ProverbMorality
Latin origin4th c.
Latin origin4th c.Make a virtue of necessity.
Meaning: When circumstances force action, find dignity and purpose in accepting what you cannot avoid.
Origin: Saint Jerome used the idea in the 4th century, and Chaucer's The Knight's Tale has Theseus advise "to maken virtue of necessity." Shakespeare's The Two Gentlemen of Verona repeats it. It means accepting with good grace what you cannot avoid.
Equivalents in French, Spanish, German, and Italian
French: Faire de nécessité vertu (literally: To make a virtue of necessity)
Spanish: Hacer de la necesidad virtud (literally: To make virtue out of necessity)
German: Aus der Not eine Tugend machen (literally: To make a virtue out of the need)
Italian: Bisogna fare di necessità virtù (literally: One must make a virtue of necessity)
Explore another collection: Tongue Twisters
Tricky phrases to practice out loud, from languages around the world.
- Król Karol kupił królowej Karolinie korale koloru koralowego. Every word starts with k, and król/Karol/korale/koloru keep re-ordering the same handful…
- Czy rak trzyma w szczypcach strzęp szczawiu? Four different Polish sibilant clusters — trz, szcz, strz, szcz — in a single short quest…
- Ząb, zupa zębowa; dąb, zupa dębowa. Drills the nasal vowels ą and ę, which only differ from plain a and e by the nasal hum.
Keep exploring