Phrase guide

an apple a day keeps the doctor away

proverb · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /əˈn‿æpəl‿ə ˈdeɪ ˈkiːps ðə ˈdɒktəɹ‿əˈweɪ/
  • General-American: /əˈn‿æpəl‿ə ˈdeɪ ˈkips ðə ˈdɑktɚ əˈweɪ/
  • General-American: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • rhymes with -eɪ

1

proverb

Meaning 1

Apples are healthy and stave off illnesses.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

proverb

Meaning 2

Healthy eating prevents illness.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Of British origin; a similar proverb was recorded from Pembrokeshire, Wales, in 1866: “Eat an apple on going to bed, / And you’ll keep the doctor from earning his bread.” However, the idea that apples can cure disease is much older. In the play The Soddered Citizen (first performed c. 1631–1633) by the English author John Clavell (1601–1643), it is suggested that if a person who had heartburn had taken an apple and gone to bed, he would have been cured.

Across languages

Translations

31 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: تُفَّاحَةٌ وَاحِدَةٌ فِي الْيَوْمِ تُغْنِيكَ عَنْ زِيَارَةِ الطَّبِيبِ (tuffāḥatun wāḥidatun fī l-yawmi tuḡnīka ʕan ziyārati ṭ-ṭabībi) — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • Chinese Cantonese: 一日一蘋果,醫生遠離我 /一日一苹果 — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • Chinese Cantonese: 医生远离我 (jat1 jat6 jat1 ping4 gwo2, ji1 sang1 jyun5 lei4 ngo5) — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • Chinese Mandarin: 一日一蘋果,醫生遠離我 /一日一苹果 — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • Chinese Mandarin: 医生远离我 (yīrì yī píngguǒ, yīshēng yuǎnlí wǒ) — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • Chinese Mandarin: 每日一蘋果,醫生遠離我 /每日一苹果 — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • Chinese Mandarin: 医生远离我 (měirì yī píngguǒ, yīshēng yuǎnlí wǒ) — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • Danish: et æble om dagen holder doktoren borte — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • Esperanto: pomo ĉiun tagon forturnas malsanon — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • Finnish: omena päivässä pitää lääkärin loitolla — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • French: une pomme chaque matin éloigne le médecin — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • French: chaque jour une pomme conserve son homme — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • German: ein Apfel pro Tag hält den Doktor fern — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • Greek: ένα μήλο την ημέρα, τον γιατρό τον κάνει πέρα (éna mílo tin iméra, ton giatró ton kánei péra) — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • Hebrew: קח פרי ותהיה לי בריא — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • Hebrew: תפוח ביום מרחיק את הרופא האיום — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • Hebrew: תפוח ביום ולרופא תגיד שלום — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • Hungarian: minden nap egy alma az orvost távol tartja — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • Icelandic: epli á dag kemur heilsunni í lag — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • Italian: una mela al giorno toglie il medico di torno — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • Italian: una mela al giorno leva il medico di torno — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • Japanese: 一日一個のりんごで医者しらず (ichinichi ikko no ringo de isha shirazu) — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • Malay: ماکن سبيجي ايڤل سهاري, تق ڤرلو برجومڤا دڠن دوکتور لاݢي — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • Malay: makan sebiji epal sehari, tak perlu berjumpa dengan doktor lagi — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • Portuguese: uma maçã por dia traz saúde e alegria — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • Slovene: eno jabolko na dan, odžene zdravnika stran — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • Spanish: una manzana al día mantiene al médico en la lejanía — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • Swedish: ett äpple om dagen håller doktorn borta — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • Turkish: güneş giren eve doktor girmez — apples are healthy and stave off illnesses
  • Finnish: omena päivässä pitää lääkärin loitolla — healthy eating prevents illness
  • Finnish: omena päivässä pitää lääkärin loitolla — healthy habits stave off problems