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Glite Dictionary
to walk a tightrope

to walk a tightrope

4 7.7
To be in a difficult situation where you must be very careful to avoid failure or trouble
  • idiom
  • Informal
translation icon : caminar en la cuerda floja
  • Can you walk a tightrope?
  • walk a tightrope," said
  • trying to walk a tightrope
  • walking a tightrope on this issue

Examples

  • I walked a tightrope between exile and the gallows.

    Taking Sides (2002)

  • As the project deadline approached, Jason found that he was walking a tightrope to ensure everything was completed without any mistakes.

  • Mom has to really walk a tightrope with this.

    Blog text (23)

  • "You're walking a tightrope the whole time, trying to make smart choices."

    Fiction book (1997)

  • 5 things for startups to consider as they walk a tightrope towards regulatory approval.

    Blog text (21)

  • You walk a tightrope between sassing your guards and falling at their feet.

    Fiction book (1999)

  • That Dr Reinhardt is walking a tightrope between genius and insanity.

    The Black Hole (1979)

  • The NPS, for its part, has been forced to walk a tightrope between science and respect for Navajo traditions, whatever their origins may be.

    Academic text (2009)

  • From the beginning, Khatami had to walk a tightrope if he was to give Iranians hope for change without risking a strong backlash from the rightist faction.

    Academic text (2001)

  • Healthcare professionals face the challenge of walking a tightrope—balancing safely between the need to prevent potential infection through judicious prophylactic use of antimicrobials and the excess or injudicious use of these "wonder weapons."

    Academic text (2005)

Synonyms

to watch your step
vsto walk a tightrope
63 3.7

Be careful when you move and act to avoid danger and trouble

applies to high risk situations needing exact actions to avoid serious trouble
to tread lightly
vsto walk a tightrope
9 5.6

To act carefully to avoid hurting feelings or making mistakes

focuses on high danger and precise moves to prevent failure or trouble
to tread carefully
vsto walk a tightrope
6 3.9

Act carefully to avoid mistakes, danger, or upsetting others

requires more precise action in danger where small errors cause failure
to walk on a razor's edge
vsto walk a tightrope
  • Informal
8.6

To be in a very dangerous situation where a small mistake causes big harm

is less focused on tiny mistakes causing very serious outcomes
to walk on the high rope
vsto walk a tightrope
  • Informal
8.6

To be in a risky situation that needs great care to avoid failure

focuses more on precise action to prevent trouble rather than general instability
to tiptoe through a minefield
vsto walk a tightrope
  • Informal
8.8

To act very carefully in a difficult situation to avoid mistakes or offend people

is about avoiding failure in dangerous situations rather than mainly avoiding offense

Antonyms

to stabilize
  • US
75 4.3

To become steady and stop changing

How Risky

to play with fire
  • Informal
22 5.8
to walk a tightrope
  • Informal
4 7.7
to walk the line
  • Informal
5 6.8

Surface Forms

walk a tightrope infinitive
walked a tightrope past
walked a tightrope past participle
walking a tightrope present participle
walks a tightrope third person singular

Morphology

walk + a + tightrope

The phrase evokes the literal image of walking on a tightrope, so a learner who knows 'walk' and 'tightrope' can plausibly infer the sense of being in a precarious, high-risk situation requiring careful balance. However, this is a metaphorical extension from a physical scene to an abstract situation rather than a strictly compositional meaning, so it is not fully predictable without some exposure.

Etymology

The idiom walk a tightrope comes from the circus image of a performer carefully moving along a very thin, high tightrope, where one small mistake can make them fall. So, we say someone is walking a tightrope when they are in a 'risky situation' and must act very carefully to avoid failure or trouble.