the Devil makes work for idle hands
proverb1
Synonym of idle hands are the devil's workshop.
- ‘[…] We’re self-sufficient in food now too: sheep and cattle graze on the island, and we grow our own vegetables and corn at the agricultural station at Longridge, about a mile inland from here.’ / ‘And the convicts do all this?’ asked Fallon. / Price nodded. ‘It keeps them out of trouble. You know what they say: the Devil makes work for idle hands![…]’2002, Jonathan Lunn, “The Isle of Mis’ry”, in Killigrew and the Incorrigibles, London: Headline, →ISBN, pages 87–88:
- “My brother, a mobster?” / “That’s right. Mike, we were wasting our time with that piece meal—one job every six months—line. You know what they say ‘the Devil makes work for idle hands.’[…]”2015, J.L. Vaughan, chapter 23, in No Good Son, Flybarrier Press, →ISBN, page 128:
1 more example
- “You’ve been busy since we were at school together.” / “Well you know what they say: the Devil makes work for idle hands.[…]”2017, Jonathan Green, “Worthless Remains”, in Matthew Bright, editor, Clockwork Cairo: Steampunk Tales of Egypt, Twopenny Books, →ISBN, page 67: