you can't be half pregnant

proverb

Said of an either-or situation; there are only two available choices.

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Meanings

proverb
  1. idiomaticSaid of an either-or situation; there are only two available choices.

    Alex, you can't be half pregnant. If you keep doing other work that falls outside of your logo design process, you'll send mixed messages to all of your stakeholders.

    2011, John Warrillow, Built to Sell: Creating a Business That Can Thrive Without You, Penguin, →ISBN, page 47

Origin

From the notion that someone is either pregnant or not.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

you can't be half pregnant. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/you%20can't%20be%20half%20pregnant

MLA

“you can't be half pregnant.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/you%20can't%20be%20half%20pregnant. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “you can't be half pregnant,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/you%20can't%20be%20half%20pregnant.

Source: you can't be half pregnant on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.