irons in the fire

English[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Describing a blacksmith working on several pieces at the same time.

Pronunciation[edit]

Audio (AU) (file)

Noun[edit]

irons in the fire pl (plural only)

Tasks in progress; involvement in ongoing projects.

Usage notes[edit]

May be used with a positive connotation, e.g. "have other irons in the fire" (other projects are available if this one fails), or with a negative connotation, e.g. "too many irons in the fire" (overwhelmed by having too many tasks).

Translations[edit]

Translations

Danish: have mange jern i ilden
German: Eisen im Feuer n pl
Icelandic: hafa mörg járn í eldinum, vera ekki við eina fjölina felldur, hafa margt í takinu, vasast í mörgu
Norwegian Nynorsk: ha mange jarn i elden