三みつ子ごの魂たましい百ひゃくまで

expression

a leopard cannot change its spots; the child is father to the man

Proverb meaning that one's fundamental character, formed in early childhood, remains unchanged throughout life. Literally: 'the soul of a three-year-old (stays the same) until one hundred.'

• 彼かれは大人おとなになっても短たん気きなままだ。三みつ子ごの魂たましい百ひゃくまでとはよく言いったものだ。

  He's still short-tempered even as an adult. They really say it well: the child is father to the man.

• 三みつ子ごの魂たましい百ひゃくまでで、彼かの女じょの几き帳ちょう面めんな性せい格かくは子こ供どもの頃ころから変かわっていない。

  As the saying goes, a leopard cannot change its spots; her meticulous nature hasn't changed since she was a child.