“The Fox and the Grapes”

Cultural  

1. One of Aesop's fables. A fox tries many times to pluck some grapes that dangle invitingly over his head, but he cannot reach them. As he slinks away in disgust, he says, “Those grapes are probably sour anyway.”

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“Sour grapes” refers to things that people decide are not worth having only after they find they cannot have them.

Example Sentences

According to Aesop's fable The Fox and the Grapes, failure often has the direct opposite effect—persuading us to abandon our previous plan.

From Scientific American

At the beginning of Something Deeply Hidden, Sean Carroll cites the tale of the fox and the grapes from Aesop’s Fables.

From Nature

At Faversham, Kent, is one of the Fox and the Grapes; at Chester is the Fox and the Stork.

From Project Gutenberg

Fables, such as "The Boy and the Wolf" or "The Fox and the Grapes," are excellent to begin with, because they contain the necessary qualities which make up a good short story.

From Project Gutenberg

She was trying desperately to understand the fable of the fox and the grapes after it is turned inside out.

From Project Gutenberg