finger in the pie

7.2

To have a part in something and some control

idiom

Informal

: meter mano en

Whenever there is a new venture, it's common for CEOs to have a finger in the pie to steer its direction.

I was going to start my next company and Reed wanted to keep a finger in the pie here.

Examples

The committee decided that everyone should have a finger in the pie to promote collaboration among the members.
And Ed Chilton's got a finger in the pie too.

Pollyanna (1960)
He didn't wanna put his fingers in the pie.

Just Go with It (2011)
You see, Rally had his finger in the pie of privateering, and Pedro Samienzo de Gamboa was taken captive by Rally's privateers.
Several investors want to keep their finger in the pie to ensure they can influence the project's outcome.

Synonyms

to have a hand in

vsfinger in the pie

31 3.9

Help make something happen or influence how it is done

focuses on being one of several participants rather than shaping the outcome

Antonyms

to disengage

82 5.3

To stop being part of or connected to something

to keep out

31 1.0

To stay outside a place and not go in

How Involved

to lead

∞ 1.0

finger in the pie

Informal

7.2

to take part

169 1.4

to help out

Informal

486 1.0

to stand by

90 4.2

Surface Forms

finger in the pie singular

fingers in the pie plural

Morphology

finger + in + the + pie

The literal words evoke the image of physically putting a finger into a pie, which can suggest involvement or meddling, so there is a visible metaphorical link to ‘being involved.’ However, the specific sense ‘to have influence or participate’ is idiomatic and culture-specific (and other languages often use different metaphors), so a B1 learner who only knows the constituents may not reliably infer the exact meaning.

Etymology

Finger in the pie comes from the simple image of someone putting a finger into a pie to take a piece or taste while it is being made. That clear picture explains why it now means 'to be involved in or have influence over something'.