bathwater

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don't throw the baby out with the bathwater

Don't discard something valuable or important while disposing of something worthless. Why are we scrapping the entire project? Come on, don't throw the baby out with the bathwater.

See also: baby, bathwater, out, throw

throw out the baby with the bathwater

To discard something valuable or important while disposing of something considered worthless, especially an outdated idea or form of behavior. The phrase is often used in the negative as a warning against such thoughtless behavior. Why are we scrapping the entire project? Come on, don't throw out the baby with the bathwater. The main reforms of the movement were desperately needed, but I'm afraid we threw out the baby with the bathwater in many cases.

See also: baby, bathwater, out, throw

throw the baby out with the bathwater

To discard something valuable or important while disposing of something considered worthless, especially an outdated idea or form of behavior. The phrase is often used in the negative as a warning against such thoughtless behavior. Why are we scrapping the entire project? Come on, don't throw the baby out with the bathwater. The main reforms of the movement were desperately needed, but I'm afraid we threw the baby out with the bathwater in many cases.

See also: baby, bathwater, out, throw

Don't throw the baby out with the bathwater.

Prov. Do not discard something valuable in your eagerness to get rid of some useless thing associated with it. Jill: As long as I'm selling all the books Grandpa had, I might s well sell the bookcases, too. Jane: Don't throw the baby out with the bathwater. You can use the bookcases for something else.

See also: baby, bathwater, out, throw

throw the baby out with the bathwater

discard something valuable along with other things that are inessential or undesirable.

This phrase is based on a German saying recorded from the early 16th century but not introduced into English until the mid 19th century, by Thomas Carlyle . He identified it as German and gave it in the form, ‘You must empty out the bathing-tub, but not the baby along with it.’

1998 New Scientist It is easy to throw out the baby with the bathwater when it comes to UFO books—there are some seriously bad titles out there.

See also: baby, bathwater, out, throw

throw the ˌbaby out with the ˈbathwater

(informal) lose something that you want at the same time as you are trying to get rid of something that you do not want: It’s stupid to say that the old system of management was all bad; there were some good things about it. The baby was thrown out with the bathwater.

See also: baby, bathwater, out, throw

References in periodicals archive ?

His book argues that we need to make a clear distinction between the bouncing baby and the (at times) dirty bathwater.

Black Economic Empowerment

As customers continue to evolve, and CRM tools become more distant from those initial operational and analytical tools of their infancy, make sure to include the new versions of these tools and strategies in your plans--and don't make the mistake of throwing out the CRM baby with the bathwater.

Bringing up (the CRM) baby: your CRM solution is still growing and developing--so don't stop nurturing it

We present 2 cases of females presenting with what could be considered urinary leakage, but is actually secondary to vaginal entrapment of bathwater.

Vaginal entrapment of bathwater: a source of extra-urethral incontinence

The presence and levels of these chemical agents in bathwater should be cause for concern, bearing in mind that babies spend up to 15 minutes or more a day playing in the bath and that they can absorb these and other chemicals not only through their skin, but also by inhalation and often ingestion, intentional or not," Llompart said.

Now, a novel way to quantify fragrance allergens found in baby bathwater

While the article is very good and also correct, we must not throw the baby out with the bathwater.

Street: our sport has to better explain its 'quirks'

she's raised, glazed in bathwater, making a splash.

Child with Two Adults

To test for the effects of adult chemical signals that may induce settlement, and their specificity, bathwater solutions were prepared as described in detail by Tamburri et al.

Settlement of crassostrea ariakensis larvae: effects of substrate, biofilms, sediment and adult chemical cues

There are times when one feels Durang is using the stage to vent his own therapeutic issues, especially actor's anxiety in "The Actor's Nightmare" and parental abuse in "Baby With the Bathwater," but for the most part he avoids soggy self-indulgence with blistering imagination.

Barre Players explore plays of Durang

In defending our freedom, it is important not to throw out the baby with the bathwater.

Different question

The temptation to discard important values of the past leaves us mindful of the proverbial warning: "Don't throw out the baby with the bathwater.

The Russian Identity and Values in the Post-Soviet Era: Learning from the Past to Reinvent the Future

I solar heat the bathwater in black, 1 gallon, plastic, antifreeze containers which I place in plastic foam coolers, covered with glass instead of the lid.

Easy solar water treatment

The Niagara tub also features an anti-scald device that accurately measures the bathwater temperature and automatically shuts off the hot water if it gets too hot.

Rear-Entry Whirlpool Tub

Sometimes you can throw the baby out with the bathwater.

Gordon Waddell: JAMBOS LAND TOP OPERATOR

If one protests too much, it is because this complexity, where it does occur, is all too readily discarded with the bad-boy bathwater.