Question

Make a Silk Purse out of a Sow's Ear to create something valuable or beautiful out of something practically worthless or ugly

Accepted Answer

Owen thinks that by polishing his old car, he can make a silk purse out of a sow's ear. There are similar expressions in many languages; these sayings also use "good thing-bad thing" combinations (for instance, "good coat out of poor cloth," and "hunting horn out of a pig s tail"). An English version close to this idiom has been around since 1700. A silk purse is an elegant, expensive item made of fine, shiny fibers. A sow is an adult female pig. So if anyone can take a sow's ear and turn it into a silk purse, he or she might be able to take a bad situation and make something good out of it.

Idiom	Make a Silk Purse out of a Sow's Ear
Example	Owen thinks that by polishing his old car, he can make a silk purse out of a sow's ear.
Meaning	to create something valuable or beautiful out of something practically worthless or ugly
Origin	There are similar expressions in many languages; these sayings also use "good thing-bad thing" combinations (for instance, "good coat out of poor cloth," and "hunting horn out of a pig s tail"). An English version close to this idiom has been around since 1700. A silk purse is an elegant, expensive item made of fine, shiny fibers. A sow is an adult female pig. So if anyone can take a sow's ear and turn it into a silk purse, he or she might be able to take a bad situation and make something good out of it.

Silk Make Purse Sow's Ear Good Owen Thinks