desperate times call for desperate measures

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desperate times call for desperate measures

Where it comes from

This phrase likely originates with a saying of the ancient Greek physician Hippocrates, which appears in his Aphorisms: "For extreme diseases, extreme methods of cure, as to restriction, are most suitable."http://classics.mit.edu/Hippocrates/aphorisms.1.i.html. A similar phrase occurs in Erasmus's Latin adage Malo nodo, malus quærendus cuneus (from his book Adagia (1500), which was first published in English in 1545).http://books.google.com/books?id=VX_Cf4e_66IC&pg=PA73&dq=erasmus+adagia+%22malo+nodo%22&hl=en&ei=nMAFTdu5LISglAfk89CzCQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2&ved=0CCoQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q=erasmus%20adagia%20%22malo%20nodo%22&f=false

Another similar Latin saying, "extremis malis extrema remedia," appears in print as early as 1596.http://books.google.com/books?id=fCVDAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA9&dq=%22extremis+malis%22&hl=en&ei=wscFTeWqB8H_lgf2xJz_CA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=9&ved=0CE0Q6AEwCA#v=onepage&q=%22extremis%20malis%22&f=false

proverb

In adverse circumstances, actions that might have been rejected under other circumstances may become the best choice.
Similar: desperate times require desperate measures, drastic times call for drastic measures

Translations

Every language

proverb in adverse circumstances, actions that might have been rejected may become the best choice

Español	a grandes males, grandes remedios
中文	非常時期需要非常手段 /非常时期需要非常手段 fēicháng shíqí xūyào fēicháng shǒuduàn, 重症需下猛藥 /重症需下猛药 zhòngzhèng xū xià měng yào
हिन्दी	मरता क्या न करता martā kyā na kartā
Français	aux grands maux les grands remèdes
Deutsch	in der Not frisst der Teufel Fliegen
Italiano	a mali estremi, estremi rimedi
العربية	الضَّرُورَاتُ تُبِيحُ المَحْظُورَات aḍ-ḍarūrātu tubīḥu l-maḥẓūrāt

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MLA

"desperate times call for desperate measures." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/desperate%20times%20call%20for%20desperate%20measures. Accessed 7 Nov. 2026.

APA

desperate times call for desperate measures. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 7, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/desperate%20times%20call%20for%20desperate%20measures

Chicago

"desperate times call for desperate measures." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 7, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/desperate%20times%20call%20for%20desperate%20measures.

BibTeX

@misc{desperate_times_call_for_desperate_measu_2026,
  title = {desperate times call for desperate measures},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/desperate%20times%20call%20for%20desperate%20measures},
  urldate = {2026-11-07}
}