a leopard can't change its spots

a leopard can't change its spots

proverb One will stay true to one's nature, even if one pretends or claims otherwise. After our breakup, he came crawling back, trying to convince me that he'd changed, but I know that a leopard can't change its spots.

See also: change, leopard, spot

Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2015 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

leopard cannot change his spots

Prov. One cannot change the basic way one is. Bill may say he'll stop being so jealous after Cindy marries him, but I doubt he will. A leopard can't change his spots.

See also: cannot, change, leopard, spot

McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

leopard cannot change its spots, a

Also, the tiger cannot change its stripes. One can't change one's essential nature. For example, He's a conservative, no matter what he says; the leopard cannot change its spots. These metaphoric expressions both originated in an ancient Greek proverb that appears in the Bible (Jeremiah 13:23): "Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots?" It was first recorded in English in 1546.

See also: cannot, change, leopard

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

a leopard can't change his spots

people can't change their basic nature. proverb

See also: change, leopard, spot

Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017

a leopard cannot change its ˈspots

(saying) a person’s character does not change: A dictator is unlikely to become a good leader in a democracy. A leopard cannot change its spots.

See also: cannot, change, leopard, spot

Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017