can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear



can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear

Be unable to turn something ugly or inferior into something attractive or of value, as in No matter how expensive his clothes, he still looks sloppy-you can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear . This expression was already a proverb in the mid-1500s.
See also: ear, make, of, out, purse, silk

Common Names:

NameGenderPronouncedUsage
Roxanarahk-SAN-ə (English), rok-SAHN-ah (Spanish)English, Spanish, Romanian, Ancient Greek (Latinized)
Adelais-Ancient Germanic
Torin-Irish
Cees-Dutch
Ueli-German (Swiss)
Athey['æθi]