put one's head above the parapet

verb

To create controversy, and thus be a target for anybody's criticism.

Opposite
keep one's head below the parapet
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Meanings

verbput one's head above the parapet (third-person singular simple present puts one's head above the parapet, present participle putting one's head above the parapet, simple past and past participle put one's head above the parapet)

present singular third person puts one's head above the parapet · participle present putting one's head above the parapet

  1. To create controversy, and thus be a target for anybody's criticism.
    1 more example

    In 2021 she felt compelled to put her head above the parapet by refusing to sell the rights for a Hebrew translation of Beautiful World to an Israeli publishing company in support of the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions movement (BDS), following reports describing Israeli treatment of Palestinians as apartheid.

    2024 September 14, Lisa Allardice, “Sally Rooney: ‘Falling in love when I was very young transformed my life’”, in The Guardian, →ISSN

    Antonyms: keep one's head below the parapet

Synonyms & antonyms

verbTo create controversy, and thus be a target for anybody's criticism.

Opposite
keep one's head below the parapet
Cite this entry
APA

put one's head above the parapet. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/put%20one's%20head%20above%20the%20parapet

MLA

“put one's head above the parapet.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/put%20one's%20head%20above%20the%20parapet. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “put one's head above the parapet,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/put%20one's%20head%20above%20the%20parapet.

Source: put one's head above the parapet on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.