What is the Origin of the Phrase ‘Give Someone Enough Rope’?

To give someone enough rope means —

• to let someone harm themselves;
• to let someone make mistakes.

This expression is a shorter version of the proverb —

“Give someone enough rope, and he will hang himself.”

This proverb implies that if someone is doing something wrong, you don’t have to make any effort to trap them. Allow them to continue with their erroneous ways and they will bring misfortune upon themselves.

For example —

“I did not interrupt him when he first lied. I let him spin the web of his lies and get him to trap himself. It is better to give someone enough rope and wait.”

It means that I knew he was lying but instead of confronting him about it, I let him lie freely hoping that he would contradict himself eventually and get trapped.”

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Hi, I am Gauri Shanker, a Vocab teacher and enthusiast. I teach vocabulary in a fun and engaging way. You can check out my courses here.