Home
Search
Index
Definify.com
Definition
2025
be_cruel_to_be_kind
be cruel to be kind
English
Verb
be
cruel
to
be
kind
To do or say something to another person which you believe to be for their own good, and will be
helpful
for them in the
future
, although it might be
painful
or
hurtful
at this moment.
Etymology
From
Hamlet
Act 3; Scene 4. by
William Shakespeare
I must be cruel, only to be kind: Thus bad begins and worse remains behind.
Similar Results