the world is someone's oyster

English

WOTD – 18 November 2023

Etymology

From the version of the play The Merry Wives of Windsor published in the First Folio (1623) of the works of the English playwright William Shakespeare (baptized 1564; died 1616): see the quotation. The original context was that Ancient Pistol would use force to obtain a loan from Sir John Falstaff, like prising open an oyster with a sword to obtain a pearl.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ðə ˈwɜːld‿ɪz ˌsʌmwʌnz ˈɔɪstə/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ðə ˈwɜɹld‿ɪz ˌsʌmwʌnz ˈɔɪstəɹ/

• Audio (General American):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɔɪstə(ɹ)

Proverb

the world is someone's oyster

1. All opportunities are open to someone; the world is theirs.
   • c. 1597 (date written), William Shakespeare,  […] [T]he Merrie Wiues of Windsor. […] (First Quarto), London: […] T[homas] C[reede] for Arthur Ihonson, […], published 1602, →OCLC, [Act II, scene ii], signature C2, verso:

     Fal[staff]. I vvill not lend thee a penny. / Piſt[ol]. VVhy then the vvorld's mine Oyſter, vvhich I, vvith ſvvord vvill open.

   • 1858, Anthony Trollope, “Dr. Thorne”, in Doctor Thorne. […], volume I, London: Chapman & Hall, […], →OCLC, page 58:

     But his wants were not at first great; and though his ambition was perhaps high, it was not of an impatient nature. The world was his oyster; but, circumstanced as he was, he knew it was not for him to open it with his lancet all at once.

   • 1865, Thomas Carlyle, “Peace of Hubertsburg”, in History of Friedrich II. of Prussia, Called Frederick the Great, volume VI, London: Chapman and Hall, […], →OCLC, book XX, page 328:

     Irregular gentlemen, to whom the world's their oyster,—said oyster does suddenly snap-to on them, by a chance.

   • 2008, Nick Clayton, “Introduction”, in The Guardian Guide to Working Abroad, London: A[dam] & C[harles] Black Publishers, →ISBN, page 15:

     The world may be your oyster, but that doesn't mean you've found the pearl.

Usage notes

• As the quotations show, the proverb is frequently used with different forms of the word be, and with different pronouns.

Derived terms

• the world is one's lobster

Translations

all opportunities are open to someone

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 世界屬於你 / 世界属于你 (shìjiè shǔyú nǐ, literally “the world is yours”)

• Dutch: de wereld ligt aan iemands voeten
• Finnish: maailma on avoin
• German: die Welt liegt einem zu Füßen
• Hebrew: העולם פרוש לרגליך
• Japanese: この世は思いのまま (kono yo wa omoi no mama)
• Macedonian: све́тот е твој (svétot e tvoj, literally “the world is yours”), сѐ е во тво́и ра́це (sè e vo tvói ráce, literally “everything is in your hands”)
• Polish: świat stoi przed kimś otworem (literally “the world stands before someone as an opening”)
• Russian: весь мир к твои́м услу́гам (vesʹ mir k tvoím uslúgam, literally “the whole world is at your service”), всё в твои́х рука́х (vsjo v tvoíx rukáx, literally “everything is in your hands”)
• Spanish: el mundo es tuyo, te vas a comer el mundo m

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: ^{(please verify)} 能盡情享受生活中的一切快樂與機遇 / 能尽情享受生活中的一切快乐与机遇

• Japanese: 虎穴に入らずんば虎子を得ず (ja) (koketsu ni hairazunba koji o ezu)
• Korean: 구슬이 서말이라도 꿰어야 보배 (guseuri seomarirado kkweeoya bobae)

See also

• carpe diem
• seize the day
• take the bull by the horns

Further reading

• “the world is your oyster, phrase”, in Collins English Dictionary; from Collins COBUILD Advanced Dictionary, 6th edition, Boston, Mass.: Heinle Cengage Learning; Glasgow: HarperCollins Publishers, 2009, →ISBN.
• “the world is someone’s oyster, idiom”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.