see the forest for the trees

Etymology
John Heywood documented the English use of the proverb in 1546.

Verb

 * 1)  To discern an overall pattern from a mass of detail; to see the big picture, or the broader, more general situation.

Usage notes

 * This is almost always used in negative constructions, often starting with, as it is a negative polarity item.

Translations

 * Chinese:
 * Mandarin: 因小見大,
 * Finnish: nähdä metsä puilta


 * Chinese:
 * Mandarin: 見樹不見林,
 * Czech: pro stromy nevidí les
 * Danish: ikke se skoven for bare træer
 * Dutch: door de bomen het bos niet meer zien
 * Esperanto: pro multo da arboj arbaron ne vidi
 * French:
 * German:
 * Greek: βλέπουμε το δένδρο και χάνουμε το δάσος
 * Hebrew:
 * Hungarian:
 * Japanese: 木を見て森を見ず, 木を見て森を見ず
 * Norwegian:
 * Bokmål: ikke se skogen for bare trær
 * Nynorsk: ikkje sjå skogen for berre tre
 * Portuguese: ver a floresta pelas árvores
 * Romanian: a nu vedea pădurea din cauza copacilor
 * Russian:
 * Serbo-Croatian: od drveta ne videti šumu, од дрвета не видети шуму
 * Slovene: zaradi dreves ne videti gozda
 * Spanish: no dejar los árboles ver el bosque
 * Swedish: