the other side of the coin
the other side of the coin
Meaning
- the opposite aspect, contrasting arguments.
- to look differently at a situation.
- a person should look at a person, circumstance, or thing from an opposing view.
- there is usually more than one side to a story, situation, or matter.
- can also be taken figuratively and literally.
Example Sentences
- You should consider the other side of the coin when a wife leaves her husband and not just blame her for walking out on him.
- We know that our football team has not been performing well. On the other side of the coin, we are improving with every game we play.
- Look, I know that there are always two points of view on a legal matter. On the other side of the coin, we should believe a person when they make an accusation against another individual in a court of law.
- The other side of the coin is that fewer working hours will get you a lower income.
Origin
The metaphor “the other side of the coin” has been in use for about 500 years. In the past, military men would say “on the other side of the shield (or medal)” to show that a thing or situation had two different sides. Remember, shields and medals typically have two different sides, though they are part of the same object. A famous early 20th-century writer named W. B. Yeats wrote the phrase “are the other side of the half-penny” in a popular letter from that era. These two expressions eventually evolved into “the other side of the coin.”
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