tiger by the tail

Something too difficult to manage or cope with, as in You know nothing about the commodities market; you'll end up catching a tiger by the tail . This colorful metaphor conjures up the image of grabbing a powerful but fierce animal by the tail, only to have it turn on one. [Second half of 1900s]

Common Names:

Name	Pronounced	Usage
Nestor	NES-tor (English)	Greek Mythology, Russian
Alfbern	-	Ancient Germanic
Punit	-	Indian, Hindi, Marathi
Geertje	KHAY:R-tyə	Dutch
Beracha	-	Hebrew
VavŘInec	-	Czech