hostage to fortune
noun/ˌhɒstɪd͡ʒ tə ˈfɔːt͡ʃuːn/UK/ˌhɑstɪd͡ʒ tə ˈfoɹt͡ʃun/US
Etymology
From hostage (“one who is compelled by something, especially something that poses a threat”) + to + fortune (“destiny”).
Definitions
An action, promise, or remark that is considered unwise because it could be difficult to…
An action, promise, or remark that is considered unwise because it could be difficult to fulfil or could cause trouble later on.
- He was very cautious with his words and gave no hostages to fortune.
- VVife and Children are Hoſtages given to Fortune.
A person or thing whose fate is seen as dependent on chance or luck.
- Once several good outfits are prepared, any one of which can attack a Japanese-held base or island and beat the life out of the garrison, all their islands will become hostages to fortune.
- Too many [rail] companies are hostages to fortune by relying on RDW [rest day working] agreements to run their timetable.
The neighborhood
Vish — recursive loop
No curated loop yet for hostage to fortune. Loops are being traced one word at a time while the ingestion pipeline matures.
sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA