Primarily meaning that persistence will achieve a difficult or unlikely objective.
Origin
The saying is recorded from the mid 13th century, but a similar thought is found in classical Greek, in the Fragments of Choeriuls of Samos, ‘with persistence a drop of water hollows out the stone’, and in Latin, in the Elegies of Tibullus, ‘length of time eats away stones with soft water.’
Source: The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (2 ed.)
Related proverbs in English
Little strokes fell great oak.
Drop by drop the lake drains.
Every little makes a mickle. / Many a little makes a mickle.
Feather by feather birds build their nests.
Large streams from little fountains grow.
Basque
Arian, arian, zehetzen da burnia.
Translation:Working and working at it, iron can be pulverised.
Chinese
滴水穿水
Translation: Dripping water penetrates the stone.
Czech
Kapka dutí kámen.
Translation: The drop hollows a stone.
Dutch
De gestadige drup holt de steen.
Translation: The steady dripping wears away the stone.
French
L’eau qui tombe goutte à goutte, cave la pierre.
Translation: The water falling drop by drop, perforates the stone.
Tant va la cruche à l'eau qu'à la fin elle se casse.
Translation: The pitcher that goes oftenest to the well is the soonest broken.
German
Steter Tropfen höhlt den Stein.
Translation: Constant drops wear a hole into the stone.
Hindi
बूँद-बूँद से घड़ा भरता है
Translation: It takes drop by drop to fill a pitcher.
Icelandic
Dropinn holar steininn.
Translation: The drop hollows the stone.
Italian
A goccia a goccia s'incava la pietra.
Translation: Drop by drop hollows the stone.
La goccia scava la pietra.
Translation: The drop perforates the stone.
Japanese
水滴りて石うがつ
Translation: The drop can hollow the stone.
Latin
Gutta cavat lapidem, non vi, sed saepe cadendo.
Translation: A drop carves the stone, not by force but by falling often.
Lithuanian
Lašas po lašo ir akmenį pratašo.
Translation: Drop by drop will hollow a stone.
Polish
Kropla drąży kamień.
Translation: A drop hollows out a stone.
Portuguese
Água mole em pedra dura tanto bate até que fura.
Translation: Soft water drops in hard stone will hollow it.
De grão em grão a galinha enche o papo.
Translation: Grain after grain, the hen fills its craw.
Romanian
Picăturile îndesate găuresc și piatra.
Translation: Multiple drops can hollow the stone.
Russian
Капля камень долбит.
Translation: A drop hollows out a stone.
Slovenian
Sila kola lomi.
Translation: Power breaks the wheel.
Spanish
Dando la gotera hace señal la piedra.
Translation: The leak dripping ends up making a sign on the stone.
Agua blanda en dura piedra tanto dará que la hienda.
Translation: Soft water drops in hard stone will hollow it.
La gota de agua horada la piedra.
Translation: The water drop hollows the stone.
Swedish
Droppen kan urholka stenen.
Translation: The drop can hollow the stone.
Ukrainian
Вода крапля по краплі і камінь довбає.
Translation: Drop by drop the water hollows a stone.
Не тим крапля камінець довбає, що сильна, а тим, що часто падає.
Translation: A drop carves the stone, not by force but by falling often.
Vietnamese
Nước chảy đá mòn.
Translation: Water flows, rock erodes.