I know "It was fine while it lasted" means that an experience or situation was enjoyable while it was happening, but now it's over and so you have to move on. Suppose the COVID-19 lockdown is over. Can I say then "It was a bitter pill while it lasted."
2 Answers
Saying "it was a bitter pill while it lasted" doees not make that much sense. If you were to say that to a native speaker, they would probably be confused. Also it would not make too much sense if you replaced "fine" in "it was fine while it lasted" with negative words in general," like saying "It was horrible while it lasted." It just doesn't make that much sense.
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I don't see why 'it was frightful while it lasted' doesn't make sense. It makes perfect sense. However, examining the first few of the 132 000 Google hits for " "while it lasted" -fun -funk -fine -great -nice -good -beautiful -Esther -Strickland -film" (down from over 6 million without these filters) still shows no "it was [neg adj] while it lasted' examples. There are a handful for "a nightmare while it lasted". They're just unidiomatic. Commented May 1, 2020 at 15:45
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Yes, my point i'm trying to convey is that in general the saying won't make sense with negative words as it does with positive words. There still are definitely words that will work, but they are specific words. Also, the "saying" is usually used with positive words.– SeekerCommented May 1, 2020 at 16:06
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You need to distinguish 'doesn't make sense' from 'is rarely used'. 'We had chips and fish for tea' makes just as much sense as 'We had fish and chips for tea'. Commented May 1, 2020 at 16:23
I would say at the time rather than use lasted, which has a positive polarity (as John Lawler might say); it's not absolute, but most often when someone uses the verb last there's an implied preference for duration as long as possible.
The storm was frightening at the time (but afterward we found that it had done no damage)
The storm was frightening while it lasted (but it was a thrilling fear, and I was let down a bit when it ended)
