error

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 智者千慮，必有一失／智者千虑，必有一失 (zh) (zhìzhě qiān lǜ, bì yǒu yī shī)

• Czech: i mistr tesař se někdy utne (cs)
• Danish: please add this translation if you can
• Finnish: joskus Homeroskin nukahtaa, viisaskin menee vipuun
• French: tout le monde peut se tromper (fr), il n’y a si bon cheval qui ne bronche (fr), cela arrive même aux meilleurs, l’erreur est humaine (fr)
• Friulian: a fâle ancje il plevan tal altâr
• Hungarian: néha Homérosz is alszik
• Irish: ní bhíonn saoi gan locht
• Japanese: 猿も木から落ちる (ja) (さるもきからおちる, saru mo ki kara ochiru), 弘法にも筆の誤り (ja) (Kōbō ni mo fude no ayamari), 河童の川流れ (ja) (kappa no kawanagare)
• Korean: 원숭이도 나무에서 떨어진다 (wonsung'ido namueseo tteoreojinda)
• Lithuanian: kas nedirba, tas neklysta
• Polish: niekiedy i wielki Homer drzemie, i dobry nawet Homer niekiedy zadrzymie
• Portuguese: please add this translation if you can
• Russian: и на стару́ху быва́ет прору́ха (ru) (i na starúxu byvájet prorúxa), на вся́кого мудреца́ дово́льно простоты́ (ru) (na vsjákovo mudrecá dovólʹno prostotý)
• Spanish: al mejor cazador se le va la liebre, al mejor cazador se le va la paloma, al mejor panadero se le quema el pan
• Thai: สี่ตีนยังรู้พลาด นักปราชญ์ยังรู้พลั้ง (th) (sìi-dtiin-yang-rúu-plâat-nák-bpràat-yang-rúu-pláng)