rock the boat
/ˌrɒk ðə ˈbəʊt/INFORMAL · C2
Meaning
to upset a calm situation and cause problems
Examples
- 1Everyone is happy with the new timetable, so please don't rock the boat.
- 2Leo didn't want to rock the boat by asking for a pay rise in his first month.
- 3The team finally gets along, and nobody wants to rock the boat by changing who sits where.
- 4My sister rocked the boat at the wedding by criticising the food in front of the guests.
- 5Why are you rocking the boat now, when the landlord has just agreed to fix everything?
Grammar
Only rock changes: rocks, rocking, rocked. It is often used with not.
More idioms about problems and trouble
All 20 idioms and the topic quiz →throw a spanner in the worksto do something that stops a plan from succeedingsweep something under the carpetto hide a problem instead of dealing with itteething problemssmall difficulties at the start of something newtouch and goso uncertain that it could easily end badlycome to a headto reach the point where something must be donea double-edged swordsomething that has both good and bad effects
English Idioms400 idioms in 20 topics — with reviews that keep them from fading
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