Meterse en un jardín

/me·ˈteɾ·se en un xaɾ·ˈðin/

To get into a garden.

Frequency

ConversationVery common

JournalismOccasional

LiteraryRare

AcademicVery rare

In English

to get oneself into a mess; **to get oneself into a mess**; **to dig oneself into a hole**; **to get oneself into hot water**; **to get oneself into a complicated situation**; **to make things worse for oneself**

Meaning

Meterse en un jardín means to get oneself into a complicated situation, to get oneself into a mess, to dig oneself into a hole, or, especially when speaking, to make things increasingly complicated by what one says.

Examples

No sigas hablando, que te estás metiendo en un jardín.

Stop talking—you’re digging yourself into a hole.

Intentó explicarlo y acabó metiéndose en un jardín.

He tried to explain it and ended up getting himself into a mess.

Se metió en un jardín al hablar de política.

He got himself into hot water by talking about politics.

Cuanto más intenta justificarse, más se mete en el jardín.

The more he tries to justify himself, the deeper a hole he digs for himself.

The expression often describes someone who tries to explain or justify something and ends up making the situation worse.

Used when

gives an explanation that creates new problems
makes contradictory statements
tries to justify an awkward situation and makes it worse
becomes entangled in an argument
starts talking about a complicated subject without knowing enough about it

Origin

The metaphor is based on the idea of entering a garden without knowing how to get out.

A garden can contain paths, plants and obstacles that make it difficult to move around freely.

The expression therefore evokes someone who enters a complicated situation voluntarily and then finds it increasingly difficult to escape.

Unlike some Spanish idioms, there is no need for a specific historical anecdote to explain it: the metaphor is transparent.

Cultural note

The expression is especially common when talking about public statements.

A politician, public figure or spokesperson who gives an unfortunate explanation may be said to have se metido en un jardín, particularly when every attempt to clarify the original statement creates a new controversy.

It can also be used in ordinary personal conversations.

Did you know?

Spanish has several other expressions describing someone who makes a difficult situation worse:

Meterse en camisa de once varas → to get involved in something unnecessarily complicated.
Ponerse la soga al cuello → to put oneself in a difficult situation.
Cavar su propia tumba → to dig one's own grave.

Meterse en un jardín is particularly common when the complication comes from talking too much: the more someone tries to explain, the deeper into the garden they get. ```

For English speakers

Do not translate the expression literally.

English speakers would not normally say:

He got into a garden.

Instead, use expressions such as:

He's digging himself into a hole.
He's getting himself into a mess.
He's getting himself into hot water.
He's making things worse for himself.

Dig oneself into a hole is often the closest equivalent when the problem is caused by someone's own words.