proverb · Words worth keeping
'Tis a great journey to the world's end.
'Tis a great journey to the world's end.
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
An extremely distant destination suggests an undertaking of considerable scale. The expression can call attention to how far a task reaches, without treating the world as having a literal endpoint or promising that every journey is worth completing.
Example
An editor describes sorting a large uncatalogued collection as a great journey, then divides the work into sections that volunteers can review separately.
Deeper explanation and when to use it
The world’s end supplies an exaggerated destination in the saying’s image. Figuratively, a person may use the expression when a plan seems to stretch far beyond the immediate next step. A useful reading asks what the undertaking involves and how its parts can be understood before accepting the whole as a single simple task. The phrase may also convey weariness or amazement rather than offer advice. A large purpose can be worthwhile, but scale alone does not establish its value. The expression helps make distance or extent noticeable while leaving room to revise the destination, share the work or decide that the proposed journey is unsuitable.
When to use it
Use it when the scale or distance of an undertaking needs to be acknowledged.
Keep in mind
Clarify the actual scope; an exaggerated destination is not a geographical fact or a demand to continue without limits.
An interpretation of the words, not a claim about their 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
- Date unknown
- Culture
- English