lead someone up the garden path
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English
Etymology
Probably a reference to the fact that a garden path is often winding instead of direct.
Pronunciation
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˈliːd ˌsʌmwʌn ˈʌp ðə ˈɡɑːdn̩ pɑːθ/
- (General American) IPA(key): /ˈlid ˌsʌmwʌn ˈʌp ðə ˈɡɑɹdən ˌpæθ/
Audio (GA) (file) - Hyphenation: lead some‧one up the gar‧den path
Verb
lead someone up the garden path (third-person singular simple present leads someone up the garden path, present participle leading someone up the garden path, simple past and past participle led someone up the garden path)
- (idiomatic) To deceive, hoodwink, mislead, or seduce someone.
- 1969, Erich Kästner, translated by Cyrus Brooks, Lottie and Lisa, New York, N.Y.: Knopf, →OCLC:
- "You're a pair of conspiring females," he growled. "A fine couple of contriving minxes! You've even led my Peterkin up the garden path."
Derived terms
Translations
Further reading
- “to lead (a person) up the garden (path), phrase” under “garden, n.”, in OED Online
, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, March 2017. - “lead someone up the garden path, phrase”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
