Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

what's done is done

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.93 in modern English

Syllables: what's -done is -done
IPA

23

Scrabble Score

15

Letters

3

Syllables

10

Unique Chars

Meaning

proverb

Events that have already taken place cannot be changed and actions that have already been committed cannot be undone, so it is best not to dwell on them.

Example Sentences

"As I mentioned in a round-table conversation with my colleagues on Saturday, I’m worried that all too many people will say: Well, in a perfect world Trump should have gone to Congress, but what’s done is done. That is exactly the wrong way to approach this war."

Etymology

From a line of dialogue spoken by the character Lady Macbeth in Act III Scene II of Macbeth by William Shakespeare.

Inflected Forms

what's done cannot be undone (alternative)

Phrases

genie is out of the bottle here we are the die is cast there's no point crying over spilt milk yesterday is gone you can't go home again that ship has sailed

Frequently Paired Words

genie is out of the bottle here we are the die is cast there's no point crying over spilt milk yesterday is gone you can't go home again that ship has sailed

Questions

What does what's done is done mean?: Events that have already taken place cannot be changed and actions that have already been committed cannot be undone, so it is best not to dwell on them.
Where does what's done is done come from?: From a line of dialogue spoken by the character Lady Macbeth in Act III Scene II of Macbeth by William Shakespeare.

How to pronounce what's done is done

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