a proverb meaning that a person's character or habits formed in early childhood tend to last throughout life (literally: a three-year-old's spirit lasts until one hundred).
親はよく「三つ子の魂百まで」と言って、幼児教育の大切さを説く。
Parents often say, "Mitsugo no tamashii hyaku made," to stress the importance of early childhood education.
彼は子どものころからの性格が変わらず、まさに三つ子の魂百までだ。
His personality hasn't changed since childhood — truly 'a three-year-old's spirit lasts to a hundred.'
このことわざは、幼いときの習慣が長く残ることを教えてくれる。
This proverb teaches that habits from childhood tend to remain for a long time.