MONEY never comes out of season

Meaning & Analysis

Unlike seasonal items such as fruit or clothing, money is always appropriate, useful, and welcome at any time of year.

Insights

Universal Value

The proverb asserts that the value and utility of money are universal and constant, transcending time, context, and circumstance. It is always a relevant and powerful resource.

Perpetual Demand

It highlights the perpetual human demand for wealth. The desire for money does not fluctuate with trends or seasons but remains a constant driver of human ambition and effort.

Timeless Utility

Money is metaphorically presented as a timeless solution to problems and a key to opportunities. Its usefulness never expires, making it an ever-ready tool for life's various situations.

Economic Abstraction

The proverb reflects the historical transition to a money-based economy, where currency as a universal medium of exchange transcends the seasonal limitations of agricultural or bartered goods. Its value is abstract and constant, unlike the cyclical nature of harvests.

Psychological Security

This proverb captures the deep-seated human desire for financial security as a constant in an unpredictable world. The idea that money is 'never out of season' speaks to its role as a reliable and ever-present tool for navigating life's challenges and opportunities.

Critique of Materialism

The proverb can be read as a cynical commentary on materialism, suggesting that the pursuit and value of wealth are perennial, overriding other cultural or moral values that might be transient or 'seasonal'. The 1732 quotation 'Money in Purse will be always in Fashion' reinforces this view.

Rhetorical Devices

Metaphor

The proverb applies the concept of 'seasons'—typically associated with nature, fashion, or agriculture—to the abstract idea of money, creating a powerful contrast that emphasizes money's unique, non-cyclical value.

Aphorism

The statement is a concise and memorable aphorism that conveys a widely accepted truth about the enduring importance of wealth in human society.

Understatement

By stating what money is not ('out of season'), the proverb emphatically reinforces what it is: always relevant, always in demand, and always valuable.

moneyvaluetimelessnesswealthmaterialismsecurity

Analyzed with gemini-2.5-pro on September 30, 2025

Transcription

Quotations

— 1616, DR., no. 910

— 1639, CL., p. 220

Money in Purse will be always in Fashion.

— 1732, FUL., no. 3435

Related Proverbs

M1083 MONEY wants no followers 89.8%S179 The SEA complains it wants water 89.8%M1082 MONEY wants no followers 89.5%H476 He that once HITS is ever bending (shooting) 89.3%W220 There is no WEATHER ill when the wind is still 89.3%M1205 The MOTHER's side is the surer side 89.3%S826 STARS are not seen by sunshine (at midday) 89.2%M1086 MONEY will make the pot boil 89.2%M1072 MONEY makes all right that is wrong 89.2%H814 HUNGER has always a good cook 89.2%H277 You have a handsome HEAD of hair, pray give me a tester¹ 89.0%M1168 You pay MORE for your schooling than your learning is worth 89.0%M486 A poor MAN's tale cannot (may now) be heard 89.0%M1067 MONEY is the sinews of war 89.0%B77 A good BARGAIN is a pickpurse 88.9%M1060 MONEY is a monarch 88.8%M1061 MONEY is heard everywhere 88.8%H139 He that talks much of his HAPPINESS summons grief 88.7%W510 WINTER eats that summer gets 88.7%M489 A rich MAN's money hangs him oftentimes (is his enemy) 88.7%

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