to nip in the bud
Preserved but no longer current.
To destroy before it has had time to develop; usually said of bad habits, tendency to sin, etc. Shakespeare has — The third day comes a frost, a killing frost; And, when he thinks, good easy man, full surely His greatness is a-ripening, nips his root, And then he falls, as I do. Henry VIII, iii, 2.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “to nip in the bud” mean?
To destroy before it has had time to develop; usually said of bad habits, tendency to sin, etc. Shakespeare has — The third day comes a frost, a killing frost; And, when he thinks, good easy man, full surely His greatness is a-ripening, nips his root, And then he falls, as I do. Henry VIII, iii, 2.
Is “to nip in the bud” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.