Ìwà rere lẹ̀ṣọ́ èèyàn; ehín funfun lẹ̀ṣọ́ ẹ̀rín.
Ìpilẹ̀
Ìwà rere lẹ̀ṣọ́ èèyàn; ehín funfun lẹ̀ṣọ́ ẹ̀rín.
Ìtumọ̀ ọ̀rọ̀-sí-ọ̀rọ̀
- Ìwà rere good character lẹ̀ṣọ́ is-the-adornment èèyàn of-a-person; ehín funfun white teeth lẹ̀ṣọ́ ẹ̀rín are-the-adornment of-a-smile.
Ìtumọ̀ Gẹ̀ẹ́sì
"Good character is a person's best adornment; white teeth are the adornment of a smile."
Orísun náà kò dárúkọ ẹni tí ó túmọ̀ rẹ̀.
Ohun tí ó túmọ̀ sí
The thing that makes a person presentable is character, in the way white teeth are what make a smile worth looking at.
Ìgbà tí a ń lò ó
Owomoyela: "A person's most desirable trait is good character, just as a smile's best aspect is white teeth"
Àkíyèsí lórí ìtumọ̀
Ẹ̀ṣọ́ is adornment in the sense of what one puts on to be seen well, so the proverb concedes that people do decorate themselves and relocates the decoration inward rather than condemning the impulse. The second clause is not decoration: it supplies the analogy that makes the first clause an argument rather than an assertion. Owomoyela prints a reversed variant at 2723, Ehín funfun lẹ̀ṣọ́ ẹ̀rín; ìwà rere lẹ̀ṣọ́ èèyàn, which he renders "The adornment of a smile is white teeth; the adornment of a person is good character," with the note "Good character is more valuable than good looks" The two orderings are equally current.