cry wolf

cry wolf
phrasal
Etymology: so called fr. the fable of the shepherd boy who gave the alarm of “wolf” in fun
: to give alarm without occasion

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cry wolf
To give a false alarm, from the story of the boy who cried ‘Wolf’ when there was none, and was not believed when there was one
• • •
Main Entry: ↑wolf

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cry wolf phrase
to keep saying that there is a problem when there is not, with the result that people do not believe you when there really is a problem

Workers in the industry have cried wolf once too often.

Thesaurus: to tell lies and deceive peoplesynonym
Main entry: wolf

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I
see wolf
II
call for help when it is not needed, with the effect that one is not believed when one really does need help
Origin:
with allusion to Aesop’s fable of the shepherd boy who deluded people with false cries of "Wolf!"

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cry wolf
: to make people think there is danger when there is really none

News organizations have been warned not to cry wolf. If people hear too many warnings that turn out to be nothing, they won't listen to the important warnings when they come.

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Main Entry: ↑cry
————————
cry wolf — see ↑cry, 1
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Main Entry: ↑wolf

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cry ˈwolf idiom
to call for help when you do not need it, with the result that when you do need it people do not believe you
Main entry: ↑cryidiom

Useful english dictionary. 2012.

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  • Cry Wolf — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda «Cry Wolf (1986)» Sencillo de a ha del álbum Scoundrel Days Publicación 16 de febrero de 1987 Formato 7 y 12 …   Wikipedia Español

  • Cry Wolf — is an expression that means raise a false alarm , derived from the fable The Boy Who Cried Wolf. Cry Wolf may also refer to: In music: Cry Wolf (Venom), 1983 song by Venom Cry Wolf (song), 1986 song by a ha Cry Wolf (Branigan), 1987 song by Laura …   Wikipedia

  • cry wolf — {v. phr.} To give a false alarm; warn of a danger that you know is not there. * /The general said that the candidate was just crying wolf when he said that the army was too weak to fight for the country./ (From an old story about a shepherd boy… …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • cry wolf — {v. phr.} To give a false alarm; warn of a danger that you know is not there. * /The general said that the candidate was just crying wolf when he said that the army was too weak to fight for the country./ (From an old story about a shepherd boy… …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • cry wolf — ► cry wolf raise repeated false alarms, so that a real cry for help is ignored. [ORIGIN: with allusion to the fable of the shepherd boy who deluded people with false cries of ‘Wolf!’] Main Entry: ↑wolf …   English terms dictionary

  • cry wolf — If someone cries wolf, they raise a false alarm about something …   The small dictionary of idiomes

  • Cry Wolf — Cette page d’homonymie répertorie les différents sujets et articles partageant un même nom. Cinéma et télévision Cry Wolf est un film américain réalisé par Peter Godfrey en 1947. Cry Wolf est un film britannique réalisé par John Davis en 1968.… …   Wikipédia en Français

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  • cry wolf —    If someone cries wolf, they raise a false alarm about something.   (Dorking School Dictionary)    ***    To cry wolf is to call for help when you are not really in danger. As a result, nobody believes you when you really need help.     There s …   English Idioms & idiomatic expressions

  • cry wolf — verb To raise a false alarm; to constantly warn others about an imagined threat, thereby failing to get assistance when a real threat appears. The politicians would cry wolf at the slightest provocation so when the real threat appeared no one… …   Wiktionary

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