ProverbMoralityLatin origin

The ends justify the means

Meaning: A good outcome excuses questionable methods.

Example: “The coach broke every rule to win, believing the end justifies the means.”

Origin: Often pinned on Machiavelli, who wrote in The Prince (1532) that in the actions of rulers one looks to the result, but never these words. Ovid's Heroides has exitus acta probat — the outcome justifies the deed — and the Jesuit theologian Hermann Busenbaum wrote in 1650 that when the end is lawful, the means are also lawful.

Equivalents in French, Spanish, Japanese, German, Italian, and 3 more languages

  • French: La fin justifie les moyens (literally: The end justifies the means)
  • Spanish: El fin justifica los medios (literally: The end justifies the means)
  • Japanese: 目的のためには手段を選ばず (Mokuteki no tame ni wa shudan wo erabazu) (literally: For the goal, choose no means)
  • German: Der Zweck heiligt die Mittel (literally: The purpose sanctifies the means)
  • Italian: Il fine giustifica i mezzi (literally: The end justifies the means)
  • Dutch: Het doel heiligt de middelen (literally: The aim sanctifies the means)
  • Russian: Цель оправдывает средства (Tsel' opravdyvaet sredstva) (literally: The end justifies the means)
  • Polish: Cel uświęca środki (literally: The end sanctifies the means)

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