muddle through
to succeed without a clear plan
TRANSLATION
muddle through – sich durchwurschteln --- GOOGLE INDEX muddle through: approximately 19,200 Google hits
STATISTICS
IN THE PRESS
If Egypt can MUDDLE THROUGH the crisis, there is some cause for optimism.
(The Economist)
"The European MUDDLE-THROUGH scenario has been proven not to be a terribly good one."
(Barrington Pitt Miller, an analyst at Janus Capital Group / Bloomberg)
(The Economist)
"The European MUDDLE-THROUGH scenario has been proven not to be a terribly good one."
(Barrington Pitt Miller, an analyst at Janus Capital Group / Bloomberg)
Did you
know?
muddle through
phrasal verb
- to succeed in doing something despite having no clear plan, method, or suitable equipment
(MacMillan Dictionary)
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Using the phrase muddle through to mean "get through a situation without a real plan" was first recorded in 1680s. The verb muddle seems to come from "mud", which is wet dirt.
When you "make water muddy" or "muddy the water", it means that you stir up mud in the water until you are no longer to see anything in the water clearly. When used as a noun, a "muddle" refers to a chaotic mess.
To make things clearer, let's take a look at other expressions that use the word mud:
- muddy the water = make a situation unclear (I'd mention their debt, but that would just muddy the water)
- clear as mud = difficult to understand (What was Michael talking about? I thought his statements were as clear as mud)
- name is mud = when people are angry at you because of your actions (If you don't vote for my proposal, your name is mud)
- a stick-in-the-mud = someone who is unwilling to participate in activities (Oh, don't bother asking Tom to join us. He's such a stick-in-the mud)
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SYNONYMS
manage, get by, make it, pull it off, wing it
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SMUGGLE OWAD into today's conversation
"I haven't had time to prepare my presentation. I'll just have to muddle through somehow."
phrasal verb
- to succeed in doing something despite having no clear plan, method, or suitable equipment
(MacMillan Dictionary)
---
Using the phrase muddle through to mean "get through a situation without a real plan" was first recorded in 1680s. The verb muddle seems to come from "mud", which is wet dirt.
When you "make water muddy" or "muddy the water", it means that you stir up mud in the water until you are no longer to see anything in the water clearly. When used as a noun, a "muddle" refers to a chaotic mess.
To make things clearer, let's take a look at other expressions that use the word mud:
- muddy the water = make a situation unclear (I'd mention their debt, but that would just muddy the water)
- clear as mud = difficult to understand (What was Michael talking about? I thought his statements were as clear as mud)
- name is mud = when people are angry at you because of your actions (If you don't vote for my proposal, your name is mud)
- a stick-in-the-mud = someone who is unwilling to participate in activities (Oh, don't bother asking Tom to join us. He's such a stick-in-the mud)
---
SYNONYMS
manage, get by, make it, pull it off, wing it
---
SMUGGLE OWAD into today's conversation
"I haven't had time to prepare my presentation. I'll just have to muddle through somehow."
