unpunished

no good deed ever goes unpunished

Due to the cruelty, ignorance, or selfishness of the world or others, one's good deeds or good intentions will often result in more trouble than they are worth. An ironic and sardonic twist on the more standard moral that "no good deed goes unrewarded." Janet: "I decided to help George clean out his gutters, but now he's got me doing all sorts of repairs around the house!" Bill: "I guess no good deed ever goes unpunished, eh?"

See also: deed, ever, goes, good, no, unpunished

No good deed goes unpunished.

proverb Due to the cruelty, ignorance, or selfishness of the world or others, one's good deeds or good intentions will often result in more trouble than they are worth. An ironic and sardonic twist on the more standard moral that "no good deed goes unrewarded." Janet: "I decided to help George clean out his gutters, but now he's got me doing all sorts of repairs around the house!" Bill: "I guess no good deed goes unpunished, eh?"

See also: deed, goes, good, no

Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

no good deed goes unpunished

A kindness or other positive behavior often is rewarded with opprobrium or abuse. This new, equally sarcastic take on “the way to hell is paved with good intentions” dates from the late 1900s. William Lashner used it, “But that’s the way of it, Detective . . . No good deed goes unpunished.” And Sue Miller used it in The Lake Shore Limited (2010), where a girl who had a car accident said “I was visiting my . . . great-aunt. She’s in a nursing home” and the man who helped her says, “Well no good deed goes unpunished.”

See also: deed, goes, good, no, unpunished

The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer Copyright © 2013 by Christine Ammer