Hot Potato: Meaning and Example Sentences of the Term "Hot Potato"

Hot Potato!!! What does this interesting idiomatic phrase mean?

Contents

Hot Potato

Meaning of “Hot Potato”

The meaning of this idiom hot potato is a controversial subject or difficult project that is best avoided.

This idiom uses a hot potato as a metaphor for something that was handed to you or something which has been thrown into your lap, but which you want to get rid of as quickly as possible so as not to get “burned”. A hot potato could be social, political, personal, etc.

This term is also used in baseball to indicate a ball that is thrown, kicked, or batted so hard that a receiving player cannot catch it. Further, in baseball, if a ball is thrown mistakenly to an umpire when there are runners still on base, the umpire will treat the ball like it is a “hot potato” and try not to catch it, since it is still in play.

For examples:

He dropped the plan like a hot potato when he realized how much it would cost him.
The abortion issue is a political hot potato in the United States.
The racial discrimination issue is a political hot potato.
It had become a political hot potato, and time ran out as backers bickered over what tests to run.
The issue of taxing domestic fuel has become a political hot potato.
You should adopt another way to deal with this hot potato.

“Hot Potato” Synonyms

Controversy
Debate
War of words
Storm
Crisis
Crunch
Dilemma
Catastrophe
Emergency
Pressure
Difficult problem
Critical situation
Hot topic
Tricky problem
Big trouble

English Idioms with Vegetables

Carrot and stick: An enticement, a promised or expected reward
Two peas in a pod: Very similar
Couch potato: A person who does not like physical activity and prefers to sit down, usually to watch television.
Small potatoes: Something or someone insignificant
In a pickle: To be in a disagreeable position, to be in a condition of embarrassment, difficulty, or disorder
Full of beans: To have a lot of energy and enthusiasm
Dangle a carrot: To tempt someone/something
Cool as a cucumber: Extremely calm
Carrot top: A red-haired person
Salad days: The youthful period of one’s life
Have a pea brain: Unintelligent or stupid
Pass an olive branch: To make peaceful or reconciliatory overtures
Spill the beans: To talk about a secret before you are supposed to reveal it
Mushroom: When something mushrooms, this means it gets much bigger.
A tough nut to crack: A difficult different
Not know beans: To not to know something; to be not well informed
Go nuts: To get very upset or to go mod
Tells salads: The person is telling bullshit or lying about something