Explore English traditional proverbsReviewed 2026-10-01
Sense: Verified- Meaning and lesson
Trouble during the day can linger after dark, leaving a person with little relief when evening comes.
The saying treats a difficult day as something that casts a shadow over the night, rather than ending neatly at sundown. Its absolute wording gives force to that feeling.
- When it is used
Use it when an upsetting or exhausting day continues to weigh on someone in the evening, or when daytime troubles carry on into the night. It expresses a gloomy expectation, not a rule that every bad day must end badly.
How this record reached us: Editorially sourced.
Report an issue with this meaning: A bad day never hath a good night.