a foot in both camps
- idiom
:
tener un pie en cada lado
- Because she advises two competing companies, she effectively has a foot in both camps.
Examples
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It's risky to have a foot in both camps when negotiating.
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He was accused of keeping a foot in both camps to maximize his influence.
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Journalists must avoid having a foot in both camps when covering political issues.
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She has a foot in both camps in the debate over climate change.
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As a journalist, she often found herself with a foot in both camps, reporting on both sides of the political debate.
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Being friends with both teams, he had a foot in both camps during the rivalry match.
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When it came to negotiations, her position as a mediator meant she had a foot in both camps, understanding each party's viewpoint.
Synonyms
To support two opposite sides at the same time
To support two opposite sides at the same time to please both
How Committed
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase literally evokes the image of having a foot inside each camp, so a learner who knows 'foot', 'in', 'both' and 'camp' can infer involvement with two opposing sides; the meaning is directly built from the constituents. This spatial/metaphorical composition is common cross-linguistically and follows a clear, predictable pattern, making it easily understandable to a B1 learner.
Etymology
The idiom a foot in both camps comes from the image of a person standing with one foot in one camp and the other foot in the other camp. So, it means being 'involved' or 'supporting' two opposite sides at the same time.