more than one bargained for

English

Pronunciation

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Noun

more than one bargained for (uncountable)

1. (idiomatic) An unexpected and (usually) unwanted result of a decision or action.
   • 1874, Ambrose Bierce, “Fables of Zambri, the Parsee”, in Cobwebs From an Empty Skull:

     This was more than he had bargained for, and he squeaked shrilly with the pain.

   • 1919, Upton Sinclair, chapter 22, in Jimmie Higgins:

     The sound of guns grew louder. . . . [W]hat if the Germans were to break through and sweep over all calculations? This was a little more than Jimmie Higgins had bargained for when he entered the recruiting-office in Leesville, U.S.A.!

   • 1987 July 27, Cristina Garcia, “Law: Casting A Net at Green River”, in Time, retrieved 23 May 2015:

     [T]hey found much and more than they had bargained for. Nestled amid the weeds and debris near the bottom of the slope was a human skull.

   • 2015 Jan. 14, "Bull elephant gets too close for comfort in Thai park" (video), New York Times (retrieved 23 May 2015):

     A bull elephant gave tourists in Thailand more than they bargained for on Sunday when it sat on and rubbed itself along their cars.

Usage notes

• Sometimes used euphemistically to suggest a result which is especially unpleasant.
• Sometimes used in a mildly humorous manner to suggest that the unexpected result is laughable or ridiculous.
• Sometimes a term or expression is located between more and than, as in:

1841, James Fenimore Cooper, chapter 5, in The Deerslayer:

"Something more may turn up from this inroad of the red-skins than they bargained for."

2008 October 9, Samantha M. Shapiro, “Kosher Wars”, in New York Times, retrieved 25 May 2015:

[H]e set about creating an alternative that met his ideal of kosher, a process more arduous than he bargained for.

Further reading

• “more than one bargained for”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.