forewarned is forearmed
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Also seen as: forewarned, forearmed
Meaning · English
Being prepared for something because you know it might happen
Literally: having arms due to prior warning
Where it’s used:
Used
Widespread English
Examples
Forewarned is forearmed.Phòng bệnh hơn chữa bệnh.
Tatoeba sentence #238066 (CC BY 2.0 FR, tatoeba.org, retrieved 2026-07-31)
Sources & notes
Listed on Wikipedia “List of proverbial phrases” (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-29); definition pending editorial review. Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-07-30; pending editor spot-check.
Common questions
What does “forewarned is forearmed” mean?
Being prepared for something because you know it might happen Literally: having arms due to prior warning
Is “forewarned is forearmed” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.