murphy's law
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
Noun: - A humorous adage or principle: It states that if anything has the potential to go wrong, it inevitably will go wrong. It expresses a cynical or resigned observation about the tendency for misfortune to occur.
Usage
This term is used to comment humorously or ruefully on situations where multiple things fail or unexpected problems arise. It is often invoked after a series of mishaps or to explain a general predisposition for plans to fail. - It functions as a proper noun and is typically capitalized: Murphy's Law. - It is commonly used in the phrase "It's Murphy's Law" or "That's Murphy's Law for you."
Examples
Advanced Usage
- "Murphy's Law in action": Used to describe a situation that is currently demonstrating the principle.
- The power went out during the crucial server backup. That's Murphy's Law in action.
- "A corollary to Murphy's Law": Refers to a specific, humorous extension of the original principle.
- A common corollary to Murphy's Law is that the bread always falls buttered-side down.
Variants and Related Words
- Sod's Law (noun, chiefly British): A synonymous term expressing the same concept that anything that can go wrong will go wrong.
Synonyms
- The law of perversity: The tendency for things to go wrong in the most annoying way possible.
- Finagle's Law (humorous): A similar adage, often stated as "Anything that can go wrong, will—at the worst possible moment."
Related Idioms
- "If anything can go wrong, it will.": This is the standard phrasing of the law itself and is often used as an idiom.
- "What can go wrong, will go wrong.": A common paraphrase of the principle.
Noun
- humorous axiom stating that anything that can go wrong will go wrong