The expression “unable to see the wood for the trees” means: Too beset by petty things to appreciate greatness or grandeur; too wrapped up in details to gain a view of the whole.
In America we are likely to use the plural, “woods,” or possibly to substitute “forest,” but “wood” is the old form and is preferable.
Yes, the saying is at least five hundred years old, and probably a century or two could be added to that, for it must have long been in use to have been recorded in 1546 in John Heywood’s A Dialogue Conteynyng the Nomber in Effect of all the Prouerbes in the Englishe Tongue.
He wrote: “Plentie is no deinte, ye see not your owne ease. I see, ye can not see the wood for trees.”
And a few years later, in 1583, Brian Melbancke, in Philotimus: the Warre Betwixt Nature and Fortune, wrote: “Thou canst not or wilt not see wood for trees.”
The saying has cropped up repeatedly from then to the present, becoming, in fact, more frequent with the passing years.
Related Posts
-
Why Are Other Countries Unable To Send Enough Food To African Countries During Times of Famine?
The rest of the world produces enough food to feed Africa, but the problem is that it's often difficult or impossible to get it to the people who need it. Roads are very…
-
Why Do Cats Love to Climb Trees and Refuse to Come Down and Which Cat Actually Lives in Trees?
Many cats have a habit of settling or perching in high places such as ledges, and this fondness is based on instinct. In the wild, a higher place may serve as a perfect…
-
Can trees grow out of rocks with no soil and why were there no trees on the prairies of the Great Plains?
One important reason is that the complex ecology of the prairie environment is formed by a cycle of fires and regrowth of a succession of fire-tolerant plants, and trees do not survive the…
-
What Are the Oldest Living Trees In California and How Old Are the Bristlecone Pine Trees In California?
California's redwood trees are not the oldest living things in the world, but they are the tallest. One redwood tree in Redwood National Park is 368 feet (112 m) tall. One of the…
-
Where Did the Expression “Knock on Wood” Come From and What Does it Mean?
When kids play tag and hold a tree for safety, they are acting out a four-thousand-year-old custom of the North American Indians. They believed that because the oak was most frequently struck by…
-
What does the phrase “to knock on wood” mean and Where does it come from?
Why do even those among us who loudly proclaim utter freedom from superstition feel just a bit reluctant to state that such and such calamity has never happened without immediately feeling an urge…
