English · Proverb Candidate

there's many a slip twixt cup and lip

Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.

Also seen as: there's many a slip between the cup and the lip · there's many a slip 'twixt cup and lip

Sense 1

Meaning · English

In any situation, however well planned, something can always go wrong.

Where it’s used: Used American English

Examples

Many thynges fall betwene the cuppe and the mouth.

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30 via kaikki.org).

Sense 2

Meaning · English

Things can still go wrong even when success seems close

Literally: many slips between cup and lip

Examples

I've got the job offer, but there's many a slip twixt cup and lip until I sign the contract

AI-drafted example auto-approved by rule (illustrative, not a corpus attestation)

Sources & notes

Listed on English Wikiquote “English proverbs” (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-31). Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-07-31; pending editor spot-check.

Topics: Mouth & tongue Dated

Common questions

What does “there's many a slip twixt cup and lip” mean?

In any situation, however well planned, something can always go wrong.

Is “there's many a slip twixt cup and lip” formal or informal?

there's many a slip twixt cup and lip is generally dated.