See fall between two stools on Wiktionary
{
"etymology_text": "From an old proverb, \"Between two stools, one falls to the ground\", which dates from 1390. This, in turn, is most likely a translation of the medieval Latin proverb labitur enitens sellis herere duabus (\"he falls trying to sit on two seats\").",
"forms": [
{
"form": "falls between two stools",
"tags": [
"present",
"singular",
"third-person"
]
},
{
"form": "falling between two stools",
"tags": [
"participle",
"present"
]
},
{
"form": "fell between two stools",
"tags": [
"past"
]
},
{
"form": "fallen between two stools",
"tags": [
"participle",
"past"
]
}
],
"head_templates": [
{
"args": {
"1": "fall<,,fell,fallen> between two stools",
"head": "fall between two stools"
},
"expansion": "fall between two stools (third-person singular simple present falls between two stools, present participle falling between two stools, simple past fell between two stools, past participle fallen between two stools)",
"name": "en-verb"
}
],
"lang": "English",
"lang_code": "en",
"pos": "verb",
"senses": [
{
"categories": [
{
"_dis": "48 52",
"kind": "other",
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"_dis": "48 52",
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},
{
"_dis": "48 52",
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},
{
"_dis": "48 52",
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},
{
"_dis": "48 52",
"kind": "other",
"name": "Terms with Japanese translations",
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{
"_dis": "48 52",
"kind": "other",
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}
],
"examples": [
{
"ref": "1996, Mike Lawrence, A to Z of Sports Cars, 1945-1990:",
"text": "Unfortunately, it fell between two stools: it was not good enough to be a competition car and those who wanted a roadburner preferred the Iso Grifo, which was better equipped.",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"ref": "2006, Richard Rex, Henry VIII and the English Reformation:",
"text": "Even Henry's will embodies that suspension between two poles, or falling between two stools, which characterises so much of his church's history from the point.",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"ref": "2014, Robert Watt, Shakespeare's History Plays, page 184:",
"text": "Patterson's therory has profound implications for any critical interpretation of the play: if, as she argues, we should recognise two distinct versions of the play with very different political effects, an interpretation which ignores the differences is likely to fall between two stools.",
"type": "quote"
}
],
"glosses": [
"To fit into neither of two categories and, hence, be neglected or fail."
],
"id": "en-fall_between_two_stools-en-verb-a3CcShAy",
"links": [
[
"categories",
"category"
],
[
"fail",
"fail"
]
],
"qualifier": "issues; problems; items; issues; problems; items",
"raw_glosses": [
"(idiomatic, of tasks, issues, problems, items) To fit into neither of two categories and, hence, be neglected or fail."
],
"raw_tags": [
"of tasks"
],
"tags": [
"idiomatic"
]
},
{
"categories": [
{
"_dis": "48 52",
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"_dis": "48 52",
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"_dis": "48 52",
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"_dis": "48 52",
"kind": "other",
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"parents": [],
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}
],
"examples": [
{
"ref": "1857, Anthony Trollope, “Barchester Towers”, in The Century Co., published 1902, page 252:",
"text": "“[…] She Dido] could not bear to lose the land she had got by a swindle; and then she could not bear the loss of her lover. So she fell between two stools. […]”",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"ref": "1910, Sydney Humphries, Oriental Carpets, Runners and Rugs and Some Jacquard Reproductions, READ BOOKS, published 2010, →ISBN, page 22:",
"text": "Failing to get rid of the old love Medea] before taking on the new—in other words, wasting his strength over a new and untried method before having fully established the old—he Jason] fell between two stools.",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"ref": "1929, Charles Howard Ellis, The Origin, Structure & Working of the League of Nations, The Lawbook Exchange, Ltd., published 2004, →ISBN, page 153:",
"text": "The Council, by trying to combine its functions as the responsible executive of the League with some of the representative attributes of the Assembly, has to some extent fallen between two stools, and gives the impression of not being certain of its rôle.",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"ref": "2003, Chris Jones, The Guerilla^([sic]) Film Makers Movie Blueprint, Continuum International Publishing Group, →ISBN, page 21:",
"text": "As your chances of mega-success increase so do your chances of falling between two stools, and if you get it wrong, you could end up with a dog’s dinner that satisfies no one.",
"type": "quote"
}
],
"glosses": [
"To attempt two roles and fail at both, when either could have been accomplished singly."
