birds of a feather flock together
- 1People with similar character, background, or tastes tend to gather and associate with one another, and friendships come more easily between people who have a lot in common.
The engineers who had all come from startups found each other within a week of joining; birds of a feather flock together.
Be careful whose parties you go to, because birds of a feather flock together and people will judge you by the company you keep.
Note
The picture behind it is plain once you see an older wording: in 1545 William Turner wrote "Byrdes of on kynde and color flok and flye allwayes together." Birds "of a feather" are birds of one kind and one color. The proverb is often offered as a knowing comment on the company someone keeps, and it says much the same thing as like attracts like.
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Origin
The expression appears to have surfaced in the 16th century and is said to be a literal translation from Plato's Republic. In 1545 William Turner wrote a version of it ("Byrdes of on kynde and color flok and flye allwayes together"), and it can also be compared to Ecclesiasticus (Sirach) 27:9: "Birds resort unto their like."