Vol. 06 · Misquoted ·Book ·273 of 348
"The grass is always greener on the other side."
They never said that.
What people say
"The grass is always greener on the other side."
What was actually said
Fertilior seges est alienis semper in agris. — The harvest is always more productive in someone else's field. Ovid — Ovid, Ars Amatoria I.349–350 (c. 2 BC)
Why it stuck
The modern English form appears as "The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence" in a 1917 Raymond Hubbell song. Ovid's agricultural original is 19 centuries older and about crops, not lawns.
The song, "The Grass Is Always Greener (In the Other Fellow's Yard)," was a Tin Pan Alley hit.
Know another line by heart?
Play the duel and see how many you can spot. Or browse the whole shelf.