What's done is done

Etymology

One of the first-recorded uses of this phrase was by the character Lady Macbeth in Act 3, Scene 2 of the tragedy play Macbeth (early 17th century), by the English playwright William Shakespeare, who said: "Things without all remedy Should be without regard: what's done, is done" and "Give me your hand. What's done cannot be undone.To bed, to bed, to bed!"

Shakespeare did not coin the phrase; it may actually be a derivative of the early 14th-century French proverb: Mez quant ja est la chose fecte, ne peut pas bien estre desfecte, which is translated into English as "But when a thing is already done, it cannot be undone". Some scholars have suggested that Shakespeare may have learned some version of the expression from a classical source, such as Sophocles, or more likely a Latin translation of his work.

References

References

1. "What does "what's done is done" mean?". [[Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company]] (via [[yourdictionary.com]]).
2. "What's Done is Done – Shakespeare Quotes". [[eNotes]].
3. "Macbeth: Act 5, Scene 1, Page 3". [[SparkNotes]].
4. Bruce, Elyse. (June 29, 2010). "What's Done Is Done". Idiomation.
5. Harvey, John. (1977). "A note on Shakespeare and Sophocles". Essays in Criticism.