"leave well enough alone" meaning in English

See leave well enough alone in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Verb

IPA: /ˈliːv ˈwɛl ɪˌnʌf əˈləʊn/ Audio: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Persent101-leave well enough alone.wav Forms: leaves well enough alone [present, singular, third-person], leaving well enough alone [participle, present], left well enough alone [participle, past], left well enough alone [past]
Head templates: {{en-verb|leave<,,left> well enough alone}} leave well enough alone (third-person singular simple present leaves well enough alone, present participle leaving well enough alone, simple past and past participle left well enough alone)
  1. To leave something alone; to avoid trying to correct, fix, or improve what is already adequate. Synonyms: leave well alone, if it ain't broke, don't fix it, let well enough alone Related terms: over-egg the pudding, perfect is the enemy of good Translations (to avoid trying to correct, fix, or improve what is already adequate): plibono estas malamiko de bono (Esperanto), jättää rauhaan (Finnish), le mieux est l’ennemi du bien (French), laisser tranquille (French), das Bessere ist des Guten Feind (German), zostawić w spokoju (Polish), o feder xatarel (Romani), peravel o śukar (Romani), працю́є - не чіпа́й (pracjúje - ne čipáj) (Ukrainian), зали́шити в спо́кої (zalýšyty v spókoji) (Ukrainian)
{
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "leaves well enough alone",
      "tags": [
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "leaving well enough alone",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "left well enough alone",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "left well enough alone",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "leave<,,left> well enough alone"
      },
      "expansion": "leave well enough alone (third-person singular simple present leaves well enough alone, present participle leaving well enough alone, simple past and past participle left well enough alone)",
      "name": "en-verb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English aphorisms",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Entries with translation boxes",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with 1 entry",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with entries",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Esperanto translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Finnish translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with French translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with German translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Polish translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Romani translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Russian translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Ukrainian translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "We should have left well enough alone when we had it working the first time.",
          "type": "example"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To leave something alone; to avoid trying to correct, fix, or improve what is already adequate."
      ],
      "id": "en-leave_well_enough_alone-en-verb-rEUrwy68",
      "links": [
        [
          "leave",
          "leave"
        ],
        [
          "alone",
          "alone"
        ],
        [
          "correct",
          "correct"
        ],
        [
          "fix",
          "fix"
        ],
        [
          "improve",
          "improve"
        ],
        [
          "adequate",
          "adequate"
        ]
      ],
      "related": [
        {
          "word": "over-egg the pudding"
        },
        {
          "word": "perfect is the enemy of good"
        }
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "leave well alone"
        },
        {
          "word": "if it ain't broke, don't fix it"
        },
        {
          "word": "let well enough alone"
        }
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "code": "eo",
          "lang": "Esperanto",
          "sense": "to avoid trying to correct, fix, or improve what is already adequate",
          "word": "plibono estas malamiko de bono"
        },
        {
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "sense": "to avoid trying to correct, fix, or improve what is already adequate",
          "word": "jättää rauhaan"
        },
        {
          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "sense": "to avoid trying to correct, fix, or improve what is already adequate",
          "word": "le mieux est l’ennemi du bien"
        },
        {
          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "sense": "to avoid trying to correct, fix, or improve what is already adequate",
          "word": "laisser tranquille"
        },
        {
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "to avoid trying to correct, fix, or improve what is already adequate",
          "word": "das Bessere ist des Guten Feind"
        },
        {
          "code": "pl",
          "lang": "Polish",
          "sense": "to avoid trying to correct, fix, or improve what is already adequate",
          "word": "zostawić w spokoju"
        },
        {
          "code": "rom",
          "lang": "Romani",
          "sense": "to avoid trying to correct, fix, or improve what is already adequate",
          "word": "o feder xatarel"
        },
        {
          "code": "rom",
          "lang": "Romani",
          "sense": "to avoid trying to correct, fix, or improve what is already adequate",
          "word": "peravel o śukar"
        },
        {
          "code": "ru",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "note": "лучшее — враг хорошего (lučšeje — vrag xoroševo)",
          "sense": "to avoid trying to correct, fix, or improve what is already adequate"
        },
        {
          "code": "uk",
          "lang": "Ukrainian",
          "roman": "pracjúje - ne čipáj",
          "sense": "to avoid trying to correct, fix, or improve what is already adequate",
          "word": "працю́є - не чіпа́й"
        },
        {
          "code": "uk",
          "lang": "Ukrainian",
          "roman": "zalýšyty v spókoji",
