herd cats

短语

发音

AU

词形变化

herded cats herding cats herds cats 三单 herds cats herding cats 现在分词 herded cats 过去式 herded cats 过去分词

释义与例句

v.
  1. 1.

    To attempt to control the uncontrollable; to attempt to manage a great many unruly factors or people to a single end.

    习语

    Managing volunteers from fourteen different organizations is like herding cats.

  2. 2.

    Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see herd, cat.

词源

Formed of herd + cat, perhaps in reference to domesticated cats’ solitary nature. Possibly from the opening scene of Monty Python's Life of Brian (1979). Shepherds are discussing sheep and the topic strays to cats: "Can you imagine a herds of cats waiting to be sheared? Meow! Meow! Woo hoo hoo." Earliest usage unknown, but the idiom is attested from the 1980s.

来源：wiktionary