cannot see the wood for the trees

can't see the wood for the trees

Cannot see, understand, or focus on a situation in its entirety due to being preoccupied with minor details. The way he's obsessing over one doorknob when we're renovating the entire house makes me think that he can't see the wood for the trees. You won't get a quick decision from Marie—that woman can't see the wood for the trees. I just feel like he can't see the wood for the trees on this project, since he keeps getting hung up on the most mundane details at the expense of our overall productivity.

See also: for, see, tree, wood

Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

cannot see the wood for the trees

 and cannot see the forest for the trees

Prov. Cannot perceive the overview or important things because of concentrating too much on details. The information presented in this textbook is so disorganized that I can't see the wood for the trees. The politician's opponents claimed that she couldn't see the forest for the trees, because she spent so much time trying to solve minor problems.

See also: cannot, for, see, tree, wood

McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

cannot see the wood for the trees

fail to grasp the main issue because of over-attention to details.

The North American version of this expression is cannot see the forest for the trees .

See also: cannot, for, see, tree, wood

Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017