like painting the Forth Bridge
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English[edit]
Etymology[edit]
The bridge across the Firth of Forth was in a continuous state of being painted (until finished in 2011, 122 years after its completion): (owing to its large size) as soon as one end was reached, it was time to begin all over again.[1]
Prepositional phrase[edit]
like painting the Forth Bridge
- (chiefly UK) Never-ending; said of a task which will never be completed due to the perpetual cycle of having to recommence as soon as one has reached the end, or of efforts that are in vain because of this.
- Synonym: Sisyphean
- 2014, Stephanie Owen, J. R. Lewis, Law for the Construction Industry, page viii:
- Where only an overview has been given, I hope that the book will provide a useful springboard and the appropriate legal advice is sought. The revision has been rather like painting the Forth Bridge and whilst every effort has been made to bring the law as up to date as possible, events often overtake one and a keen eye should be kept on the construction journals and newspapers.
- 2017 April 29, Alys Fowler, “How to win the war on weeds”, in The Guardian[2]:
- Weeding can feel like painting the Forth Bridge—by the time you finish, it’s time to start again.
References[edit]
- ^ Tim Dowling (2008 February 20) “Wanted: a new idiom to replace the Forth Bridge”, in The Guardian[1]: “In four years' time an idiom of more than a century's standing will become suddenly obsolete […] Now it has been announced that 2012 will see the final licks of a high-tech paint job that could last 40 years.”