Bought wit is best.
Bought wit is best.
Meaning in plain English
A lesson learned through a costly mistake can be especially memorable. Experience may sharpen judgement when the person reflects on what the mistake revealed.
Example
After booking an unsuitable venue without checking its access, an organiser creates an inspection checklist and uses it for future events.
Deeper explanation and when to use it
Bought does not mean paying for intelligence in a shop. In this reading, the price is the inconvenience, effort or loss involved in learning from experience. Wit is the practical understanding gained. The saying values a lesson that has become concrete because the learner has felt its consequences. It should not be taken to mean that suffering is the best or only teacher. A person can learn from instruction and other people’s mistakes, often at much less cost. Experience is most useful when examined, rather than merely repeated with the same explanation.
When to use it
Use it when a costly mistake has led to a specific, remembered improvement in judgement.
Keep in mind
No one needs to make every mistake personally, and a cost alone does not ensure learning.
Edsverb editorial interpretation · agent reviewed · 2026-10-03. This explains the saying; it does not establish its historical origin.
- Source
- A Dictionary of English Proverbs and Proverbial Phrases
Entry 147 · Bought wit
Read the original context ↗ - Attribution confidence
- traditional · historical anthology
Preserved as printed; independently unverified. - Historical coordinate
- Undated
No reliable date supplied by the collection. - Rights & edition
- Public domain (United States)
Translations and rights may differ elsewhere.
Provenance and licences ↗