Necessity is the mother of invention

Meaning: Difficult situations inspire creative solutions.

Origin: The idea goes back to Plato's Republic, where a city is said to be created by human needs. The Latin mater artium necessitas — necessity is the mother of the arts — appears in William Horman's schoolbook Vulgaria (1519), and William Wycherley's play Love in a Wood (1672) has the English "Necessity, the mother of invention."

Equivalents in French, Spanish, Japanese, German, Italian, and 4 more languages

French: Nécessité est mère d'invention (literally: Necessity is the mother of invention)
Spanish: La necesidad es la madre de la invención (literally: Necessity is the mother of invention)
Japanese: 必要は発明の母 (Hitsuyō wa hatsumei no haha) (literally: Necessity is the mother of invention)
German: Not macht erfinderisch (literally: Need makes one inventive)
Italian: La necessità aguzza l'ingegno (literally: Necessity sharpens the wits)
Portuguese: A necessidade aguça o engenho (literally: Necessity sharpens the wits)
Dutch: De nood maakt vindingrijk (literally: Need makes one inventive)
Russian: Голь на выдумки хитра (Gol' na vydumki khitra) (literally: The poor are clever at inventing)
Polish: Potrzeba matką wynalazków (literally: Need is the mother of inventions)