You can't win them all

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Meaning

Used to accept a loss or console someone after a disappointment: nobody can succeed on every occasion.

Origin

The saying is documented in American sports writing by 1886. A New York Times baseball report observed that Detroit might win two games out of three against Chicago but could not win them all. It began as a straightforward sporting acknowledgement of an occasional loss and broadened into a general response to failure or disappointment. The newspaper example is an early attestation, not evidence of a known coiner.

Research Sources

  1. win Online Etymology Dictionary
  2. you can't win them all Cambridge University Press

Variants

  • You can't win 'em all

Usage Examples

  • We lost the tender despite a strong proposal, but you can't win them all.
  • You can't win them all, and one poor result does not erase the team's progress.
  • When the cake collapsed, Arun shrugged and said, 'You can't win 'em all.'

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