🗓️ Idiom: Put a Square Peg in a Round Hole (v)
💬 Meaning
- To try to fit someone or something into a role that doesn’t suit them.
- It means forcing a tool, person, or idea into a place where it doesn’t belong.
🧠 Example Sentences
- Using that old CRM with our new tools is like putting a square peg in a round hole.
- Assigning a creative developer to repetitive coding tasks felt like putting a square peg in a round hole.
- Their platform isn’t made for this type of integration. It’s a square peg in a round hole.
🏛️ Origin
The idiom comes from the idea that a square object doesn’t fit into a round space. In modern business and IT, it describes poor fits between tools, systems, or people and roles.
📝 Practice Exercises
1. Fill in the blank:
Trying to use a mobile app designed for iOS on an Android system is like __________.
Answer
putting a square peg in a round hole
2. Choose the correct meaning of “put a square peg in a round hole”:
A) To create a smooth upgrade
B) To apply a perfect match
C) To force a bad fit between tools or roles
D) To test a new feature
Answer
C) To force a bad fit between tools or roles
3. Rewrite the sentence using the idiom:
“That outdated plugin doesn’t work with the new system.” → Change the sentence using: put a square peg in a round hole
Answer
Using that outdated plugin is like putting a square peg in a round hole.