Out of Sight, Out of Mind

Out of sight, out of mind reflects on humanity’s tendency to forget about people and things that are not present in their immediate environment.

The expression can be traced back until the antique epic of Homer’s “Odyssey” which is dated back to the 7^th or 8^th century BCE.

“Out of sight out of mind” first appeared in English in the 1500’s, with the first print that contained it being John Heywood’s “A Dialogue Conteinyng the Nomber in Effect of All the Prouerbes in the Englishe Tongue”.

Over the years, the phrase became one that is frequently used both in real life and in literary contexts.

“Out of sight out of mind” was first defined on Urban Dictionary in 2006.

• Merriam-Webster – Out of sight, out of mind