World is your oyster origin
‘
The world is your oyster
’ saying is often said to young people about to embark on adult life. It simply means that everything is open to one, and if one is lucky, they could encounter something special.
The metaphor that informs the saying is that if you have an oyster there is a chance that there may be a pearl in it. A nice fresh oyster can be hard to open, but once opened it’s good. And perhaps it may have a pearl in it, which would be a valuable addition to one’s life. So when we set out to seek our fortune, the pearl is the good luck we may have. If we’re lucky we will find it.
‘The World is Your Oyster’ Origin
The saying has mysteriously evolved from its original appearance in Shakespeare’s comedy, The Merry Wives of Windsor. It’s slightly misquoted, as is so often the case with Shakespeare references that become English idioms. The actual quote is ‘The world’s
mine
oyster.’
Shakespeare re-introduces one of his most popular characters, Sir John Falstaff, as a con man, planning to con two Windsor women out of their money. He has his usual disreputables around him, among them a man called Pistol who utters the immortal line ‘the world’s mine oyster̵
“The world is your oyster”
Find out about the famous phrase “The world is your oyster”, and learn about its history, how and when we use it in the English language.
How do we use it?
First let’s look at an example of how this phrase is used in context:
Q.
I don’t know what to do now I’ve finished university! What do you think?
A.
You can do anything you want – the world is your oyster. You could travel for a year, or get a job.
A.
You’re young and healthy with no commitments – the world is your oyster!
What does it mean?
Using the context of the example above, the phrase “the world is your oyster” means that you can achieve anything you wish in life or go anywhere because you have the opportunity or ability to do so.
When do we use it?
It is used quite widely in spoken English in informal situations.
You often use this phrase as an inspirational tool to stress that somebody has choices – that the world is theirs – and they can do what they want with their lives.
You’ve likely heard the famous idiom “the world is your oyster”. It’s one of the most commonly used idioms out there.
But what exactly does this phrase mean? Where does it come from? This guide will tell you everything that you need to know about this idiom, including examples of “the world is your oyster” being used in sentences.
The Meaning Of “The World Is Your Oyster”
The definition of “the world is your oyster” is that you can go anywhere or do anything that you want.
This idiom is often used for young people, as it highlights the various opportunities that they have access to. As a result, they may be able to find or do something special. Essentially, it describes someone with lots of agency.
Given the meaning of “the world is your oyster”, it may sound odd to use an oyster as a symbol of freedom and opportunity. After all, oysters are not known for their social mobility.
The reason why oysters are used to represent this opportunistic sentiment is that oysters are a form of mollusk that can naturally form pearls. As a result, you could find something valuable when you open an oyster. As a result, it’s an apt metaphor for this sense of opportunity.
Examples Of “Th
Alluding to the possibility of finding a pearl in an oyster, the phrase
the world is one’s oyster
means that
one is in a position to profit from the opportunities that life, or a particular situation, may offer
.
It was coined by the English poet and playwright William Shakespeare (1564-1616) in
The Merry Wiues of Windsor
(Folio 1, 1623). Nym and Pistol, two of Falstaff’s men, have refused to convey the latter’s letters to Mistresses Ford and Page, saying that they want to behave respectably:
Falstaff: I will not lend thee a penny.
Pistol: Why then the world’s mine Oyster, which I,
with sword will open.
Pistol is poor because he insists on maintaining some honour. According to B. A. Phythian in
A Concise Dictionary of Phrase and Fable
(1993), in this scene Pistol means that he will use his sword to extract money from an unwilling world, a sense removed from the modern phrase which means that the world is simply waiting to be opened up to provide good things.
Shakespeare might have been alluding to a proverb that the Church of England clergyman Thomas Fuller (1608-61) mentioned and explained in
The History of the Worthies of England
(London, 1662):
The Mayor