Meanings
alternative the best laid plans of mice and men go oft astray
- No matter how well a project is planned, accidents or misfortune can still occur.
But mouse, you are not alone, In proving foresight may be vain; The best laid schemes of mice and men go often askew And leave us nothing but grief and pain, For promised joy!
1785, Robert Burns, To a Mouse1 more example
Knowing her supremely perfect being was completely mine […] I could conceive of no obstacle to my satisfaction, well, “the best laid plans of mice & men go astray” and my nemesis was her sister, the bitch.
1971, Neal Cassady, “Letter to Jack Kerouac, March 7, 1947”, in The First Third, City Lights, page 125Synonyms: man plans and God laughs, man proposes, God disposes
Synonyms & antonyms
proverbNo matter how well a project is planned, accidents or misfortune can still occur.
Origin
From a Scots poem by Robert Burns, To a Mouse. In the original Scots, the lines are, “The best-laid schemes o’ mice an’ men / Gang aft agley”.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/the%20best%20laid%20plans%20of%20mice%20and%20men%20often%20go%20awry
“the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/the%20best%20laid%20plans%20of%20mice%20and%20men%20often%20go%20awry. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/the%20best%20laid%20plans%20of%20mice%20and%20men%20often%20go%20awry.
Source: the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.