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life lesson

British

noun

something from which useful knowledge or principles can be learned

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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.

That’s more of a life lesson than I thought I would receive when I bought it.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 23, 2025

"The biggest life lesson I have learned from him is that, even if you really want to express something, there are hundreds of millions of people watching, and the way you do it is super-important."

From BBC • Dec. 8, 2024

Biden is more likely to name one of his dad’s business setbacks, rather than his successes, as providing a key life lesson.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 13, 2024

That kind of life lesson is a financial gift, too.

From Seattle Times • Dec. 4, 2023

I felt like shouting, “Obviously not, Ms. McCrea!” but I didn’t want to be the suffering kid there to teach the other students a life lesson.

From "Here to Stay" by Sara Farizan

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