rocket scientist

English

Noun

rocket scientist (plural rocket scientists)

1. (countable, colloquial) astronautical engineer
2. (countable, hyperbolic) someone qualified to understand or handle that which is overly complex, detailed or confusing; genius

   You don't have to be a rocket scientist to see that that idea won't work.

Usage notes

• This phrase is usually used in a negative comparison, as in the example above, to show that something is (or should be) simple, straightforward, or obvious.

Translations

capable of understanding complex things

• Finnish: rakettitieteilijä
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• French: grand clerc m, Einstein (fr) m, polytechnicien (fr) m, avoir fait Polytechnique (pas besoin d'avoir fait Polytechnique pour...)

See also

• brain surgeon