Talk:run with scissors

RFV discussion: March–May 2022
"To behave recklessly." I know that running with scissors is a sort of traditional example of reckless behaviour, but does "run with scissors" ever mean "behave recklessly", in the abstract? For example: "when he let his 8-year-old girl drive the tractor down a steep slope, little Anna was really playing with scissors"?? umm? Equinox ◑ 19:34, 20 March 2022 (UTC)


 * It seems common as a metaphor (e.g.the kid who ran with scissors “a reckless person”), and fairly common as reference to literally running with scissors, but it's also sometimes used idiomatically with no scissors (real or imagined) involved. For example: “Sure, it’s safer to go [backpacking] with a partner, but every once in awhile you have to run with scissors.” I've added several quotations. Cnilep (talk) 07:46, 21 March 2022 (UTC)
 * Does the idiom really imply recklessness (irresponsible behaviour), or merely (possibly calculated) risk taking? --Lambiam 12:46, 21 March 2022 (UTC)
 * I’ve added calculated risk taking as a sense, as two of the quotations imply calculation instead of recklessness. I think this is better than generalizing into one sense, since the others do IMO mean reckless behaviour. --Lambiam 13:14, 26 March 2022 (UTC)

cited Kiwima (talk) 04:29, 27 April 2022 (UTC)

RFV-passed Kiwima (talk) 21:43, 4 May 2022 (UTC)