FINGERS IN PIES

If we say that someone has a finger in the pie, we mean that they are involved in something, particularly in an interfering or annoying way, while someone who has a finger in every pie is involved in many activities.

 The origin of this metaphor, which dates from the late 1500s, appears to have been lost [1].

 Examples of use:

“Dave Parker, from New Civil Engineer, today told Radio 4’s Today: ‘The mafia had a very big finger in the pie of the concrete industry back then, charging full price and putting less cement in.’”

“She earned a lot of money and then gave a lot away. She had a finger in every pie.”

“In simple terms, if you have a finger in every pie, you should make money no matter what the markets do.”

 [1] “finger in the pie, have a” in The American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms, by Christine Ammer. 2nd ed. Houghton Mifflin, 2013.

 Photo credit: Andrew Malone