a can of worms

Quote

“It’s a can of worms. Big, fat, juicy worms, but worms.”

- Actress Pamela Anderson on her third divorce. (US Magazine)

Definition

a bad situation; a problem with an unknown outcome

Use

A can of worms is a big problem or something that could create a big problem. In America, there are no canned worms (at least, not at the grocery store, anyway). But, people open cans of worms all the time. That is to say, they make problems.

Pamela Anderson’s divorce is a can of worms, not only because divorces are always big problems, but also because she does not want to talk about it and she doesn’t want others to discuss it either. If there’s a topic you don’t want people to talk about, you could call it a can of worms.

Do you know what else comes in a linguistic can? Whoopass. When people say, “Don’t make me open a can of whoopass on you,” they mean “Don’t make me fight with you.” Whoopass comes from the verb, to whoop ass, which means to fight.

Do any slang terms come in a can in your language? What do you think English speakers should start canning next?

Examples

“He opened a can of worms today.”

“Let’s not talk about that. Don’t go opening a can of worms.”

Winners

Winners - See who guessed the slang definition correctly.

	something is so hard to deal with..like the worms in the can... by yuen88yuen
	a lot of big trouble by chelsea1905
	a source of unpredictable trouble and complexity by Panduola
	something really unpleasant, disgusting even by if_i_refuse
	She was refering to her failed marriage that made her life in haywire. by siouxie
	a big broblem you dont want to talk about by dearpesar
	i think can of worms means : a very problematic situation by doom
	It is something disgusting and unpleasing. by ElBeam
	difficult matters to deal with by Darlene
	It's a complicated or embarrassing matter. by jacob-iz
	it`s kind of similar to what we call in my country "Pndora`s box"...one may expect the situation to be sorted out after "opening the can full of surprises"; instead, there`s nothing but grossy worms, so that they come to add even more problems to the already complicated situation..."high quality worms" they may be, indeed, as Pamela humourously refers to them as "big, fat , juicy", but it`s nothing but a literary method to help her emphasise the dramatic situation she is in.By that she simply means "it`s getting even worse" by donnadonna
	A complex unexpected problem or unsolvable dilemma by Droomek
	the troublesome problem,unsolved problem by homyhoo
	complicated problem by trustmeok
	Situation which is troublesome and complex with problems and she hate to talk about it. by kaushalyats

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