Phrase guide

life is like a box of chocolates

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

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Australia: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

proverb

Meaning 1

Life is full of surprises; you never know what will happen next.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Qualifier: simile

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Appeared in the 1994 film Forrest Gump, when the lead character Forrest Gump (played by Tom Hanks) says “My mom always said life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get.”