# be cruel to be kind

> English word · Verb

## Definitions
1. To act cruelly in order to achieve a positive outcome in the future.

## Etymology
From William Shakespeare's Hamlet, Act 3, Scene 4: "I must be cruel, only to be kind: / Thus bad begins and worse remains behind."

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/be-cruel-to-be-kind