if it ain't broke, don't fix it

English

Alternative forms

• if it ain't broken, don't fix it

Etymology

Attested since c. 1962, originally Southern United States English; popularized by T. Bert Lance in May 1977.

Proverb

if it ain't broke, don't fix it

1. It is wise to leave something alone and to avoid attempting to correct, fix, or improve what is already sufficient (often with an implication that is the attempted improvement is risky and might backfire).

   I know it’s an ugly-looking antenna, but it gets the job done, and if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

Synonyms

• don't mess with success
• if it ain't busted, don't fix it
• leave well enough alone
• if it works, it works

Coordinate terms

• don’t change a winning team
• don’t change horses in midstream
• don’t mess with success
• let sleeping dogs lie

Translations

leave something alone

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 東西沒壞就別修它 / 东西没坏就别修它 (dōngxi méi huài jiù bié xiū tā)

• Danish: please add this translation if you can
• Finnish: älä korjaa sitä, mikä ei ole rikki
• French: on ne change pas une équipe qui gagne (fr)
• German: ist es nicht hin, mach es nicht heil, repariere nichts, was nicht kaputt ist
• Hebrew: מה שעובד ־ לא נוגעים, אם זה לא מקולקל, אל תתקן
• Hindi: जो चीज़ खराब नहीं है उसे ठीक ना करें (jo cīz kharāb nahī̃ hai use ṭhīk nā karẽ)
• Hungarian: ha nincs baja, ne javítsd meg
• Japanese: 角を矯めて牛を殺す (ja) (つのをためて うしをころす, tsuno-wo-tamete ushi-wo-korosu)
• Polish: nie szukaj dziury w całym
• Portuguese: em time que está ganhando, não se mexe
• Russian: не сломалось — не чини (ne slomalosʹ — ne čini)
• Spanish: si funciona, no lo toques
• Swedish: om det inte är trasigt, fixa det inte
• Ukrainian: не зла́мано - не ладна́й (ne zlámano - ne ladnáj)