Meanings
alternative for better, for worse · alternative for better or for worse
- No matter what the future may hold (no matter whether it is good or bad).
For better or worse, he’s the president.
1 more example
Fewer experts are confidently predicting that we have years or even decades to prepare for a wave of world-changing A.I.; many now believe that major changes are right around the corner, for better or worse.
2022 August 24, Kevin Roose, “We Need to Talk About How Good A.I. Is Getting”, in The New York Times, →ISSN
Origin
A traditional Christian marriage vow.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Chinese Mandarin 無論如何 /无论如何, 不論好壞 /不论好坏
- 無論如何 /无论如何 (wúlùnrúhé)No matter what the future may hold
- 不論好壞 /不论好坏 (bùlùnhǎohuài)No matter what the future may hold
Dutch in lief en leed, in voor- en tegenspoed
- in lief en leedNo matter what the future may hold
- in voor- en tegenspoedNo matter what the future may hold
Finnish syteen tai saveen, niin tai näin
- syteen tai saveenNo matter what the future may hold
- niin tai näinNo matter what the future may hold
- oli miten oliNo matter what the future may hold
- kävi miten käviNo matter what the future may hold
French pour le meilleur et pour le pire, pour le meilleur comme pour le pire
- pour le meilleur et pour le pireNo matter what the future may hold
- pour le meilleur comme pour le pireNo matter what the future may hold
German auf Gedeih und Verderb
- auf Gedeih und VerderbNo matter what the future may hold
Greek καλώς ή κακώς, δυστυχώς ή ευτυχώς
- καλώς ή κακώς (kalós í kakós)No matter what the future may hold
- δυστυχώς ή ευτυχώς (dystychós í eftychós)No matter what the future may hold
Hungarian sajnos vagy nem sajnos
- sajnos vagy nem sajnosNo matter what the future may hold
Icelandic í gegnum súrt og sætt
- í gegnum súrt og sættNo matter what the future may hold
Irish bíoch sé le do leas nó le d'aimhleas
- bíoch sé le do leas nó le d'aimhleasNo matter what the future may hold
Italian nel bene e nel male, nella buona e nella cattiva sorte
- nel bene e nel maleNo matter what the future may hold
- nella buona e nella cattiva sorteNo matter what the future may hold
- bene o maleNo matter what the future may hold
Japanese 善かれ悪しかれ
- 善かれ悪しかれ (yokare ashikare)No matter what the future may hold
Polish na dobre i na złe
- na dobre i na złeNo matter what the future may hold
Portuguese para o melhor ou para o pior, para o bem ou para o mal
- para o melhor ou para o piorNo matter what the future may hold
- para o bem ou para o malNo matter what the future may hold
Russian к лу́чшему и́ли ху́дшему, была́ не была́
- к лу́чшему и́ли ху́дшему (k lúčšemu íli xúdšemu)No matter what the future may hold
- была́ не была́ (bylá ne bylá)No matter what the future may hold
- как бы то ни́ было (kak by to ní bylo)No matter what the future may hold
Spanish a las duras y a las maduras, en las buenas y en las malas
- a las duras y a las madurasNo matter what the future may hold
- en las buenas y en las malasNo matter what the future may hold
- en la fortuna y en la adversidadNo matter what the future may hold
- para bien o para malNo matter what the future may hold
Vietnamese dù tốt hay xấu
- dù tốt hay xấuNo matter what the future may hold
Cite this entry
for better or worse. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/for%20better%20or%20worse
“for better or worse.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/for%20better%20or%20worse. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “for better or worse,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/for%20better%20or%20worse.
Source: for better or worse on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.