Dicho español · Spanish proverb
«Para muestra, un botón.»
Word for word
For a sample, a button.
What it really means
The closest English equivalent: A single example is enough to prove the point.
Used after giving one example to imply that it sufficiently illustrates the whole situation. Very common in both Spain and Latin America in conversation and informal writing.
Hear it in a sentence
No hace falta que te cuente más; para muestra, un botón: ayer llegó tres horas tarde.
I don't need to tell you more; a single example is enough: yesterday he arrived three hours late.
More Spanish sayings
- A buen entendedor, pocas palabras bastan. — A word to the wise is enough.
- Éramos pocos y parió la abuela. — As if we didn't have enough problems already.
- El que avisa no es traidor. — Fair warning is no betrayal.
- Lo bueno, si breve, dos veces bueno. — Brevity is the soul of wit.
- Borrón y cuenta nueva. — Let bygones be bygones.
Why learn dichos?
Proverbs like this one are everywhere in spoken Spanish — dropped mid-conversation, usually just the first half, with the rest left for you to complete. Recognizing them is one of the fastest ways to sound less like a textbook and follow real speech. Every Lingocito edition signs off with the dicho del día, so you meet one a day next to news written at your level.