cry wolf

cry wolf

to ask for help when you do not need it, with the result that no one believes you when help is necessary. She had repeatedly rung the police for trivial reasons and perhaps she had cried wolf too often.

See also: cry, wolf

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cry wolf

to ask for help when you do not need it. Growers who cry wolf today about the lack of water will probably be selling their vegetables in a few months. He said the mayor's grim predictions about what would happen if the bill isn't passed amounted to crying wolf.

Etymology: from the children's story “The Boy Who Cried Wolf,” in which a boy who was watching some sheep called for help when there was no wolf (= wild animal) attacking them and then got no help when a wolf did attack the sheep because no one believed him

See also: cry, wolf