a friend in need is a friend indeed

== English == === Etymology === The idea that false friends will abandon a person in times of adversity while true friends will reveal themselves and provide help is ancient: the Greek playwright Euripides (c. 480 – c. 406 BC) wrote in Hecuba (424 BC), ἐν τοῖς κακοῖς γὰρ ἁγαθοὶ σαφέστατοι φίλοι: τὰ χρηστὰ δ’ αὔθ’ ἕκαστ’ ἔχει φίλους (en toîs kakoîs gàr hagathoì saphéstatoi phíloi: tà khrēstà d’ aúth’ hékast’ ékhei phílous, “it is in trouble’s hour that the good most clearly show their friendship; though prosperity by itself in every case finds friends”), and the Roman poet Ennius (c. 239 – c. 169 BC) observed in his Tragedies that amicus certus in re incerta cernitur (“a sure friend is known in unsure times”). === Pronunciation === (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ə ˌfɹɛnd ɪn ˈniːd ɪz ə ˌfɹɛnd ɪnˈdiːd/ (General American) IPA(key): /ə ˌfɹɛnd ən ˈnid ɪz ə ˌfɹɛnd ɪnˈdid/ Rhymes: -iːd Hyphenation: a friend in need is a friend in‧deed === Proverb === a friend in need is a friend indeed If a friend helps one when one is in need, that person is a true friend. If a friend is in need of help, it is beneficial and wise to help them. ==== Usage notes ==== The second sense (“a friend [who is] in need is a friend indeed”) arose from a misunderstanding of the original meaning (“a friend [who is there when you are] in need is a friend indeed”). ==== Translations ==== ==== See also ==== all-weather friend, fair-weather friend === References === === Further reading === Gregory Y. Titelman (1996), Random House Dictionary of Popular Proverbs & Sayings, New York, N.Y.: Random House, →ISBN, page 107.