have one's whole life ahead of one

verb

To be young, and therefore have many years left to live and experience life.

“You're only 25; you have your whole life ahead of you. Go out and travel and see the world.”

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Meanings

verbhave one's whole life ahead of one (third-person singular simple present has one's whole life ahead of one, present participle having one's whole life ahead of one, simple past and past participle had one's whole life ahead of one)

present singular third person has one's whole life ahead of one · participle present having one's whole life ahead of one · participle past had one's whole life ahead of one · past had one's whole life ahead of one

  1. informalTo be young, and therefore have many years left to live and experience life.

    You're only 25; you have your whole life ahead of you. Go out and travel and see the world.

Origin

The phrase is an exaggeration, the implication being that by being young one has barely experienced life at all.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

have one's whole life ahead of one. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/have%20one's%20whole%20life%20ahead%20of%20one

MLA

“have one's whole life ahead of one.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/have%20one's%20whole%20life%20ahead%20of%20one. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “have one's whole life ahead of one,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/have%20one's%20whole%20life%20ahead%20of%20one.

Source: have one's whole life ahead of one on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.