"fix the roof while the sun is shining" meaning in English

See fix the roof while the sun is shining in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Verb

Forms: fixes the roof while the sun is shining [present, singular, third-person], fixing the roof while the sun is shining [participle, present], fixed the roof while the sun was shining [participle, past], fixed the roof while the sun was shining [past]
Etymology: From the notion that it is easier and more beneficial to fix a roof during dry rather than wet weather. Head templates: {{en-verb|fix<> the roof while the sun is<is,is,was> shining}} fix the roof while the sun is shining (third-person singular simple present fixes the roof while the sun is shining, present participle fixing the roof while the sun is shining, simple past and past participle fixed the roof while the sun was shining)
  1. (idiomatic, proverbial) To deal with a problem or potential problem while conditions are favorable. Tags: idiomatic
    Sense id: en-fix_the_roof_while_the_sun_is_shining-en-verb-xVuCg4oe Categories (other): English entries with incorrect language header, Pages with 1 entry, Pages with entries

Inflected forms

{
  "etymology_text": "From the notion that it is easier and more beneficial to fix a roof during dry rather than wet weather.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "fixes the roof while the sun is shining",
      "tags": [
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "fixing the roof while the sun is shining",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "fixed the roof while the sun was shining",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "fixed the roof while the sun was shining",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "fix<> the roof while the sun is<is,is,was> shining"
      },
      "expansion": "fix the roof while the sun is shining (third-person singular simple present fixes the roof while the sun is shining, present participle fixing the roof while the sun is shining, simple past and past participle fixed the roof while the sun was shining)",
      "name": "en-verb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with 1 entry",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with entries",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1986, The Economist - Volume 299 - Page 4:",
          "text": "You state it well: we should fix the roof while the sun is shining, and expand our nuclear-electric generating capacity while interest rates are low",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To deal with a problem or potential problem while conditions are favorable."
      ],
      "id": "en-fix_the_roof_while_the_sun_is_shining-en-verb-xVuCg4oe",
      "links": [
        [
          "proverbial",
          "proverbial"
        ],
        [
          "deal with",
          "deal with"
        ],
        [
          "problem",
          "problem"
        ],
        [
          "favorable",
          "favorable"
        ]
      ],
      "qualifier": "proverbial",
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(idiomatic, proverbial) To deal with a problem or potential problem while conditions are favorable."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "idiomatic"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "word": "fix the roof while the sun is shining"
}
{
  "etymology_text": "From the notion that it is easier and more beneficial to fix a roof during dry rather than wet weather.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "fixes the roof while the sun is shining",
      "tags": [
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "fixing the roof while the sun is shining",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "fixed the roof while the sun was shining",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "fixed the roof while the sun was shining",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "fix<> the roof while the sun is<is,is,was> shining"
      },
      "expansion": "fix the roof while the sun is shining (third-person singular simple present fixes the roof while the sun is shining, present participle fixing the roof while the sun is shining, simple past and past participle fixed the roof while the sun was shining)",
      "name": "en-verb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English entries with incorrect language header",
        "English idioms",
        "English lemmas",
        "English multiword terms",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "English verbs",
        "Pages with 1 entry",
        "Pages with entries",
        "Quotation templates to be cleaned"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1986, The Economist - Volume 299 - Page 4:",
          "text": "You state it well: we should fix the roof while the sun is shining, and expand our nuclear-electric generating capacity while interest rates are low",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To deal with a problem or potential problem while conditions are favorable."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "proverbial",
          "proverbial"
        ],
        [
          "deal with",
          "deal with"
        ],
        [
          "problem",
          "problem"
        ],
        [
          "favorable",
          "favorable"
        ]
      ],
      "qualifier": "proverbial",
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(idiomatic, proverbial) To deal with a problem or potential problem while conditions are favorable."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "idiomatic"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "word": "fix the roof while the sun is shining"
}

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This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2025-01-25 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2025-01-20 using wiktextract (c15a5ce and 5c11237). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

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