# thereby hangs a tale

> English word · Phrase

## Definitions
1. Used to indicate that something requires a long story or explanation to fully understand.

## Etymology
Coined by William Shakespeare in 1623 in "As you Like it," act 2, scene 7:
: And so from hour to hour we ripe and ripe,
: And then from hour to hour we rot and rot,
: And thereby hangs a tale.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/thereby-hangs-a-tale