to get in the weeds
7
8.4
- phrasal verb
- Jargon
:
perderse en los detalles
- Economic issues are hard (to those not trained), and people are easily lost in the weeds.
- get in the weeds
- lost in the weeds
But so we got a couple things to knock out before we get in the weeds.
- But so we got a couple things to knock out before we get in the weeds.
- I want to focus mostly on your new book Nuclear War, but we have we got to knock a couple things out before we get in the weeds.
Examples
-
Robert Costa of the National Review rightly points out that Ryan can't get too wonkish about policy or risk "getting lost in the weeds"—he should stick to a few central themes and hammer Biden on the economy:
Blog text (23) -
During the project discussion, I realized we had gotten in the weeds and lost sight of our main goals.
-
However, it's easy to get lost in the weeds.
Blog text (4) -
This is an example of being "lost in the weeds."
Blog text (3) -
However, in her effort to rebuild after the economy crashed, she got lost in the weeds of her ideas.
Academic text (2010) -
When you're in the weeds and unhappy about it, having somebody guide you out is certainly a relief.
Academic text (2012) -
We really needn't get in the weeds and try to evaluate which argument has the greatest merit.
Blog text (23) -
It will mean rolling up our sleeves and getting in the weeds.
Blog text (5) -
There is a temptation to get lost in the weeds of when Obama recognized that the Libya attack was, indeed, an act of terror.
Blog text (1) -
But I do think it means that sometimes we get lost in the weeds, where we can only see the specific problem and look for a post-hoc corrective to it, rather than stepping back and saying, "Wait, how did we get here in the first place?"
Blog text (19)
Synonyms
2
5.4
To keep thinking about a small detail and not move forward
1
8.3
Giving too much attention to small details that you lose sight of the main goal
Antonyms
How Detailed
17
6.3
- Jargon
7
8.4
- Informal
1
6.7
32
7.0
9
6.0
Surface Forms
Morphology
The constituent words ('get in' + 'the weeds') create a clear physical image of entering a tangled, overgrown place, so learners can likely infer a general sense of being overwhelmed or stuck. However, the specific, figurative meaning — becoming lost in fine details or sidetracked from the main point (often a workplace idiom) — is a specialized metaphorical extension and not fully predictable without exposure.
Etymology
Get in the weeds comes from busy kitchens and service work: when a cook or server has too many orders they feel surrounded by weeds, like they cannot move. So the phrase means 'to get lost in small details' and miss the main point.