half the battle
half the battle
A key part of a larger goal or task. Digging the car out of the driveway will be half the battle of getting out to the store.
See also: battle, half
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.
half the battle
Fig. a significant part of an effort. Getting through traffic to the airport was half the battle. The flight was nothing at all.
See also: battle, half
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.
half the battle
A successful beginning, as in You've got the shopping list done-that's half the battle. This expression is an abbreviation of an 18th-century proverb, "The first blow is half the battle."
See also: battle, half
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
half the battle
an important step towards achieving something.See also: battle, half
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary
half the ˈbattle
(complete, achieve, etc.) the most difficult part of something: If you manage to keep calm when you’re taking your driving test, that’s half the battle.See also: battle, half
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary
half the battle
A very successful start. This expression is part of an older proverb, “The first blow is half the battle,” which dates from the eighteenth century. In Oliver Goldsmith’s comedy, She Stoops to Conquer (1773), two men wish to make a good impression on their host’s daughter. One says, “I have been thinking, George, of changing our travelling dresses,” and the other replies, “You’re right: the first blow is half the battle. I intend opening the campaign with the white and gold [waistcoat].” During the nineteenth century the first half of the expression was dropped, and with overuse the term became a cliché.
See also: battle, half
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer
- a pitched battle
- pitched battle
- pitched battle, a
- do battle
- do/join battle
- battle of the bulge
- bulge
- a running battle
- running battle
- battle cry