cry wolf

Definition

To raise a false alarm; to constantly warn others about an imagined threat, thereby failing to get assistance when a real threat appears.

Etymology

From the fable The Boy Who Cried Wolf, where a little boy amuses himself by repeatedly crying "wolf" to see the panic he causes in the community, but is consequently ignored when he tries to alert them to a real wolf.

Example Sentences

• "The politicians would cry wolf at the slightest provocation so when the real threat appeared no one believed them."
• "The newspaper placards that had cried "wolf!" so often, cried "wolf!" now in vain."
• "[…]and the critical sense of the professors counts for little, for they cry wolf too often[…]"