cross that bridge when you come to it

What it means

This idiom advises you to deal with a problem only when it actually arises, rather than worrying about it in advance. It's a reassuring way of telling someone not to get anxious about difficulties that may never happen.

Examples

• We don't know if it'll rain, so let's cross that bridge when we come to it.
• Stop stressing about the exam results; cross that bridge when you come to it.
• If the budget gets cut, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it.
• There's no point planning for a problem now; we'll cross that bridge when we come to it.

Where it comes from

The saying appears in Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's 1851 work and reflects the older proverb 'don't cross the bridge till you come to it,' using a journey as a metaphor for facing problems in turn.

Related idioms