Does "a person on a leash" make sense？ Hi, friends! I make up a context below for your better understanding. Suppose a convict is escaping arrest, and he's so shrewd and levelheaded that the police

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StevenBY

Does "a person on a leash" make sense？ Hi, friends! I make up a context below for your better understanding. Suppose a convict is escaping arrest, and he's so shrewd and levelheaded that the police feel trapped in a situation where everything they have to do are follow, as the convict is always a step ahead of them. How would you define this kind of scenario? Does "the police are on a leash" make any sense? Or do you have any phrase or idiom in English to express it? Thanks in advance!

Apr 15, 2018 7:24 PM

Answers · 8

All that comes to mind at present of when we would talk about a person being on a leash would be when we say that they were on a "tight leash" or a "short leash" to imply that someone else was keeping them under a very close watch, perhaps scrutinising their actions, and not allowing them "free reign" or to act autonomously. Hope that helps.

April 15, 2018

You could say the police are being led on a leash, but it would be more common to say they are being lead on a Chase. You could also say they are being led on a "wild goose chase" but that is most commonly used if the police are following misleading evidence. The expression "he is on a leash" is most commonly used to describe a situation where the his girlfriend, boyfriend, fiancee, or spouse is being very controlling.

April 15, 2018

No, I would say that sort of phrase is not really transferrable. Describing the convict, as you have done, as "always being one step ahead" would seem to be the most accurate and most common expression. We have a somewhat quaint or old-fashioned idiom which would fit: the convict was "leading them on a merry dance"

April 15, 2018

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