],
"id": "en-fall_between_two_stools-en-verb-YRHz0BA4",
"links": [
[
"role",
"role"
],
[
"fail",
"fail"
],
[
"accomplish",
"accomplish"
],
[
"singly",
"singly"
]
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(idiomatic) To attempt two roles and fail at both, when either could have been accomplished singly."
],
"related": [
{
"_dis1": "44 56",
"word": "out of the frying pan, into the fire"
}
],
"synonyms": [
{
"_dis1": "44 56",
"word": "fall in a grey area"
}
],
"tags": [
"idiomatic"
],
"translations": [
{
"_dis1": "27 73",
"code": "he",
"lang": "Hebrew",
"roman": "nafál bēn hakis'ót",
"sense": "to attempt two tasks and fail at both",
"word": "נָפַל בֵּין הַכִּסְאוֹת"
},
{
"_dis1": "27 73",
"code": "hu",
"lang": "Hungarian",
"sense": "to attempt two tasks and fail at both",
"word": "két szék között a pad alá esik"
},
{
"_dis1": "27 73",
"code": "is",
"lang": "Icelandic",
"sense": "to attempt two tasks and fail at both",
"word": "setjast milli tveggja stóla"
},
{
"_dis1": "27 73",
"code": "is",
"lang": "Icelandic",
"sense": "to attempt two tasks and fail at both",
"word": "gjalda óákveðni sinnar"
},
{
"_dis1": "27 73",
"alt": "にとをおうものはいっとをもえず",
"code": "ja",
"lang": "Japanese",
"roman": "nito o ou mono wa itto o mo ezu",
"sense": "to attempt two tasks and fail at both",
"word": "二兎を追う者は一兎をも得ず"
},
{
"_dis1": "27 73",
"code": "la",
"lang": "Latin",
"sense": "to attempt two tasks and fail at both",
"word": "duabus sellis sedeo"
}
]
}
],
"sounds": [
{
"audio": "en-au-fall between two stools.ogg",
"mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/4/47/En-au-fall_between_two_stools.ogg/En-au-fall_between_two_stools.ogg.mp3",
"ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/47/En-au-fall_between_two_stools.ogg"
}
],
"word": "fall between two stools"
}
{
"categories": [
"English entries with incorrect language header",
"English lemmas",
"English multiword terms",
"English verbs",
"Entries with translation boxes",
"Pages with 1 entry",
"Pages with entries",
"Terms with Hebrew translations",
"Terms with Hungarian translations",
"Terms with Icelandic translations",
"Terms with Japanese translations",
"Terms with Latin translations"
],
"etymology_text": "From an old proverb, \"Between two stools, one falls to the ground\", which dates from 1390. This, in turn, is most likely a translation of the medieval Latin proverb labitur enitens sellis herere duabus (\"he falls trying to sit on two seats\").",
"forms": [
{
"form": "falls between two stools",
"tags": [
"present",
"singular",
"third-person"
]
},
{
"form": "falling between two stools",
"tags": [
"participle",
"present"
]
},
{
"form": "fell between two stools",
"tags": [
"past"
]
},
{
"form": "fallen between two stools",
"tags": [
"participle",
"past"
]
}
],
"head_templates": [
{
"args": {
"1": "fall<,,fell,fallen> between two stools",
"head": "fall between two stools"
},
"expansion": "fall between two stools (third-person singular simple present falls between two stools, present participle falling between two stools, simple past fell between two stools, past participle fallen between two stools)",
"name": "en-verb"
}
],
"lang": "English",
"lang_code": "en",
"pos": "verb",
"related": [
{
"word": "out of the frying pan, into the fire"
}
],
"senses": [
{
"categories": [
"English idioms",
"English terms with quotations"
],
"examples": [
{
"ref": "1996, Mike Lawrence, A to Z of Sports Cars, 1945-1990:",
"text": "Unfortunately, it fell between two stools: it was not good enough to be a competition car and those who wanted a roadburner preferred the Iso Grifo, which was better equipped.",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"ref": "2006, Richard Rex, Henry VIII and the English Reformation:",
"text": "Even Henry's will embodies that suspension between two poles, or falling between two stools, which characterises so much of his church's history from the point.",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"ref": "2014, Robert Watt, Shakespeare's History Plays, page 184:",
"text": "Patterson's therory has profound implications for any critical interpretation of the play: if, as she argues, we should recognise two distinct versions of the play with very different political effects, an interpretation which ignores the differences is likely to fall between two stools.",
"type": "quote"
}
],
"glosses": [
"To fit into neither of two categories and, hence, be neglected or fail."
