to make hay
5
6.6
- idiom
- Informal
:
aprovechar la oportunidad
- In other words, make hay while the sun shines.
- make hay while the sun
- try to make hay
Time to make hay, as the independent media companies say.
- Time to make hay, as the independent media companies say.
- And I intend when the sun is shining, to make hay.
- In other words, you know how they say make hay while the sun's shining?
Examples
-
Republicans are already making hay of the president making time to tape The View today.
Blog text (29) -
Make hay while the sun shines.
-
Time to make hay, as the independent media companies say.
-
As for making hay, I had no problem doing my share.
Fiction book (2001) -
Did we keep quiet, go along, and get along when we should have been making hay?
Blog text (10) -
You have to make hay while the sun shines.
-
Gotta make hay while the sun shines.
-
And as the farmers say, "Make hay while the sun shines."
Blog text (20) -
So, until prohibition ends, make hay while the sun shines.
-
You should make hay while the sun shines and take that job offer immediately.
Synonyms
95
4.1
To use resources or chances well to get a good result
30
4.4
Get money or other benefits from a situation, often unfairly
19
5.3
To quickly use an idea or chance to get an advantage
10
3.9
Act quickly to use a good chance
1
5.8
Act while a good chance is still there
To take a chance quickly before other people do
Antonyms
How Much Advantage
214
5.6
465
2.5
76
4.9
- Informal
5
6.6
10
3.9
14
2.8
Surface Forms
Morphology
The idiomatic sense 'to take advantage of an opportunity' is a metaphorical extension of the literal activity of 'making hay' when weather is suitable (i.e., you produce hay while the sun shines). Understanding this requires cultural/contextual knowledge that haymaking must be done in good weather, so a B1 learner who only knows 'make' and 'hay' may not reliably infer the idiomatic meaning without exposure. Therefore the expression is partially transparent but not fully compositional.
Etymology
The idiom make hay comes from farming. Farmers must cut grass and dry it into hay while the sun is out, so the phrase now means 'to take advantage of an opportunity'.