to stick to one's knitting
1
8.6
- idiom
- Informal
:
centrarse en lo suyo
- You should have stuck to your knitting and avoided those distractions.
Examples
-
Walter knows that his real job is to run his existing business, and he plans to stick to his knitting.
Fiction book (2002) -
You'll be sorry you did not stay at home, and stick to your knitting.
-
Walter knows that his real job is to run his existing business, and he plans to stick to his knitting.
-
When working on the project, it's important to stick to your knitting and not get sidetracked by others.
Synonyms
∞
2.0
Give most attention and effort to one person or task
561
3.4
To give all your attention to one thing
343
3.0
Keep doing something without changing it, for example following a plan
41
4.2
To work hard and focus on a task
15
5.6
Pay attention to the main goal and avoid distractions
14
3.5
To focus all your attention and effort on achieving something
9
3.2
To focus on a goal without getting distracted
To focus on your own work and not get involved in other people's work
Only work in the area you know well
To continue to think about something as an important goal
Antonyms
How Focused
- Informal
1
8.6
9
3.2
- Formal
1
3.2
45
4.8
Surface Forms
Morphology
Although 'stick to' is compositional, the use of 'knitting' as a metaphor for one's tasks or area of expertise is culture-specific and not a predictable extension of the literal craft. A B1 learner who knows the constituent words would likely interpret this literally (continue knitting) or be unable to infer the figurative sense 'focus on your own work,' so the idiomatic meaning is not derivable from the parts.
Etymology
Stick to one's knitting comes from the simple image of a person working quietly on a piece of knitting, choosing to stick with the knitting and not start other jobs or hobbies, and always keeping their hands on the work. So it now means 'to keep doing your own job and not get distracted by other things'.