- someone can't see the wood for the trees
- British informal
used for saying that someone cannot understand what is important in a situation because they are thinking too much about small details
English dictionary. 2014.
someone can't see the wood for the trees
Look at other dictionaries:
someone can't see the wood for the trees — someone can’t see the wood for the trees british informal phrase used for saying that someone cannot understand what is important in a situation because they are thinking too much about small details Thesaurus: not showing careful thought or good … Useful english dictionary
can't see the wood for the trees — If someone can t see the wood for the trees, they are so concentrated on the details that they can t see the situation as a whole. The new manager found the situation so complicated that he couldn t see the wood for the trees … English Idioms & idiomatic expressions
can't see the wood for the trees — British, American & Australian, American & Australian if someone can t see the wood for the trees, they are unable to understand what is important in a situation because they are giving too much attention to details. After you ve spent years… … New idioms dictionary
can't see the woodfor the trees — If someone can t see the wood for the trees, they are so concentrated on the details that they can t see the situation as a whole. The new manager found the situation so complicated that he couldn t see the wood for the trees … English Idioms & idiomatic expressions
wood for the trees — (UK) If someone can t see the wood for the trees, they get so caught up in small details that they fail to understand the bigger picture … The small dictionary of idiomes
wood for the trees — (UK) If someone can t see the wood for the trees, they get so caught up in small details that they fail to understand the bigger picture. (Dorking School Dictionary) … English Idioms & idiomatic expressions
Wood for the trees — (UK) If someone can t see the wood for the trees, they get so caught up in small details that they fail to understand the bigger picture … Dictionary of English idioms
wood */*/*/ — UK [wʊd] / US noun Word forms wood : singular wood plural woods 1) [uncountable] the substance that forms the main part of a tree and is used for making things such as furniture a piece of wood the polished dark wood of an antique table cut/chop… … English dictionary
see — see1 W1S1 [si:] v past tense saw [so: US so:] past participle seen [si:n] ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ 1¦(notice/examine)¦ 2¦(notice something is true)¦ 3¦(ability to see)¦ 4¦(find out information)¦ 5¦(in the future)¦ 6¦(where information is)¦ 7¦(understand)¦ … Dictionary of contemporary English
see — 1 /si:/ verb past tense saw past participle seen /si:n/ UNDERSTAND/REALIZE 1 (I, T) to understand or realize something: I can see that you re not very happy with the situation. | Seeing his distress, Louise put her arm around him. (+ why/what/who … Longman dictionary of contemporary English
