Alágbẹ̀dę lásán kì í fi àgùnbánirọ̀ sùn jẹ́ ...?

This question tests the ability to recognise a form of Yoruba oral literature from a short, compact statement rather than from a formal definition.

The statement about an ordinary blacksmith not fashioning a bridle bit without a reason works the way traditional Yoruba proverbs do: it uses a specific, concrete image from everyday craft and trade to express a general truth, namely that a person does not go to the trouble of preparing something without a purpose behind it. This indirect, image-based way of stating a general truth is the defining feature of a proverb, distinguishing it from praise poetry, which honours a person's or lineage's qualities, and from ordinary verse, which does not carry this compressed, wisdom-teaching structure.

Recognising proverbs by this pattern, a short concrete picture standing in for a broader lesson, is useful because JAMB frequently tests whether a statement is a proverb versus another oral genre using unfamiliar sayings rather than well-known ones.

When a statement names an everyday object or trade action and implies a wider lesson about intention or consequence, treat it as a proverb even if you have not heard that exact saying before.