time and tide wait for no man

proverb

Opportunities will not wait; action should be undertaken without delay.

Similar
time is of the essenceprocrastination is the thief of timethere's no time like the presenttime and tidetime and tide stay for no mantime and tide tarry for no mantide nor time tarrieth no man
OriginProto-Germanic *tīmô →
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Meanings

proverb
  1. Opportunities will not wait; action should be undertaken without delay.

    "Do you not think, my dear lad, that you had better begin? Time and tide, as you are aware, wait for no man".

    1903, P. G. Wodehouse, “Work”, in Tales of St. Austin's
    1 more example

    "And now", said Daniel, looking at his watch, "as time and tide wait for no man, my trusty partner, and as I am ready for starting, bag and baggage, at the gate below, let me say a last word".

    1857, Charles Dickens, chapter 22, in Little Dorrit

    Synonyms: time is of the essence, procrastination is the thief of time, there's no time like the present, time and tide, time and tide stay for no man, time and tide tarry for no man, tide nor time tarrieth no man

Synonyms & antonyms

proverbOpportunities will not wait; action should be undertaken without delay.

Similar
time is of the essenceprocrastination is the thief of timethere's no time like the presenttime and tidetime and tide stay for no mantime and tide tarry for no mantide nor time tarrieth no man
Also see
tide nor time tarrieth no mantime and tide stay for no man

Origin

  1. Proto-Germanic*tīmô
  2. Englishtime and tide wait for no man

A figura etymologica – time and tide respectively derive from Proto-Germanic *tīmô and *tīdiz, which are ultimately related.

More words from Proto-Germanic

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Bulgarian времето не чака, петима Петко не чакат
  • времето не чака (vremeto ne čaka)proverb
  • петима Петко не чакат (petima Petko ne čakat)proverb
Chinese Mandarin 時不我待 /时不我待, 歲月不等人 /岁月不等人
  • 時不我待 /时不我待 (shíbùwǒdài)proverb
  • 歲月不等人 /岁月不等人 (suìyuè bù děng rén)proverb
Finnish aikaa ei ole tuhlattavaksi
  • aikaa ei ole tuhlattavaksiproverb
German das Rad der Zeit hält niemand auf
  • das Rad der Zeit hält niemand aufproverb
Greek οι καιροί ου μενετοί
  • οι καιροί ου μενετοί (oi kairoí ou menetoí)proverb
Japanese 歳月人を待たず
  • 歳月人を待たず (saigetsu hito o matazu)proverb
Korean 세월은 사람을 기다려 주지 않는다
  • 세월은 사람을 기다려 주지 않는다 (sewor-eun saram-eul gidaryeo juji anneunda)proverb
Polish liczy się czas
  • liczy się czasproverb
Portuguese o tempo e a maré não esperam por ninguém
  • o tempo e a maré não esperam por ninguémproverb
Russian вре́мя не ждёт
  • вре́мя не ждёт (vrémja ne ždjot)proverb
Tamil ஐயர் வரும் வரை அம்மாவாசை காத்திருக்காது
  • ஐயர் வரும் வரை அம்மாவாசை காத்திருக்காது (aiyar varum varai ammāvācai kāttirukkātu)proverb
Vietnamese thời giờ thấm thoát thoi đưa
  • thời giờ thấm thoát thoi đưaproverb
Cite this entry
APA

time and tide wait for no man. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/time%20and%20tide%20wait%20for%20no%20man

MLA

“time and tide wait for no man.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/time%20and%20tide%20wait%20for%20no%20man. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “time and tide wait for no man,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/time%20and%20tide%20wait%20for%20no%20man.

Source: time and tide wait for no man on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.