When something is like shooting fish in a barrel, it is extremely easy to do; ridiculously easy; almost impossible to fail at; opposition that is easy to defeat.
In English, fish in a barrel can be used alone to describe someone that is easy to defeat, take advantage of, win over, entertain, etc.
See the similar idiom like taking candy from a baby.
Origin of “Like Shooting Fish in a Barrell”
Used at least since the 1930s, this idiom alludes to how much easier it would be to shoot fish crowded into a barrel than to shoot them in open water. Since people don’t normally shoot fish, it is not clear why they came to be used in this idiom . It appears in print in 1931, in Gene Fowler’s Great Mouthpiece: “It’s like shooting fish in a barrel,” It was probably already a well-known saying by then.
Sentence Examples
“Chris Rock’s special, playing the victim while pretending not to be a victim, was like shooting fish in a barrel. The audience was prepared to laugh at whatever he said.”
“These things sale themselves, said Barkly. “It’s like shooting fish in a barrel.”
“I don’t think they are going to like my routine,” said the comedian. “Don’t worry, it’s like shooting fish in a barrel once they are already drunk,” said the club manager.
“Sure, we had overwhelming numbers and superior firepower, but it wasn’t exactly like shooting fish in a barrel.”
“This is going to be like shooting fish in a barrel. We’ve already beat them twice.”
“When the deer population gets too heavy, it becomes like shooting fish in a barrel. Culling the population is necessary, but it seems cruel and unfair to many people.”
“We felt like fish in a barrel, out in the open like that.”
Similar Idioms and Related Expressions
- Like taking candy from a baby: Same meaning as “like shooting fish in a barrel”: extremely easy to do; too easy to do; nearly impossible to fail at.
- Like/Easy As falling off a log: Very easy; requiring almost no effort.
- Easy as Pie: very easy to do, presenting no difficulty.
- Easy As ABC: same as easy as pie.
- Piece of Cake: something that is very easy to accomplish.
- A walk in the park: A task that is easy and straightforward.
- A cinch / A breeze: Extremely easy to accomplish.
- No sweat: Effortless; requiring little effort; so easy one will not even “break a sweat.”
- A lay-up: A guaranteed success.