make a mountain out of a molehill
make a mountain out of a molehill
Meaning | Synonyms
- magnifying the content
- exaggerated conversations
- elaborating something in a very dramatic way
- conveying something in a very different way by overemphasizing it
- making big issues on a very small thing
- make a fuss
- make a big deal out of something
- make too much of something
- make a song and dance about
- exaggerate or overstake
Example Sentences
- You are just making a mountain out of a molehill, you just gave a wrong answer, it doesn't mean you're not going to qualify to the second round.
- Don't worry, it is just a small in jury, you don't have to make a mountain out of a molehill.
- Rida just asked you to lower down your pitch. It was nothing to make a mountain out of a molehill.
- You were not supposed to believe Mack – he is always making mountains out of a molehill.
Origin
The oldest record of the idiom “making a mountain out of a molehill” is to be found in Nicholas Udall's translation, 1548. It was mentioned as:
“… The Sophists of Greece could through their copiousness make an Elephant of a fly and a mountain of a molehill”
He is comparing a fly with an elephant which is a clear reflection of exaggeration. It is impossible to compare an elephant with a fly because of the difference in their size. Since then, this idiom was used rapidly in order to highlight the dramatization.