Idioms

learn the ropes

This page is about the idiom learn the ropes

Meaning

If you learn the ropes, you learn how to do a job properly, or how things work and how to get things done.

For example

  • Ruth will teach you what to do, and it shouldn't take you too long to learn the ropes.

  • It can take quite a while for a new lawyer to learn the ropes in a big legal firm.

Note:
See also "know the ropes".

Origin: Possibly derived from the days of sailing ships when sailors learned how to tie knots and handle ropes that were attached to the sails. A sailor who was learning all this was said to be "learning the ropes".

Quick Quiz

Eric is still learning the ropes, so we

a. can make him manager

b. can't make him manager

c. should make him manager
a) can make him manager b) can't make him manager c) should make him manager

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Common English Idioms

Contributor: Matt Errey