          "sense": "to avoid trying to correct, fix, or improve what is already adequate",
          "word": "зали́шити в спо́кої"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ˈliːv ˈwɛl ɪˌnʌf əˈləʊn/"
    },
    {
      "audio": "LL-Q1860 (eng)-Persent101-leave well enough alone.wav",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/6/60/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Persent101-leave_well_enough_alone.wav/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Persent101-leave_well_enough_alone.wav.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/6/60/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Persent101-leave_well_enough_alone.wav/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Persent101-leave_well_enough_alone.wav.ogg"
    }
  ],
  "word": "leave well enough alone"
}
{
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "leaves well enough alone",
      "tags": [
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "leaving well enough alone",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "left well enough alone",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "left well enough alone",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "leave<,,left> well enough alone"
      },
      "expansion": "leave well enough alone (third-person singular simple present leaves well enough alone, present participle leaving well enough alone, simple past and past participle left well enough alone)",
      "name": "en-verb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "related": [
    {
      "word": "over-egg the pudding"
    },
    {
      "word": "perfect is the enemy of good"
    }
  ],
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English aphorisms",
        "English entries with incorrect language header",
        "English lemmas",
        "English multiword terms",
        "English terms with usage examples",
        "English verbs",
        "Entries with translation boxes",
        "Pages with 1 entry",
        "Pages with entries",
        "Terms with Esperanto translations",
        "Terms with Finnish translations",
        "Terms with French translations",
        "Terms with German translations",
        "Terms with Polish translations",
        "Terms with Romani translations",
        "Terms with Russian translations",
        "Terms with Ukrainian translations"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "We should have left well enough alone when we had it working the first time.",
          "type": "example"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To leave something alone; to avoid trying to correct, fix, or improve what is already adequate."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "leave",
          "leave"
        ],
        [
          "alone",
          "alone"
        ],
        [
          "correct",
          "correct"
        ],
        [
          "fix",
          "fix"
        ],
        [
          "improve",
          "improve"
        ],
        [
          "adequate",
          "adequate"
        ]
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "leave well alone"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ˈliːv ˈwɛl ɪˌnʌf əˈləʊn/"
    },
    {
      "audio": "LL-Q1860 (eng)-Persent101-leave well enough alone.wav",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/6/60/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Persent101-leave_well_enough_alone.wav/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Persent101-leave_well_enough_alone.wav.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/6/60/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Persent101-leave_well_enough_alone.wav/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Persent101-leave_well_enough_alone.wav.ogg"
    }
  ],
  "synonyms": [
    {
      "word": "if it ain't broke, don't fix it"
    },
    {
      "word": "let well enough alone"
    }
  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "eo",
      "lang": "Esperanto",
      "sense": "to avoid trying to correct, fix, or improve what is already adequate",
      "word": "plibono estas malamiko de bono"
    },
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "to avoid trying to correct, fix, or improve what is already adequate",
      "word": "jättää rauhaan"
    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "to avoid trying to correct, fix, or improve what is already adequate",
      "word": "le mieux est l’ennemi du bien"
    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "to avoid trying to correct, fix, or improve what is already adequate",
      "word": "laisser tranquille"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "to avoid trying to correct, fix, or improve what is already adequate",
      "word": "das Bessere ist des Guten Feind"
    },
    {
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "sense": "to avoid trying to correct, fix, or improve what is already adequate",
      "word": "zostawić w spokoju"
    },
    {
      "code": "rom",
      "lang": "Romani",
      "sense": "to avoid trying to correct, fix, or improve what is already adequate",
      "word": "o feder xatarel"
    },
    {
      "code": "rom",
      "lang": "Romani",
      "sense": "to avoid trying to correct, fix, or improve what is already adequate",
      "word": "peravel o śukar"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "note": "лучшее — враг хорошего (lučšeje — vrag xoroševo)",
      "sense": "to avoid trying to correct, fix, or improve what is already adequate"
    },
    {
      "code": "uk",
      "lang": "Ukrainian",
      "roman": "pracjúje - ne čipáj",
      "sense": "to avoid trying to correct, fix, or improve what is already adequate",
      "word": "працю́є - не чіпа́й"
    },
    {
      "code": "uk",
      "lang": "Ukrainian",
      "roman": "zalýšyty v spókoji",
      "sense": "to avoid trying to correct, fix, or improve what is already adequate",
      "word": "зали́шити в спо́кої"
    }
  ],
  "word": "leave well enough alone"
}

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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 2024-12-15 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-12-04 using wiktextract (8a39820 and 4401a4c). 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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