Dicho español · Spanish proverb

«Mientras hay vida, hay esperanza.»

Word for word

While there is life, there is hope.

What it really means

The closest English equivalent: While there's life, there's hope.

Used to console someone facing a grave or uncertain situation, emphasizing that as long as one is alive, things can improve.

Hear it in a sentence

No te rindas, que mientras hay vida, hay esperanza.

Don't give up, because while there's life, there's hope.

Why learn dichos?

Proverbs like this one are everywhere in spoken Spanish — dropped mid-conversation, usually just the first half, with the rest left for you to complete. Recognizing them is one of the fastest ways to sound less like a textbook and follow real speech. Every Lingocito edition signs off with the dicho del día, so you meet one a day next to news written at your exact level.

← All 60 Spanish dichos

Get a dicho a day — with news at YOUR level.

Real news rewritten to exactly your Spanish level (A1–C2), one dicho per edition, every morning. Free.

Get the free newsletter →