the.com/fly in the ointment
The one flaw that ruins an otherwise perfect plan, loudly.
means A small, often minor, flaw or drawback that spoils something that would otherwise be good or perfect.
from Pulled from the Bible (Ecclesiastes), where dead flies are said to make a perfumer's precious ointment stink — a tiny ruinous thing spoiling something valuable. The phrase stuck in English by the 17th century as shorthand for any small defect that taints an otherwise fine situation.
- origin
- Biblical, Ecclesiastes 10:1, dead flies spoil perfume
- irony
- Ointment meant to heal, fly makes it rot
- usage
- Small problem, disproportionately large consequences
- synonym energy
- Monkey wrench, but with wings