],
"links": [
[
"categories",
"category"
],
[
"fail",
"fail"
]
],
"qualifier": "issues; problems; items; issues; problems; items",
"raw_glosses": [
"(idiomatic, of tasks, issues, problems, items) To fit into neither of two categories and, hence, be neglected or fail."
],
"raw_tags": [
"of tasks"
],
"tags": [
"idiomatic"
]
},
{
"categories": [
"English idioms",
"English terms with quotations"
],
"examples": [
{
"ref": "1857, Anthony Trollope, “Barchester Towers”, in The Century Co., published 1902, page 252:",
"text": "“[…] She Dido] could not bear to lose the land she had got by a swindle; and then she could not bear the loss of her lover. So she fell between two stools. […]”",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"ref": "1910, Sydney Humphries, Oriental Carpets, Runners and Rugs and Some Jacquard Reproductions, READ BOOKS, published 2010, →ISBN, page 22:",
"text": "Failing to get rid of the old love Medea] before taking on the new—in other words, wasting his strength over a new and untried method before having fully established the old—he Jason] fell between two stools.",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"ref": "1929, Charles Howard Ellis, The Origin, Structure & Working of the League of Nations, The Lawbook Exchange, Ltd., published 2004, →ISBN, page 153:",
"text": "The Council, by trying to combine its functions as the responsible executive of the League with some of the representative attributes of the Assembly, has to some extent fallen between two stools, and gives the impression of not being certain of its rôle.",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"ref": "2003, Chris Jones, The Guerilla^([sic]) Film Makers Movie Blueprint, Continuum International Publishing Group, →ISBN, page 21:",
"text": "As your chances of mega-success increase so do your chances of falling between two stools, and if you get it wrong, you could end up with a dog’s dinner that satisfies no one.",
"type": "quote"
}
],
"glosses": [
"To attempt two roles and fail at both, when either could have been accomplished singly."
],
"links": [
[
"role",
"role"
],
[
"fail",
"fail"
],
[
"accomplish",
"accomplish"
],
[
"singly",
"singly"
]
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(idiomatic) To attempt two roles and fail at both, when either could have been accomplished singly."
],
"tags": [
"idiomatic"
]
}
],
"sounds": [
{
"audio": "en-au-fall between two stools.ogg",
"mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/4/47/En-au-fall_between_two_stools.ogg/En-au-fall_between_two_stools.ogg.mp3",
"ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/47/En-au-fall_between_two_stools.ogg"
}
],
"synonyms": [
{
"word": "fall in a grey area"
}
],
"translations": [
{
"code": "he",
"lang": "Hebrew",
"roman": "nafál bēn hakis'ót",
"sense": "to attempt two tasks and fail at both",
"word": "נָפַל בֵּין הַכִּסְאוֹת"
},
{
"code": "hu",
"lang": "Hungarian",
"sense": "to attempt two tasks and fail at both",
"word": "két szék között a pad alá esik"
},
{
"code": "is",
"lang": "Icelandic",
"sense": "to attempt two tasks and fail at both",
"word": "setjast milli tveggja stóla"
},
{
"code": "is",
"lang": "Icelandic",
"sense": "to attempt two tasks and fail at both",
"word": "gjalda óákveðni sinnar"
},
{
"alt": "にとをおうものはいっとをもえず",
"code": "ja",
"lang": "Japanese",
"roman": "nito o ou mono wa itto o mo ezu",
"sense": "to attempt two tasks and fail at both",
"word": "二兎を追う者は一兎をも得ず"
},
{
"code": "la",
"lang": "Latin",
"sense": "to attempt two tasks and fail at both",
"word": "duabus sellis sedeo"
}
],
"word": "fall between two stools"
}
Download raw JSONL data for fall between two stools meaning in All languages combined (5.9kB)
This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable All languages combined dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2025-01-13 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2025-01-01 using wiktextract (4ba5975 and 4ed51a5). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.
If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.