you can't win

Idioms

Also, you just can't win. Whatever one does is wrong or not enough, as in Every time I block one of the woodchuck's holes, I find another; you just can't win. [First half of 1900s] For a synonym, see damned if I do, damned if I don't.

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.

See Examples For:

you can't win

“If you know about open source, you’d know that you can’t win by exclusion.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026

I think there's some people you can win over and there's some people you can't win over.

From Salon ● Oct. 18, 2024

“It’s a special group of guys, and I enjoy being around them. And then I prioritize winning, and you can’t win alone.”

From Washington Times ● Dec. 1, 2023

“Guess you can’t win them all,” he half-joked in his acceptance speech while celebrating his fellow Heisman finalists C.J.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 24, 2023

“Shame you can't win any friends here, Taylor.”

From "Black Swan Green" by David Mitchell

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