lining



every dark cloud has a silver lining

It is possible for something good to come out of a bad situation. (A silver lining on a cloud is an indication that the sun is behind it.) I know you're upset about not getting the lead in the school play, but just keep in mind that every dark cloud has a silver lining—you'll get lots of experience as the understudy! When I'm going through a hard time, I try to remind myself that every dark cloud has a silver lining.
See also: cloud, dark, every, lining, silver

every silver lining has a cloud

A good situation can be followed by something bad or negative. A reversal of the more common phrase "every cloud has a silver lining." I wouldn't get too excited, if I were you—every silver lining has a cloud, after all.
See also: cloud, every, lining, silver

Every cloud has a silver lining.

Prov. You can derive some benefit from every bad thing that happens to you. (You can also refer to the silver lining of a particular cloud, the benefit you can derive from a particular misfortune.) I'm sorry your business is going badly, but don't despair. Every cloud has a silver lining. When Mary's friends visited her in the hospital, they tried to cheer her up, but Mary never could find the silver lining in the cloud of her illness.
See also: cloud, every, lining, silver

Every cloud has a silver lining.

something that you say which means that there is something good even in an unpleasant situation As the trip's been cancelled I'll be able to go to the match this Saturday. Every cloud has a silver lining.
See also: cloud, every, lining, silver

silver lining

An element of hope or a redeeming quality in an otherwise bad situation, as in The rally had a disappointing turnout, but the silver lining was that those who came pledged a great deal of money . This metaphoric term is a shortening of Every cloud has a silver lining, in turn derived from John Milton's Comus (1634): "A sable cloud turns forth its silver lining on the night."
See also: lining, silver

Common Names:

NameGenderPronouncedUsage
Bastienbas-TYAWNFrench
Melyssamə-LIS-əEnglish (Rare)
TannerTAN-ərEnglish
Somerled-Scottish
Arnall['a:nəl]
Wei-Chinese