over the river and through the woods
This phrase originates from a 19th-century poem by Lydia Maria Child, often evoking imagery of a nostalgic journey through nature to reach a family gathering.
🇺🇸 US Voice:
🇬🇧 UK Voice:
Definition
B2Literature
(historical, literal)Describes a journey through a natural landscape, typically to a family member's house, originating from a 19th-century poem.
Example
- In the poem, the children travel over the river and through the woods to their grandmother's house.
B2Common Usage
(idiomatic, figurative)Describes the effort to achieve a difficult task, often with many obstacles.
Example
- We went over the river and through the woods to get this project done on time.
B2Common Usage
(idiomatic, figurative)Describes being lost or disoriented, either physically or metaphorically.
Example
- After taking several wrong turns, we were over the river and through the woods.
C1Common Usage
(idiomatic, figurative)Describes someone who has lost their sanity or is acting irrationally.
Example
- With all the stress, he went over the river and through the woods.
Similar
Terms that have similar or relatively close meanings to "over the river and through the woods":