ProverbWisdomEnglish origin

Do what thou ought, let come what may.

Meaning: Fulfill your moral duties regardless of feared consequences or uncertain outcomes.

Origin: Recorded in A Dictionary of English Proverbs and Proverbial Phrases, an undated collection published in London by Whittaker & Co. around 1880 and credited to Thomas Preston. Its earlier history hasn't been traced.

Equivalents in French, Spanish, Japanese, German, and Dutch

  • French: Fais ce que dois, advienne que pourra (literally: Do what you ought, come what may)
  • Spanish: Haz lo que debes y sea lo que Dios quiera (literally: Do what you ought, and let it be what God wills)
  • Japanese: 人事を尽くして天命を待つ (Jinji wo tsukushite tenmei wo matsu) (literally: Do all that is humanly possible, then await heaven's decree)
  • German: Tue recht und scheue niemand (literally: Do right and fear no one)
  • Dutch: Doe wel en zie niet om (literally: Do right and don't look back)

More proverbs about Wisdom

Explore another collection: False Friends

Words that look familiar in another language but mean something else entirely.

  • Assister Actually means 'to attend' an event. J'assiste à la réunion = I attend the meeting. For a…
  • Phrase Actually means 'sentence'. For a short phrase or expression, say une expression.
  • Ignorer Actually means 'to be unaware of' or 'not to know'. J'ignore la réponse = I don't know th…

Browse all false friends →

Keep exploring

Explore all proverbs →