In English, the phrase fly in the ointment is an

idiom An idiom is a phrase or expression that typically presents a figurative, non-literal meaning attached to the phrase; but some phrases become figurative idioms while retaining the literal meaning of the phrase. Categorized as formulaic language, ...

atic expression for a drawback, especially one that was not at first apparent, for example: "We had a cookstove, beans, and plates; the fly in the ointment was the lack of a can opener." The likely source is a phrase in the biblical book of Ecclesiastes: :Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking savour. (

Ecclesiastes Ecclesiastes (; hbo, קֹהֶלֶת, Qōheleṯ, grc, Ἐκκλησιαστής, Ekklēsiastēs) is one of the Ketuvim ("Writings") of the Hebrew Bible and part of the Wisdom literature of the Christian Old Testament. The title commonly use ...

) For four centuries, ''a fly in the ointment'' has meant a small defect that spoils something valuable or is a source of annoyance. The modern version thus suggests that something unpleasant may come or has come to light in a proposition or condition that is almost too pleasing; that there is something wrong hidden, unexpected somewhere.

Sources

* ''The Fly in the Ointment: 70 Fascinating Commentaries on the Science of Everyday Life'' by

Joseph A. Schwarcz Joseph A. Schwarcz (born 1947) is an author and a sessional instructor at McGill University. He is the director of McGill's Office for Science and Society. Early life Schwarcz is an only child, born in Sopron, Hungary to Jewish parents. Durin ...

, Ecw Press, May 28, 2004. * ''2107 Curious Word Origins, Sayings & Expressions from White Elephants to a Song and Dance'' by

Charles Earle Funk Charles Earle Funk (1881–1957) was an American lexicographer. He was a member of the Funk family who owned the publisher Funk & Wagnalls; Dr. Isaac Funk was his uncle. Funk wrote several etymological dictionaries An etymological dictionary d ...

(Galahad Book, New York, 1993 * ''Encyclopedia of Word and Phrase Origins'' by Robert Hendrickson (Facts on File, New York, 1997).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fly In The Ointment English proverbs Biblical phrases Ecclesiastes