Ever heard the saying "Don’t stare a gift horse in the face"?
By admin on Apr. 12, 2010.
…is that a Greek metaphor, what is the origins of this phrase?
The saying goes "don’t look a gift horse in the mouth". This is because you can tell a horse’s age by the appearance of its teeth (like you can tell the age of a tree by the rings in its trunk), so looking it in the mouth would be an insult to the person giving it to you, because you’re basically accusing him/her of giving you the proverbial old gray mare who ain’t what she used to be.
The other proverb you’re thinking of is "beware of Greeks bearing gifts", which goes back to the Trojan horse.
Category: horse gift