cross that bridge when one comes to it en · VERB
Pronunciation
- (Australia) audio
Etymology
A metaphor for an idea being like a train of thought and the problem being like the bridge.
Meanings
-
(idiomatic) To deal with a problem or situation only if and when it arises.
It's possible we'll eventually have more books than available space for them, but we'll cross that bridge when we come to it.
They might be willing to admit, OK, yeah, if you invent superintelligence, things will probably be crazy. But I’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.
2025 April 11, Kevin Roose, Casey Newton, “Big Tech’s Tariff Chaos + A.I. 2027 + Llama Drama”, in The New York Times (Hard Fork podcast), →ISSN:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| crossed that bridge when one came to it | Tense=Past, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic | |
| crossed that bridge when one came to it | Tense=Past | lexicographic | |
| crossing that bridge when one comes to it | Tense=Pres, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic | |
| cross that bridge when one gets to it | alternative | lexicographic | |
| cross that bridge when one gets there | alternative | lexicographic | |
| crosses that bridge when one comes to it | Number=Sing, Person=3, Tense=Pres | lexicographic |
Antonyms
cross a bridge before one comes to it
Deriveds
burn that bridge when one comes to it
Relateds
all in good time · take something as it comes
Translations (11)
cmn 船到橋頭自然直 /船到桥头自然直 (deal with something only when it arises) · fi ratkaistaan se ongelma vasta sitten, kun se tulee eteen (deal with something only when it arises) · hu (majd) akkor kelünk át a folyón/hídon, amikor odaérünk (deal with something only when it arises) · yue 船到橋頭自然直 /船到桥头自然直 (deal with something only when it arises) · he כְּשֶׁנַּגִּיעַ לַגֶּשֶׁר נַעֲבֹר אוֹתוֹ (deal with something only when it arises) · it quando ci arriviamo, ci pensiamo (deal with something only when it arises) · de kommt Zeit, kommt Rat (deal with something only when it arises) · sv den dagen, den sorgen (deal with something only when it arises) · pl nie martwić się na zapas (deal with something only when it arises) · fr voir le moment venu (deal with something only when it arises) · de alles zu seiner Zeit (deal with something only when it arises)