make bricks without straw

Verb

Meaning

make bricks without straw (third-person singular simple present makes bricks without straw, present participle making bricks without straw, simple past and past participle made bricks without straw)

(idiomatic) To accomplish a task without the proper materials or under unreasonable conditions; to do the impossible.

Examples

You can only acquire really useful general ideas by first acquiring particular ideas . . . You cannot make bricks without straw. Arnold Bennett

You cannot make bricks without straw. French Proverb

You can't make bricks without straw. Spanish Proverb

You can't make bricks without straw. English Proverb

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