To ward off poverty or hunger.
Etymology:
- The original saying may have been keep the wolf from the gate, which dates from at least 1470. By the 1500s the saying had become keep the wolf from the door, with the current meaning that it bears: see, for example, the 1645 quotation.
- There is a suggestion that the phrase may have originated from French or German phrases. Compare the French manger comme un loup, and the German Wolfsmagen means “a keen appetite”.
- 28 Views
“
They didn't earn much, but it was enough to keep the wolf from the door.
Submitted on September 01, 2009
Additional definitions for 'keep the wolf from the door':
| keep the wolf from the door | To delay sexual ejaculation. |
| Keep the Wolf from the Door | To avoid circumstances leading to poverty and starvation |
Translation
Find a translation for the keep the wolf from the door phrase in other languages:
Sbarcare il lunario
ஓநாய் கதவை இருந்து வைத்து
Select another language:
- - Select -
- 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
- 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
- Español (Spanish)
- Esperanto (Esperanto)
- 日本語 (Japanese)
- Português (Portuguese)
- Deutsch (German)
- العربية (Arabic)
- Français (French)
- Русский (Russian)
- ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
- 한국어 (Korean)
- עברית (Hebrew)
- Gaeilge (Irish)
- Українська (Ukrainian)
- اردو (Urdu)
- Magyar (Hungarian)
- मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
- Indonesia (Indonesian)
- Italiano (Italian)
- தமிழ் (Tamil)
- Türkçe (Turkish)
- తెలుగు (Telugu)
- ภาษาไทย (Thai)
- Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
- Čeština (Czech)
- Polski (Polish)
- Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
- Românește (Romanian)
- Nederlands (Dutch)
- Ελληνικά (Greek)
- Latinum (Latin)
- Svenska (Swedish)
- Dansk (Danish)
- Suomi (Finnish)
- فارسی (Persian)
- ייִדיש (Yiddish)
- հայերեն (Armenian)
- Norsk (Norwegian)
- English (English)
Nearby phrases
Some more phrases from our dictionary similar to keep the wolf from the door
How to pronounce this phrase?
Citation
Use the citation below to add this keep the wolf from the door definition to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"keep the wolf from the door." Phrases.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 21 Nov. 2024. <https://www.phrases.com/phrase/keep-the-wolf-from-the-door_4877>.
Powered by CITE.ME
Discuss this keep the wolf from the door phrase with the community:
Report Comment
We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.
If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly.
Attachment
You need to be logged in to favorite.
Log In