lead (one) down the garden path
lead (one) down the garden path
To mislead or deceive one. Don't lead me down the garden path—tell me what is really going on here.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
lead someone down the garden path
and lead someone up the garden pathto deceive someone. Now, be honest with me. Don't lead me down the garden path. That cheater really led her up the garden path.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
lead down the garden path
Also, lead up the garden path. Deceive someone. For example, Bill had quite different ideas from Tom about their new investment strategy; he was leading him down the garden path . This expression presumably alludes to the garden path as an intentional detour. [Early 1900s] Also see lead on.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
garden path, to lead up/down the
To deceive, to trick. This expression, often put simply as “up the garden,” originated early in the twentieth century and tends to suggest a romantic or seductive enticement. Often found in popular novels of the 1930s and 1940s, it is less frequently heard today. See also primrose path.
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer Copyright © 2013 by Christine Ammer
lead down garden path
Deceive. The path to which the phrase refers meant an intentional detour, so to escort someone down it was to mislead a person who relied on your honesty.
Endangered Phrases by Steven D. Price Copyright © 2011 by Steven D. Price