What is silver lining metaphor?

"Don't be unhappy that your boyfriend broke up with you - every cloud has a silver lining".  What does this idiom mean?

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    Meaning:

    Every cloud has a silver lining means that you should never feel hopeless because difficult times always lead to better days. Difficult times are like dark clouds that pass overhead and block the sun.

    Why?

    When we look more closely at the edges of every cloud we can see the sun shining there like a silver lining.

    Example:

    'I found a new job after losing my last one and I like this one more. You see, every cloud does have a silver lining.'

    Every cloud has a silver lining - Give us an example of a time when something good came from something bad for you.  Add your comments below!

    Etymology

    from the phrase "every cloud has a silver lining"

    First Known Use

    1871, in the meaning defined above

    Time Traveler

    The first known use of silver lining was in 1871

    See more words from the same year


    Page 2

    Other phrases about:

    • The natural world
    • Colour
    • Proverbs

    The proverbial saying 'every cloud has a silver lining' is used to convey the notion that, no matter how bad a situation might seem, there is always some good aspect to it.

    This expression is usually said as an encouragement to a person who is overcome by some difficulty and is unable to see any positive way forward.

    It is a classic of the Victorian 'despair not; strive for better things' sentiment.

    What is silver lining metaphor?
    John Milton coined the phrase 'silver lining' in his poem Comus: A Mask Presented at Ludlow Castle, 1634:

    I see ye visibly, and now believeThat he, the Supreme Good, to whom all things illAre but as slavish officers of vengeance,Would send a glistering guardian, if need wereTo keep my life and honour unassailed.Was I deceived, or did a sable cloud

    Turn forth her silver lining on the night?

    I did not err; there does a sable cloudTurn forth her silver lining on the night,

    And casts a gleam over this tufted grove.

    'Clouds' and 'silver linings' were referred to often in literature from then onward, usually citing Milton and frequently referring to them as Milton's clouds.

    It isn't until the days of the uplifting language of Victoria's England that we begin to hear the proverbial form that we are now familiar with - 'every cloud has a silver lining'.

    The first occurrence that unequivocally expresses that notion comes in The Dublin Magazine, Volume 1, 1840, in a review of the novel Marian; or, a Young Maid's Fortunes, by Mrs S. Hall, which was published in 1840:

    As Katty Macane has it, "there's a silver lining to every cloud that sails about the heavens if we could only see it."

    'There's a silver lining to every cloud' was the form that the proverb was usually expressed in the Victorian era.

    The currently used 'every cloud has a silver lining' first appeared, in another literary review, in 1849.

    The New Monthly Belle Assemblée, Volume 31, included what purported to be a quotation from Mrs Hall's book. In fact the text they printed, "Every cloud has a silver lining", was actually a misprint. It didn't appear in Marian, which merely reproduced Milton's original text.

    Despite being printed in error, the New Monthly Belle Assemblée entry does appear to be the first use of the proverb as we now use it.

    The proverb very quickly gained public acceptance. It appears very frequently in newspapers, on both sides of the Atlantic, from 1853 onward.

    What is silver lining metaphor?
    This was undoubtedly due to the work of the American writer Sarah Payton Parton. She had been commissioned by the editor of the Home Journal magazine to write a weekly motivational essay on various topics, under the pen-name of Fanny Fern. These became very popular and Parton soon became the highest paid writer in the USA.

    One of her best-known essays was a piece of purple prose entitled Nil desperandum, which included "Every cloud has a silver lining" in the first line and which was published in 1853:

    NO, NEVER! Every cloud has a silver lining; and He who wove it knows when to turn it out. So, after every night, however long or dark, there shall yet come a golden morning. Your noblest powers are never developed in prosperity. Any bark may glide in smooth water, with a favoring gale; but that is a brave, skilful oarsman who rows up stream, against the current, with adverse winds, and no cheering voice to wish him "God speed." Keep your head above the wave; let neither sullen despair nor weak vacillation drag you under. Heed not the poisoned arrow of sneaking treachery that whizzes past you from the shore. Judas sold himself when he sold his Master; and for him there dawned no resurrection morning! 'T is glorious to battle on with a brave heart, while cowering pusillanimity turns trembling back. Dream not of the word "surrender!" When one frail human reed after another breaks, or bends beneath you, lean on the "Rock of Ages." The Great Architect passes you through the furnace but to purify. The fire may scorch, but it shall never consume you. He will yet label you "fine gold." The narrow path may be thorny to your tender feet; but the "promised land" lies beyond! The clusters of Hope may be seen with the eye of faith; your hand shall yet grasp them; your eyes revel, from the mountain top, over the green pastures and still waters of peace. You shall yet unbuckle your dusty armor, while soft breezes shall fan your victor temples. Nil desperandum!

