
second-guess
Meaning: To dispute or try to understand someone's reason for doing something.
Example: “Stop second-guessing yourself; the first answer was right.”
Origin: Grew out of American baseball slang: by 1913, a "second-guesser" was a fan or spectator who loudly criticized a manager's or player's decisions after the fact, safely armed with hindsight the person actually making the call in real time never had. Baseball umpires themselves were sometimes nicknamed "the guesser," sharpening the contrast between the first, real-time guess made under pressure and the easy second one made from the stands with no consequences attached. "Second-guess" as a verb in its own right is documented from 1938, with sportswriter Damon Runyon using it that November, and the word carries two related but distinct senses today: criticizing a past decision after the fact, or trying to anticipate someone else's next move in advance.
More English idioms
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- shot in the dark A guess, often wild or based on little information.
- sit tight To wait quietly and patiently, often in an anxious situation.
- sitting pretty In a good or advantageous situation; living comfortably.
Explore another collection: Compliments & Insults
Compliments and insults from around the world, from the sweet to the savage.
- Bête comme ses pieds Really not very bright.
- Avoir un poil dans la main To be incurably lazy.
- Tête de linotte A scatterbrain who can't hold a thought.
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