What Does A Bird in the Hand Is Worth Two in the Bush Idiom Mean

“A bird in the hand” is an English idiom (a saying) that advises people not to wish for more than they already have. When you hear someone say, “A Bird in the Hand Is Worth Two in the Bush”, he or she means that you should be careful not to lose something good by attempting to get something better.

What Does “A Bird in the Hand Is Worth Two in the Bush” Mean?

“A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush” is a saying that tells us that what we already have is more valuable than what we don’t.

Birds cannot be in someone’s hand and the bush at the same time. Therefore, if you have one bird in your hand, you will lose it once you let go of it to go for the two in the bush. You might miss the two birds. 

Lesson: 

The saying warns people against greed. Many people want more than they already have. In their attempt to get something better, people often lose what they already have.

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Let’s look at some examples: 

Bob has a good paying job. He gets an offer from another company that pays more money. He immediately quits his job and joins the new company. A few months later, he is fired from the new job.

Instead of staying at his old job where he was happy, Bob lost it because he wanted more money.

Similarly, a shop keeper may turn down a good offer from a customer because he wants to sell his goods at a higher price. He may spend weeks or months waiting for a bigger offer. But “the customer with the big money” may never show up.

Bob could have kept his job instead of losing it. “A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush”.

This proverb also applies to people and day-to-day activities. You might lose your true friends by pushing them away in order to look for “popular ones.”

Example sentences: 

1. I chose to stay at my current job rather than pursue a possibly-less-certain offer because a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.

2. Sarah took the scholarship that had already been offered to her because a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.

3. My dad told me not to sell my small business in order to invest in a high risk opportunity because a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.

4. I bought the laptop today instead of waiting to see if I could get a better price later because a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.

5. Tom decided to keep his prize instead of risk losing it by trying to win more because a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.

In conclusion, “a bird in hand is worth two in the bush” reminds us that what we have is most likely better than what we don’t have.