English
Etymology
Suggesting a person skating or walking on a frozen-over body of water, at risk of breaking through and falling into the water.
Pronunciation
Prepositional phrase
on thin ice
- (idiomatic) In a dangerous, hazardous, or delicate situation; at risk.
Ever since he was caught stealing office supplies, he has been on thin ice with his boss.
Adverb
on thin ice (not comparable)
- (idiomatic) Dangerously, hazardously, delicately.
Translations
at risk
- Catalan: en situaciò perillosa (literally “in a dangerous situation”)
- Finnish: heikolla jäällä
- French: sur la corde raide (literally “on the tightrope”)
- German: auf dünnem Eis (de)
- Indonesian: abu di atas tanggul
- Italian: sul filo del rasoio (literally “on the wire from the razor”)
- Latin: in periculō (literally “in danger”)
- Polish: stąpać po cienkim lodzie (pl) impf
- Portuguese: em situação delicada (literally “in a delicate situation”), em situação difícil (literally “in a difficult situation”)
- Romanian: pe muchie de cuțit (literally “on a knife's edge”)
- Serbo-Croatian: на танком леду (na tankom ledu)
- Spanish: a riesgo, en la cuerda floja (literally “on the loose/weak cord/rope/string”) (often used in estar en la cuerda floja")
- Swedish: på tunn is
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See also