Meanings
phrase
- One deserves a comfortable life, without having to work hard for it.
Origin
In reference to the song The World Owes Me a Living, which premiered in the Walt Disney animated short The Grasshopper and the Ants (1934).
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
APA
the world owes one a living. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/the%20world%20owes%20one%20a%20living
MLA
“the world owes one a living.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/the%20world%20owes%20one%20a%20living. Accessed November 5, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “the world owes one a living,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/the%20world%20owes%20one%20a%20living.
Source: the world owes one a living on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.