| Idiom | Necessity Is the Mother of Invention |
|---|---|
| Example | He created shoes with stilts so he could reach the ceiling. Necessity is the mother of invention. |
| Meaning | inventiveness or creativity is stimulated by need or difficulty |
| Origin | A phrase similar to this was used by people in ancient Greece, and today it is a proverb in Italian, French, German, and some other languages. The first use of it in English was in a British play in 1672. It's very popular all over the world, probably because it states a universal truth. If you urgently need something that you don't have, you will discover or invent it by using your imagination and skill. In this expression, "mother" means the creative source that gives birth to the invention. |
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