bite off more than one can chew

English

Pronunciation

• Audio (AU):

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Verb

bite off more than one can chew

1. (idiomatic) To try to do too much; to take on or attempt more than one is capable of doing.

   Synonym: cut off more than one can chew

   I think I bit off more than I could chew when I agreed to paint this house by myself.

Usage notes

• Often used as a caution: "don't bite off more than you can chew".

Translations

To try to do too much

• Arabic: يَقْضُمُ أَكْثَر مِمَّا يَسْتْطِيعُ مَضْغَهُ m (yaqḍumu ʔakṯar mimmā yastṭīʕu maḍḡahu)
• Catalan: qui molt abraça, poc estreny, qui molt abraça i poc estreny pateix de poc seny
• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 眼闊肚窄／眼阔肚窄 (ngaan⁵ fut³ tou⁵ zaak³), 眼阔肚窄 (ngaan⁵ fut³ tou⁵ zaak³)

  Mandarin: 貪多嚼不爛／贪多嚼不烂 (zh) (tān duō jiáo bù làn), 贪多嚼不烂 (zh) (tān duō jiáo bú làn), 好高騖遠／好高骛远 (hàogāowùyuǎn), 好高骛远 (hào gāo wù yuǎn)

• Czech: ukousnout si příliš velké sousto
• Dutch: te veel hooi op de vork nemen
• Finnish: haukata liian iso pala
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• French: avoir les yeux plus gros que le ventre (fr)
• German: sich übernehmen
• Italian: fare il passo più lungo della (propria) gamba
• Norwegian: gape over for mye, ta seg vann over hodet
• Persian: لقمه گنده‌تر از دهن (loqme-ye gonde-tar az dahan) (colloquially)
• Portuguese: dar um passo maior do que a perna
• Russian: переоцени́ть свои́ си́лы pf (pereocenítʹ svoí síly)
• Spanish: quien mucho abarca, poco aprieta (es), abarcar más de lo que se puede
• Swedish: ta sig vatten över huvudet (sv)

See also

• have eyes bigger than one's stomach