Susan Gell exercises her horse in Loch Lomand, Scotland. She regularly lets her horse swim to the mainland from the island she lives on. Photo: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty
Today's Phrase
'You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make him drink' is a proverb which means that you can give someone an opportunity but not force them to take it.
For example:
I gave him the email address of the person in charge of recruitment but he still didn’t contact him about the job. You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make him drink.
We arranged everything for Kate: we paid for the train ticket, ordered a taxi from the station and even made a hotel booking but she still didn’t turn up to the wedding. You know what they say: you can lead a horse to water but you can’t make him drink.
Don't confuse it with
'Horseplay' is rough or boisterous play. For example:
My nephews are always fighting and getting up to all kinds of horseplay.
Interesting fact
Scotland has almost 800 offshore islands which are divided into four main groups: Shetland, Orkney and the Inner and Outer Hebrides. Almost 100 of the islands have people living on them. The largest island is Lewis and Harris, which is over 2000 square kilometres.
