CAN OF WORMS Definition & Meaning

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can of worms

noun

Informal. a source of many unpredictable or unexpected problems:
Buying a company we know nothing about would be opening up a whole new can of worms.

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51�Թ� History and Origins

Origin of can of worms¹

First recorded in 1965–70

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Idioms and Phrases

A complex unexpected problem or unsolvable dilemma, as in Tackling the budget cuts is sure to open a can of worms . This expression alludes to a container of bait used for fishing, which when opened reveals an inextricable tangle of worms. [1920s]

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

Another little disagreement on their way to a Tokyo market the next day opened up “a can of worms,” she said.

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I am not sure the Premier League have thought this through, and they might have opened a can of worms here.

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Mistakes, yes – but honest ones, only for the emergence of the Coote video to reopen a very large can of worms, presenting a crisis for Webb and PGMOL.

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Supervisor Hilda Solis, the other no vote on the county board, agreed, saying a ruling in Grants Pass’ favor would “open a can of worms.”

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Could allowing people to sue for these kinds of mob-like statements open a proverbial can of worms?

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

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