Meaning of Idiom ‘Bear Fruit’
To bear fruit means to produce results; to have a satisfactory outcome or favorable outcome. 1Kirkpatrick, Elizabeth M. The Wordsworth Dictionary of Idioms. Ware: Wordsworth, 1995. 2Ammer, Christine. American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013.
Usage Examples
“If this effort is going to bear fruit we all need to give it our best.”
“He’s had a lot of ideas, but this is the first one to bear fruit.”
“The investigation into his alleged ties to organized crime never bore fruit.”
Origin
This idiom alludes figuratively to a tree producing fruit. The metaphor appears many times in the Bible, especially in regards to “bearing spiritual fruit.”
More Idioms Starting with B
More Bear Idioms
More Bible Idioms
- Leopard Can’t Change Its Spots, a
- Writing On the Wall
- Turn the Other Cheek
- Take As Gospel
- Skin and Bones (nothing but)
- See Eye to Eye
More Fruit Idioms
This page contains one or more affiliate links. See full affiliate disclosure.
YouTube and Facebook Group
Sources
| 1. | ↲ | Kirkpatrick, Elizabeth M. The Wordsworth Dictionary of Idioms. Ware: Wordsworth, 1995. |
| 2. | ↲ | Ammer, Christine. American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013. |