where did the saying "Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth" come from?
By admin on Jan. 25, 2010.
I know what it means when you use it, but why? What is the history of this little saying?
Something like this: the value of a horse is related it its age – i.e., a younger horse is more valuable than an older horse.
You can determine the relative age of a horse by inspecting its teeth.
Back in the day, a horse was commonly given as a gift.
If a man received a horse as a gift, and then inspected inside its mouth, he was trying to assess the value of the gift he received. So, the saying means that you should not assess the value of any gift that you receive; rather you should be thankful for the thoughtfulness of the gift-giver
Category: horse gift