all for the best; what is right
Fixed expression meaning that something is ultimately for the best or is the right thing. Often used in the phrase 良かれと思って (thinking it was for the best).
良かれと思ってやったことが裏目に出た。
What I did thinking it was for the best backfired.
彼は良かれと思って忠告したのだ。
He gave advice thinking it was for the best.
Alternate kanji spelling using 善; less common.
The classical imperative of 良し, formed from the stem よから- and the imperative ending え. It survives chiefly in fixed expressions such as 良かれと思って.