proverb · Words worth keeping
Joy surfeited turns to sorrow.
Joy surfeited turns to sorrow.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
Enjoyment pushed too far can become unpleasant. Surfeiting turns a welcome experience into an excess that defeats its original pleasure.
What the words are saying
The saying changes the direction of the same experience. Something enjoyed in a suitable amount may lose its appeal when continued past that point, leaving fatigue, regret or a neglected responsibility. It can prompt attention to limits without treating pleasure itself as wrong. The wording is broad and does not identify a universal point at which enjoyment becomes excessive. A useful application asks what has changed in this particular situation and whether continuing still serves the purpose that made it enjoyable.
Everyday example
Friends end a celebration while it is still pleasant instead of extending it into a stressful argument about arrangements.
When to use it
Use it to notice when continuing a pleasure begins to undermine it.
What it does not mean
Joy does not inevitably lead to sorrow, and limits differ between situations.
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
- A Dictionary of English Proverbs and Proverbial Phrases
Entry 875 · Joy
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.
- Culture
- English