List of English idioms starting with N

Showing 11-11 of 11

Photo of someone pushing a barge with a pole

Not touching that with a ten foot barge pole

Not touching that with a ten foot barge pole (or sometimes just a ten foot pole) means refusing to get involved with something because it seems unpleasant, risky, or troublesome.

The idiom draws from the long poles used to push barges along canals. A barge pole was long enough to push a boat a fair distance, so the phrase suggests staying as far away from a problem as possible.

After hearing how spicy that chili was, I said I was not touching that with a ten foot barge pole.