das Kind fällt in den Brunnen
German
editEtymology
editLiterally, “the child falls into the well”. From a now unused proverb where the farmer only sets out to cover his well when a child (or a calf, or the like) has already drowned in it.
Phrase
edit- (idiomatic) a disaster happens or becomes inevitable; it is too late for precautions that should have been taken earlier
- Wenn das Kind in den Brunnen gefallen ist, wollen es alle wieder gleich gewusst haben.
- When the catastrophe has already occurred, they all claim they knew it all along.
- (literally, “When the child has fallen into the well,...”)
- Wir müssen Lösungen finden, bevor das Kind in den Brunnen fällt.
- We must find solutions before it’s too late.
- (literally, “...before the child falls into the well.”)