In this world nothing is certain but death and taxes

Cultural

Death and taxes are the only things that we can be sure of. This saying comes from the letters of Benjamin Franklin.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

In this world nothing is certain but death and taxes and debates about cultural appropriation.

From New York Times

The case might have surprised even Benjamin Franklin, who said that "in this world nothing is certain but death and taxes."Last week nine-year-old Carmin Fisher of Junction City, Ore., found out that the Internal Revenue Service had seized the $70.76 in her account at a local bank.

From Time Magazine Archive

Our Constitution is in actual operation; everything appears to promise that it will last; but in this world nothing is certain but death and taxes.

From Project Gutenberg

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023