Stick one’s neck out

Stick one’s neck out is an American idiom. We will examine the meaning of the idiom stick one’s neck out, where it came from, and some examples of its use in sentences.

Stick one’s neck out means to take a risk, to expose yourself to criticism, to put yourself in danger. The idiom stick one’s neck out is an American phrase that came into use by the 1920s. The exact origin is unknown. Some ascribe the origin to the fact that a chicken or turkey will stretch out its neck when placed upon the chopping block. Others invoke the image of a turtle stretching its neck out of its shell to take a look around, therefore endangering itself. Related phrases are sticks one’s neck out, stuck one’s neck out, sticking one’s neck out.

Examples

For Koepka to stick his neck out, knowing it would deal a significant blow to the PGL and frustrate other elite golfers, took guts, but it was his method, and his reasons, that stuck out. (Golf Digest)

Larry Davidson said his father was the type to stick his neck out to protect other soldiers and was awarded a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart. (The Roanoke Times)

“I stuck my neck out and asked them if they wanted to go home and they all said yes unanimously.” (The Edmonton JOurnal)

“We had an AD meeting, and I kind of stuck my neck out and committed that we were going to be there,” he said. (The Daily Gazette)