“De een zijn dood is de ander zijn brood” literally translates to “One person’s death is another person’s bread.” It means that one person’s misfortune can become another person’s advantage, sometimes in a direct and practical way.

It is not always about literal death. It often points to the uncomfortable reality that when something ends for one person, it can create an opening for someone else.

What it really implies

The proverb is a blunt way of describing how opportunities shift:

• When someone leaves a role, someone else gets hired or promoted.
• When one business fails, another business gains customers.
• When one person loses access to something, another person may gain it.
• When a crisis happens, certain people or companies may profit from solving it.

It is basically saying: life is not “fair” in a tidy moral way, because outcomes are connected, and benefits sometimes come from someone else’s loss.

Why “bread” is used

In Dutch, “bread” often stands for livelihood or income, not just food. So “another person’s bread” means “another person’s way of making a living.” The saying frames it as survival and money, not celebration.

Examples of using it in a conversation

Example 1: A job opening

A: “Did you hear the manager resigned?”
B: “Yeah, it’s messy, but it does mean a promotion might open up. De een zijn dood is de ander zijn brood.”

Example 2: Business competition

A: “That shop down the road shut down.”
B: “I feel bad for them, but we’re already getting calls from their customers. De een zijn dood is de ander zijn brood.”

Example 3: Losing a contract

A: “They lost that fleet account.”
B: “We picked it up right away. De een zijn dood is de ander zijn brood.”

Example 4: A team position opens up

A: “He got cut from the roster.”
B: “Brutal, but now there’s space for a new player. De een zijn dood is de ander zijn brood.”

Tone and when to be careful

This proverb can sound cold, because it names the benefit out loud. If someone is grieving, or if the situation is personal, it can come across as disrespectful.

It is best used when:

• you are talking about business realities, competition, or shifting opportunities
• everyone already understands the situation is unfortunate
• you are describing the pattern, not cheering for the bad outcome

If you want a softer version in English, you might say: “Every loss creates an opening,” or “One door closes, another opens,” though those are much gentler and do not carry the same blunt edge.

The origin or possible origin

This is an old, widely recorded Dutch proverb. Versions of it appear in early Dutch proverb collections from centuries ago. The likely origin is everyday reality in older societies where livelihoods were closely tied to succession: if someone died, another person might inherit property, take over a job, assume a trade position, or otherwise gain a source of income.

In other words, the proverb probably grew out of common experiences where one person’s end, whether death, dismissal, or failure, directly created someone else’s “bread,” meaning their living.

If you want, I can also rewrite it in a more modern, conversational article style, or give a list of “safe” alternatives you can use in public or on social media without sounding harsh.