two wrongs don’t make a right

T

two wrongs don’t make a right

Meaning | Definition

• the fact that responding to a negative situation in the same manner will not make things better in any sense

Example Sentences

1. You cannot leave the kitty because she was rude to you. Two wrongs don’t make a right.
2. I know that two wrongs don’t make a right and hence not going to do anything about what he did to me and how much that hurt my sentiments.
3. My cousin very well knows that two wrongs don’t make a right and will not be touching the goons himself. We have already called the police helpline to deal with these thugs.
4. My aunt believes that two wrongs don’t make a right so she has been silently accepting the ill treatment from her mother in law. But in my opinion what she is doing is still not right.

Origin

The phrase is the exact opposite of what is mathematically true, that is two negatives make a positive. This is because in behavioural sciences, if a person is yelling and another person responds will yelling then the resultant discussion will not become a silent one. It will in fact be chaotic. The phrase does not advocate accepting the wrong but instead strategically states what would not be the right thing to do in such a situation. While the literary source could not be accurately traced, the phrase is speculated to be around since the early 19^th century.