youth is wasted on the young

Meanings

1. Young people often fail to fully appreciate or utilize the vitality and opportunities that come with youth.

Etymology

Origin uncertain. The phrase is often attributed to the Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950) (see, for example, the 1943 and 1979 quotations), but does not appear to be from any of his published works. It is sometimes also said to be by other people such as the American writer Mark Twain (1835–1910) and the Irish playwright and poet Oscar Wilde (1854–1900): see the 1937 and 2006 quotations.