to go off half-cocked
4
8.1
- idiom
- Informal
- It's important to think things through instead of just going off half-cocked and making mistakes.
- just go off half-cocked
Examples
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She went off half-cocked and got herself in legal trouble because of it.
Blog text (15) -
If I tell you something, do you promise not to go off half-cocked?
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Are we just gonna go off half-cocked?
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Try not to go off half-cocked then.
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No use going off half-cocked.
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Let's not go off half-cocked.
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There's no sense in going off half-cocked.
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Now, don't go off half-cocked.
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Don't go off half-cocked on me.
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We don't go off half-cocked based on a hunch.
Synonyms
9
8.1
To speak or act quickly without thinking carefully
3
4.4
To make a careless mistake by acting or speaking without thinking
1
9.4
Say things quickly without thinking that may hurt people or make you sorry later
1
9.2
To act too quickly without thinking first
To say things carelessly or proudly without thinking about the result
How Hasty
- Informal
4
8.1
∞
2.8
Surface Forms
Morphology
go + off + half-cocked
The verb phrase 'go off' can mean to start acting or speaking, and 'half-cocked' (from the firearm metaphor of being only partially cocked) conveys being insufficiently prepared; together they point toward acting rashly. However, the firearm-derived sense of 'half-cocked' and the idiomatic combination are culturally specific and not fully predictable for a B1 learner who only knows the literal words, so the expression is only partially transparent.
Etymology
Go off half-cocked may come from old guns. If a gun was half-cocked the hammer was not fully set and could go off, so the phrase now means 'to act before you're ready'.