thin edge of the wedge



thin edge of the wedge

A minor change that begins a major development, especially an undesirable one. For example, First they asked me to postpone my vacation for a week, and then for a month; it's the thin edge of the wedge and pretty soon it'll be a year . This term alludes to the narrow wedge inserted into a log for splitting wood. [Mid-1800s]
See also: edge, of, thin, wedge

Common Names:

NameGenderPronouncedUsage
HonorÉo-no-REFrench
Doretta-English
Etel-Hungarian
Rikutoṙee-koo-toJapanese
RÓNÁNRON-awnIrish
LaurieLAWR-ee (English), LOW-ree (Dutch)English, Dutch