who keeps company with the wolf will learn to howl

English

Alternative forms

• who keeps company with wolves, will learn to howl

Etymology

Often attributed to Will Graves.

Proverb

who keeps company with the wolf will learn to howl

1. A person tends to take on the characteristics of those with whom he or she associates.
   • 2012, Yukiko Inoue-Smith, A Shawl of Mist: Tanka, →ISBN:

     Do not associate with a person who is malicious, selfish, or unkind As a proverb goes, “Who keeps company with the wolf, will learn to howl” (in other words, “If you touch vermillion, you will become of the same color”).

   • 2015, Yukiko Inoue-Smith, A Jungle Named Academia: Approaches to Self-Development and Growth, →ISBN:

     Do not associate with a person who is malicious, selfish, or unkind As people say, “Who keeps company with the wolf will learn to howl."

   • 2015, A. Joy Lee, Success inside you:

     Believe it or not but you one way or another have the same bad aspects in your personality. “Who keeps company with the wolf will learn to howl” is said for a reason.

Synonyms

• if you lie down with dogs, you get up with fleas
• if you fly with the crows, you get shot with the crows

Translations

Translations

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 近朱者赤，近墨者黑 (zh) (jìn zhū zhě chì, jìn mò zhě hēi)

• Finnish: seura tekee kaltaisekseen
• Japanese: 朱に交われば赤くなる (ja) (しゅにまじわればあかくなる, shu ni majiwareba akaku naru)

See also

• a man is known by the company he keeps