fools rush in where angels fear to tread

English

Etymology

From An Essay on Criticism (1711) by Alexander Pope.

Proverb

fools rush in where angels fear to tread

1. A person who does not plan ahead and think matters through becomes involved in risky or unfavorable situations which prudent people avoid.

   Synonym: look before you leap

   Antonym: he who hesitates is lost

   • 1915, Thomas Dixon, The Foolish Virgin‎^[1]:

     “It's the first article of your creed—that marriage is a holy sacrament, that no power on earth or in hell can ever dissolve its bonds? Fools rush in where angels fear to tread, my dear! They always have—they always will, I suppose.

   • 1921, William T. Tilden, The Art of Lawn Tennis‎^[2]:

     The year following my graduation the new Captain of my Alma Mater's team asked me if I would aid him in developing the squad for next year. Well, "Fools rush in where angels fear to tread," so I said Yes.

   • 1922, Henry Ford, Samuel Crowther, chapter 5, in My Life and Work, Garden City, New York: Garden City Publishing Company, Inc., →OCLC:

     Then, too, a record of failures—particularly if it is a dignified and well-authenticated record—deters a young man from trying. We get some of our best results from letting fools rush in where angels fear to tread.

Usage notes

• Often abbreviated as fools rush in.

See also

• don't drive faster than your guardian angel can fly

Further reading

• fools rush in where angels fear to tread on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• Gary Martin (1997–) “Fools rush in where angels fear to tread”, in The Phrase Finder.
• Gregory Y. Titelman, Random House Dictionary of Popular Proverbs and Sayings, 1996, →ISBN, p. 104.