change horses in mid-stream

A form of change horses in midstream — To change one's plan or approach when an effort is already underway or at another inopportune time.

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Meanings

verbchange horses in mid-stream (third-person singular simple present changes horses in mid-stream, present participle changing horses in mid-stream, simple past and past participle changed horses in mid-stream)

present singular third person changes horses in mid-stream · participle present changing horses in mid-stream · participle past changed horses in mid-stream · past changed horses in mid-stream

  1. alternativeAlternative form of change horses in midstream.

    Buoyed by that success, I was eager to disprove the myth that, “You can't change horses in mid-stream.”

    2011, Bob Wolff, Bob Wolff's Complete Guide to Sportscasting
    2 more examples

    “It is not good to change horses in mid-stream”, is what the famous American President Abraham Lincoln said.

    2010, Hendrick C. Verton, In the Fire of the Eastern Front

    The excuse given by his Democrat Party was that the war was going on, and it was not wise to “change horses in mid-stream,” as the popular phrase was used during the months of electioneering before the votes were cast.

    2012, Eugene G. Schulz, The Ghost in General Patton's Third Army, page 237
Cite this entry
APA

change horses in mid-stream. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/change%20horses%20in%20mid-stream

MLA

“change horses in mid-stream.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/change%20horses%20in%20mid-stream. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “change horses in mid-stream,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/change%20horses%20in%20mid-stream.

Source: change horses in mid-stream on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.