necessity is the mother of invention

English

Alternative forms

• necessity is the mother of innovation

Proverb

necessity is the mother of invention

1. A person who is in great need of something will find a way to obtain it.

Translations

a person in need will find a way

• Arabic: اَلْحَاجَة أَمّ اَلاِخْتِرَاع (al-ḥāja ʔumm al-iḵtirāʕ)
• Bangla: কাজ আটকালে বুদ্ধি জোগায় (কাজ আটকালে বুদ্ধি জোগায়)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 需要是發明之母／需要是发明之母 (zh) (xūyào shì fāmíng zhī mǔ)

• Czech: nouze naučila Dalibora housti (“need taught Dalibor to play the violin”)
• Danish: nød lærer nøgen kvinde at spinde (need teaches (a) naked woman how to spin)
• Dutch: noodzaak is de moeder van uitvinding, nood breekt wet
• Finnish: hätä keinot keksii
• French: la nécessité est la mère de l’invention, nécessité fait loi (fr)
• German: Not macht erfinderisch, Notwendigkeit ist die Mutter der Erfindung, Not bricht Eisen
• Hebrew: הכורח הוא אבי ההמצאה, הצורך הוא אבי ההמצאה
• Hungarian: a szükség találékonnyá tesz
• Icelandic: neyðin kennir naktri konu að spinna
• Italian: il bisogno aguzza l'ingegno, di necessità virtù
• Japanese: 必要は発明の母 (hitsuyō-wa hatsumei-no haha)
• Norwegian: nød lærer naken kvinne å spinne (need teaches (a) naked woman how to spin)
• Polish: potrzeba jest matką wynalazków (pl)
• Portuguese: a necessidade aguça o engenho, a necessidade é a mãe de toda invenção
• Russian: голь на вы́думку хитра́ (ru) (golʹ na výdumku xitrá) (lit., "poor people are crafty")
• Spanish: la necesidad agudiza el ingenio
• Swedish: nöden är uppfinningarnas moder

See also

• make a virtue of necessity
• the wish is father to the thought