Phrase guide

it's an ill wind that blows nobody any good

proverb · 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

proverb

Meaning 1

An action or occurrence must be very bad indeed if it brings no benefit to anyone.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

3 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • French: à quelque chose malheur est bon — even a very bad situation must have some good results
  • Irish: ní thig olc i dtír nach fearrde duine éigin — even a very bad situation must have some good results
  • Spanish: no hay mal que por bien no venga — even a very bad situation must have some good results