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rock the boat

Meaning: To disrupt the status quo or challenge established conventions and rules.

Language: English

Literally: (Already vivid in English)

Category: Daily Life

Origin: The image of physical movement that might tip over a small boat, representing any action that destabilizes a delicate situation.

More idioms — Daily Life

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  • break the mold — To abandon convention and do something radically new or different.
  • hoist by one's own petard — To be harmed or destroyed by one's own trap or scheme meant to injure someone else.
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More English idioms

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  • sleep with the fishes — To be dead, with one's body disposed of in the ocean or a large body of water.
  • on eternal patrol — Lost or missing at sea, presumed dead.
  • all mouth and trousers — Full of loud boasting and empty talk, lacking substance or follow-through.
  • turn on one's heel — To suddenly depart or walk away, often in a dramatic or dismissive manner.
  • sugarcoat the pill — To make something unpleasant more palatable or easier to accept.

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