throw caution to the winds

Idioms  

1. Also, throw discretion to the winds. Behave or speak very rashly, as in Throwing caution to the winds, he ran after the truck, or I'm afraid she's thrown discretion to the winds and told everyone about the divorce. This expression uses to the winds in the sense of “utterly vanishing” or “out of existence,” a usage dating from the mid-1600s. The first recorded use of throw to the winds was in 1885.

---

Example Sentences

Should they throw caution to the winds and try to bring in a full-time appointment now to save their season from the ignominy of relegation?

From BBC • Mar. 24, 2026

Boris Johnson told BBC's Sunday Morning programme: "We're certainly not asking people to throw caution to the winds."

From BBC • Feb. 20, 2022

“I’m not saying that we should throw caution to the winds, but now is the moment for everybody to get their confidence back,” Johnson told the BBC in an interview broadcast Sunday.

From Washington Times • Feb. 20, 2022

That prominent figures throw caution to the winds may be no accident, some say.

From New York Times • Nov. 10, 2012

Max might throw caution to the winds, pursue her for a time,—K. had seen him do this,—and then, growing tired, change to some new attraction.

From K by Rinehart, Mary Roberts