Nip in the bud comes from horticulture, where trimming a bud from a plant prevents the bud from becoming a flower or fruit. Used metaphorically, the phrase usually means to stop a potential problem before it develops. For example, you might nip an argument in the bud by coming to a compromise immediately, or you might nip an illness in the bud by taking medicine as soon as you feel symptoms.
Some plants thrive when buds are selectively nipped—even when the nipped buds are not especially harmful—so a slightly different metaphorical meaning of nip in the bud would be to end something early for the sake of a greater good. But the phrase is usually used in the first sense.
Photo by wackybadger - http://flic.kr/p/7ZcTba
1 comment:
A great phrase! My 15 year old nephew, David, just learned this phrase this last week while volunteering at a tech camp. He witnessed a young boy taking someone else's lunch so made him sit at a table by himself. When the teacher heard what David had done, he complimented him and told him its best to "nip these things in the bud." Needless to say, he seems to be enjoying the ability to nip things in the bud!
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