Phrase guide

best of both worlds

noun · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

noun

Meaning 1

A combination of two seemingly contradictory benefits.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: idiomatic, singular, singular-only, uncountable

Examples

  • That movie was both hilarious and touching; it was the best of both worlds.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: worst of both worlds

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

9 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Chinese Mandarin: 兩全其美 /两全其美 (liǎngquánqíměi) — combination of two contradictory benefits
  • Chinese Mandarin: 兩者之優點 /两者之优点 (liǎngzhě zhī yōudiǎn) — combination of two contradictory benefits
  • Dutch: het beste van twee werelden — combination of two contradictory benefits
  • Finnish: parhaat puolet molemmista — combination of two contradictory benefits
  • French: le beurre et l'argent du beurre — combination of two contradictory benefits
  • French: les avantages sans les inconvénients — combination of two contradictory benefits
  • Norwegian Bokmål: det beste fra to verdener — combination of two contradictory benefits
  • Polish: najlepsze połączenie — combination of two contradictory benefits
  • Ukrainian: найкра́ще з обо́х світі́в (najkrášče z obóx svitív) — combination of two contradictory benefits