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MWT Posted 9 years ago
Vocabulary

An idiom/fixed expression for: stopping or preventing an unfortunate development

Hi there!

I'm looking for an English fixed expression/figurative expression that refers to stopping or preventing an unfortunate development.

In danish, it would be referred to as "a slam on the emergency brake" (and: figuring out where the train is heading - when talking about the direction of the development).

However, I don't think that "slamming the emergency brake", and "where the train is heading" would function - and be understandable for english readers.

I hope someone can help me Emotion: smile

Cheers

  

Top answer

Maybe - "stop it in it tracks"

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3 Answers
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Maybe - "stop it in it tracks"

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This is difficult to answer without knowing the exact situation. With no further context, possibly one of the following:


We could see where this was headed, and we nipped it in the bud before it could gather steam.


We had an inkling that something was afoot, and we made sure we stopped it in its tracks before it developed.



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Other possibilities, but again, the context would determine usage:


We saw that trouble was brewing and we put a cap on the situation before it could explode.


We could see the handwriting on the wall and made sure we had the necessary safeguards in place.


We saw that we had a ticking time bomb on our hands and took the necessary measures to defuse the situation.

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