clip someone's wings

Restrain or reduce someone's freedom, as in Hiding his car keys-you're really clipping his wings. This metaphor for clipping a bird's wings to prevent its flying away dates from ancient Roman times. Christopher Marlowe used it in The Massacre at Paris (1590): "Away to prison with him, I'll clip his wings."

Common Names:

Name	Pronounced	Usage
Placidus	-	Late Roman
Ove	-	Swedish, Norwegian, Danish
Germano	-	Italian, Portuguese
Farhan	-	Arabic, Urdu, Bengali
Ofelia	o-FE-lyah	Spanish, Italian
HÜLya	-	Turkish