all’s well that ends well
all’s well that ends well (proverb)
/ˌɔːlz wɛl ðət ˈɛndz wɛl/
Synopsis
The idiom “all’s well that ends well” means that a successful final outcome makes earlier problems unimportant. First recorded in England in 1546 and later popularized through a well-known seventeenth-century play, it reflects an older European idea that the ending determines how events are ultimately judged.
Meanings
- A good final result makes the earlier problems unimportant.
- Difficulties, delays, or mistakes are forgiven once things conclude successfully.
- Used to reassure someone that the end outcome matters more than the struggles along the way.
- (Literal sense) Everything is fine as long as the ending turns out fine.
Synonyms
- happy ending
- it turned out fine
- all forgiven in the end
- ends justify the outcome (approximate)
Example Sentences
- After days of stressful revisions, the book launch was a success—all’s well that ends well.
- Their road trip had flat tires and storms, but they arrived safely, so all’s well that ends well.
- The team struggled through the season but won the final game; all is well that ends well.
- We had a rough start to the festival, yet the finale thrilled everyone—all’s well that ends well.
Origin and History
A Core Proverbial Idea
The proverb “all’s well that ends well” expresses the belief that the final outcome is what truly matters; once the end is satisfactory, earlier difficulties lose importance. This evaluative principle—judging events by their conclusion—has long been embedded in moral and everyday reasoning.
Earliest Printed Record
The earliest known printed appearance of “all’s well that ends well” occurs in an English proverb collection published in 1546. In this text, an early spelling of the line appears within a short dialogue:
“all is well that endes well.”
Its presence in a mid-sixteenth-century proverb anthology confirms that the phrase was already circulating as established folk wisdom rather than being newly created for that volume.
Country of Origin
Because the earliest surviving record comes from a London-printed English collection of proverbs, the phrase is traced to England. The structure, spelling, and context indicate that it belonged to native English proverbial speech by the mid-1500s, marking the country as the first to document the expression.
Comparative European Context
While the English form is the earliest documented version, the idea behind the proverb is older and shows clear parallels with traditional European wisdom. Classical Latin expressions meaning “the end crowns the work” reflect the same principle. These parallels suggest that the English saying developed within a broader cultural environment that valued the moral weight of a successful ending, even though the English wording itself is distinct and original in form.
Rise to Literary Prominence
The proverb gained enduring visibility when it was used as the title of a major English stage comedy in the early seventeenth century. Its inclusion as a dramatic title reinforced the phrase’s familiarity and cemented it within literary and cultural tradition, helping to spread the proverb far beyond everyday conversation.
How the Proverb Evolved
Two complementary explanations describe how “all’s well that ends well” entered fixed English usage. One sees it as a product of widespread oral tradition that printers simply recorded once it was already common in speech. Another points to shared European moral sayings that may have influenced the English formulation. Together, these forces—oral transmission and learned cultural exchange—explain how the proverb took stable form and persisted in English culture.
Variants
- all is well that ends well
- if it ends well, it’s fine
- a happy ending makes up for the trouble
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