Word.ws English Dictionary

see the trees through the forest

see the trees through the forest verb: to appreciate the details of something, as opposed to only focusing on the big picture.

Verb

see the trees through the forest (third-person singular simple present sees the trees through the forest, present participle seeing the trees through the forest, simple past saw the trees through the forest, past participle seen the trees through the forest)

  1. (idiomatic) To appreciate the details of something, as opposed to only focusing on the big picture.
    • They naturally become very close to the personnel, supervisory and otherwise, and also the areas that they have to inspect, and sometimes I think they are unable to see the trees through the forest or the forest through the trees.1953, Gordon Canfield (quoted), Treasury-Post Office Departments Appropriations for 1954, U.S. Government Printing Office, page 741
    • However, very often it is difficult to see the trees through the forest, if I may make a pun.1984, Robert Bruck (quoted), Effects of Air Pollution and Acid Rain on Forest Decline, U.S. Government Printing Office, page 43

Forms of see the trees through the forest

third-person singular presentsees the trees through the forest
present participleseeing the trees through the forest
pastsaw the trees through the forest
past participleseen the trees through the forest

Origin of see the trees through the forest

Inversion of see the forest through the trees.

Questions about see the trees through the forest

What does see the trees through the forest mean?
See the trees through the forest means to appreciate the details of something, as opposed to only focusing on the big picture.
What part of speech is see the trees through the forest?
See the trees through the forest is a verb.
What is the past tense of see the trees through the forest?
The past tense of see the trees through the forest is saw the trees through the forest.

Words near see the trees through the forest in the dictionary

  1. see the last of
  2. see the light
  3. see the light of day
  4. see the point
  5. see the same way
  6. see the trees through the forest
  7. see the way clear to
  8. see the wood for the trees
  9. see the woods for the trees
  10. see the world
  11. see things

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: see the trees through the forest (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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