might/may as well

idiom

—used to say that something should be done or accepted because it cannot be avoided or because there is no good reason not to do it

You might as well tell them the truth.

We may as well begin now.

(informal) "Should we start now?" "Might as well."

—used to say that something else could have been done with the same result

The party was so dull that I might (just) as well have stayed home.

Examples of might/may as well in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web To the queen, her face an increasingly strained mask for her white-hot fury, they may as well have been cast into the wilderness. —

Guy Lodge, Variety, 9 Aug. 2024 Its gleaming picture windows and grass green exterior might as well have been the gates to the Emerald City, behind which mysterious healing modalities awaited. —

Deborah Vankin, Los Angeles Times, 8 Aug. 2024 The brutal pruning of the family tree might as well be a mercy killing. —

Inkoo Kang, The New Yorker, 5 Aug. 2024 And anyway, given the anemic state of mainstream modern rock in 2024, the band might as well be the Rolling Stones at this point. —

Brian McCollum, Detroit Free Press, 1 Aug. 2024 See all Example Sentences for might/may as well

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'might/may as well.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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“Might/may as well.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/might%2Fmay%20as%20well. Accessed 19 Aug. 2024.

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