proverb🎓 English idiom
every cloud has a silver lining
every bad situation has something good in it
What it means
This optimistic proverb means that every difficult or unhappy situation contains some hidden benefit or reason for hope. It's used to comfort someone going through hard times by suggesting good can still come of it.
Words like “every cloud has a silver lining” are exactly the kind of vocabulary our English vocabulary size test measures — find out how many English words you know.
Examples
- Losing that job led to a better one, so every cloud has a silver lining.
- I know you're disappointed, but every cloud has a silver lining.
- The delay was annoying, yet we met old friends, proving every cloud has a silver lining.
- She reminded me that every cloud has a silver lining when I failed the test.
Where it comes from
The image traces back to John Milton's 1634 masque Comus, which describes a silver lining shining behind a dark cloud; the modern proverb form became popular in the Victorian era.
Related idioms
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