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“If worst comes to worst” means “if the worst possibility occurs” or “if the situationdevelops in the most serious or unpleasant way,” but what is the correct form of this idiom? You may hear “if worst comes to worst,” “if worse comes to worst,” or even “if worse comes to worse.” All three versions can be found in use by English speakers, and most people don’t know or agree on which one is correct. Even major news outlets vary in preference!
The simple answer is that “if worst comes to worst” is the original and is still acceptable today, “if worse comes to worst” has become more popular over time (and may be considered more logical) and is also acceptable and common, and “if worse comes to worse” is generally not listed in dictionaries and is considered to be wrong by some scholars, but it is still commonly used by English speakers. In short, if you are using this idiom on an English test, like IELTS, avoid using “if worse comes to worse,” but in most other cases, it really doesn’t matter because no one will notice a difference!
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