get your foot in the door
/ˌɡet jɔː ˌfʊt ɪn ðə ˈdɔː/INFORMAL · B2
Meaning
to get a first opportunity in an organisation or field
Examples
- 1Maria took an unpaid placement to get her foot in the door at the gallery.
- 2A weekend shift is often enough to get your foot in the door.
- 3Ben got his foot in the door by fixing the office printers for free.
- 4Hundreds apply, and only a few get their foot in the door.
- 5How did you get your foot in the door of such a closed industry?
Grammar
Both get and the possessive change; a is used instead of the possessive just as often. Keep foot singular.
Similar in meaning
More idioms about work and careers
All 20 idioms and the topic quiz →back to the drawing boardstarting to plan again after a failurea safe pair of handssomeone you can trust with an important jobcarry the canto take the blame for something that went wrongpull stringsto use your influence secretly to help someonethe rat racethe exhausting competition of modern working lifekeep your nose to the grindstoneto keep working hard without stopping
English Idioms400 idioms in 20 topics — with reviews that keep them from fading
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