The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Proverbs (250 page)

BOOK: The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Proverbs
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Don't HALLOO till you are out of the wood
Do not exult until all danger or difficulty is past.
Halloo
literally means to shout in order to attract attention.
1770
Papers
(1973) XVIII. 356
This is Hollowing before you are out of the Wood.
1800
Letter
13 Nov. (1848) 381
It is an old and a just proverb, ‘Never halloo until you are out of the woods.’
1866
Hereward the Wake
I. iii.
Don't holla till you are out of the wood. This is a night for praying rather than boasting.
1908
H.M.I.
xxii.
The Duke .. wrote Dont halloo till you are out of the wood.
1936
‘’
Crime Counter Crime
i.
Don't halloo till you're out of the wood. I'll bet my head to a china orange we shall have trouble before to-morrow night.
peril
;
trouble
When all you have is a HAMMER, everything looks like a nail
Principally known in North America.
1981
New York Times
11 Nov. D13
‘There is frequently a lack of understanding of what power is—I've got power, therefore I'm right,’ he said. ‘When you've got a hammer, everything looks like a nail.’
1989
PC Magazine
14 Mar. 78
That kind of crude misapplication of PCs and PC software—the computer world's equivalent of the old saw that ‘when all you have is a hammer, everything starts to look like a nail’—means death for productivity.
1991
Washington Post
18 Feb. A25
If the only tool you have is a hammer, some sage once said, then all problems look like nails. That witticism may shed some light on the racial anger that has become a commonplace on American college campuses—and in much of American society.
1997
Washington Times
30 Apr. A16
As the saying goes, when the only tool in your box is a hammer, every problem looks like a nail.
necessity
;
ways and means
BOOK: The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Proverbs
8.18Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
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