make the best of it

Idioms  

1. Also, make the best of a bad bargain. Adapt as well as possible to a bad situation, bad luck, or similar circumstances, as in Jeff ended up in a cabin without his friends, but decided to make the best of it, or She got the worst possible position, but Dad told her to make the best of a bad bargain. The first term dates from the first half of the 1600s. The second appeared in John Ray's proverb collection of 1670 and coexisted for a time with variants such as make the best of a bad game and make the best of a bad market, which have died out.

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Example Sentences

"It's hard right now, so we might as well try to make the best of it," he told AFP.

From Barron's • Mar. 10, 2026

Others are prepared to make the best of it.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 17, 2025

They seemed to make the best of it, despite a lot of turmoil.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 22, 2025

“As parents you want to do what you can to make the best of it, and relocating schools halfway through someone’s elementary career, though they’ll be fine in the end, it’s not ideal.”

From Seattle Times • May 10, 2024

I don’t want to make the best of it.

From "Internment" by Samira Ahmed