    A more recent proverb, which expresses the same idea, is "the darkest hour is just before the dawn".

    See also:

    Silver bullet

    Silver spoon


    Also found in: Dictionary, Thesaurus, Acronyms, Wikipedia.

    The potential for something positive or beneficial to result from a negative situation. Often used in the phrase "every cloud has a silver lining." (A silver lining on a cloud is an indication that the sun is behind it.) There could be a silver lining to getting laid off—you might find a job you actually like!

    Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2022 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

    An element of hope or a redeeming quality in an otherwise bad situation, as in The rally had a disappointing turnout, but the silver lining was that those who came pledged a great deal of money . This metaphoric term is a shortening of Every cloud has a silver lining, in turn derived from John Milton's Comus (1634): "A sable cloud turns forth its silver lining on the night."

    The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

    COMMON A silver lining is one good aspect of a situation that is otherwise generally bad. The fall in inflation is the silver lining in this prolonged recession. I must say, I had trouble finding a silver lining in the report. Note: When you are using a silver lining in this way, you often refer to the bad aspect of the situation as the cloud. Even Clarke, usually a man to find a silver lining in the blackest cloud, admitted that the government was in trouble. Note: These expressions come from the proverb every cloud has a silver lining, which is used to say that every bad situation has one good aspect to it. As they say, every cloud has a silver lining. We have learned a lot from the experience. Note: Less often, people say every silver lining has a cloud, meaning that every good situation has a bad aspect. We got on brilliantly; he was clever, kind, funny — and leaving for New York on Tuesday. Every silver lining has a cloud, it seems.

    Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed. © HarperCollins Publishers 2012

    a positive or more hopeful aspect to a bad situation, even though this may not be immediately apparent.

    The full form of the phrase is the proverb every cloud has a silver lining .

    Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017

    n. money. I have some silver stashed at home if you need it.

    McGraw-Hill's Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

    The worst situation has some element of hope or some redeeming quality. John Milton appears to have been the originator of this metaphor, in Comus (1634): “A sable cloud turns forth its silver lining on the night.” It was adopted by numerous later writers and so was already a cliché by the time it appeared in the popular World War I song, “Keep the Home Fires Burning” (Ivor Novello and Lena Guilhert, 1915): “There’s a silver lining through the dark clouds shining.” Noël Coward played on it in a song of the 1930s: “Every silver lining has its cloud.”

    See also: cloud, every, lining, silver

    The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer Copyright © 2013 by Christine Ammer

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    But there may still be a silver lining. A recent study conducted by Townsend Solutions and Plastics Technology magazine revealed far more optimism than expected.

    Karen Laidler, director of technology services at O2, said: "We opted for the skills accreditation software from Silver Lining Solutions because having evaluated a number of products it provided the best fit for our requirements.

    While a lot of its sales last year were frozen fish to Japanese buyers, Silver Lining also sells its product to clients from Washington, D.C., and Chicago to a host of towns on the West Coast and supplies supermarkets and gift shops with fish throughout Alaska.

    The firm said the acquisition would strengthen its position in the US Chorion also said that its experience and presence in Europe and Asia would greatly assist the growth of New-York based Silver Lining's brands around the world

    She said: "People with dementia often feel excluded from the outside world and the Silver Lining project works by connecting individuals with experienced artists and people of their own age.

    The Silver Lining Chorus is running a four week course from Wednesday January 18 at the Xcel Centre in Mitchell Avenue, Canley.

    The Silver Lining event will highlight good practice across British hospitals where refugee nurses have been employed to help overcome staff shortages.

    Of course, worship of the whip-thin continues unabated, as does the search for new and original ways ofshedding the pounds, so it was with great interest that I read an article about the'Every Cloud Has A Silver Lining Diet'.