have the wolf by the ear

动词 v.
中文释义

英文释义

动词 v.
  1. To be in a dangerous situation from which one cannot disengage, but in which one cannot safely remain. idiomatic

词形变化

has the wolf by the ear present,singular,third-person having the wolf by the ear participle,present had the wolf by the ear participle,past had the wolf by the ear past

词源

Initially attributed to Roman Emperor Tiberius circa year 1 AD by biographer C. Suetonius Tranquillus.
United States, 1820, Thomas Jefferson, writing about the institution of slavery and the Missouri Compromise:
: "But, as it is, we have the wolf by the ear, and we can neither hold him nor safely let him go. Justice is in one scale, and self-preservation in the other."
:: — Thomas Jefferson to John Holmes (discussing slavery and the Missouri question), Monticello, 22 April 1820
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