no plan survives contact with the enemy

phrase

After a plan against an enemy is drafted, there will be unexpected elements from the opposition that will call for improvisation.

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Meanings

phrase

alternative no battle plan survives contact with the enemy · alternative no battle plan survives first contact with the enemy · alternative no plan survives first contact with the enemy

  1. idiomaticAfter a plan against an enemy is drafted, there will be unexpected elements from the opposition that will call for improvisation.
  2. broadlyEven with a preexisting plan, unexpected circumstances will require one to think on one's feet.

    ‹"No plan survives first contact with the enemy." Or with a pretty girl in a sundress.›

    2015, Jeph Jacques, Questionable Content (webcomic), Number 2933: Game Over Man, Game Over
Cite this entry
APA

no plan survives contact with the enemy. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/no%20plan%20survives%20contact%20with%20the%20enemy

MLA

“no plan survives contact with the enemy.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/no%20plan%20survives%20contact%20with%20the%20enemy. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “no plan survives contact with the enemy,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/no%20plan%20survives%20contact%20with%20the%20enemy.

Source: no plan survives contact with the enemy on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.