proverb · Words worth keeping
Don't cross your bridges until you come to them.
Don't cross your bridges until you come to them.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
The saying postpones crossing a bridge until it is reached. As a metaphor, it discourages treating a possible later difficulty as an immediate task.
What the words are saying
The bridge is a specific obstacle on a route rather than every uncertainty ahead. A useful application separates preparation that helps now from worrying about a decision whose facts are not yet available. It should not become an excuse to ignore foreseeable risks or necessary planning.
Everyday example
A team records a later decision and returns to the task whose requirements are known now.
When to use it
Use it to distinguish current decisions from later uncertainties.
What it does not mean
It does not rule out preparation or justify ignoring known risks.
Agent-assisted editorial interpretation. This explains the words; it does not by itself verify their author or earliest origin.
Attribution & collection notes
- Author or tradition
- Traditional
Attribution: traditional - Country attributed
- Not established
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin. - Historical period
- Historical period not yet established
No sufficiently supported historical placement has been established. Import and download dates are not treated as composition dates. - Recorded source
- Contributor-provided proverb reference
Supplied reference A; unit 52; PDF page 11
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.