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Reader question: Please explain this passage, “out on a limb” in particular: No sitting Democratic senator has ever lost in New York State. And so I wouldn’t want to be out on a limb predicting it. I’m just saying that there’s a scenario where it could unfold. My comments: “I” think the current Democratic senator in New York State may lose his seat. But it’s just a hunch. “I” am not going to make a prediction as it would be too risky to make such a prediction. After all, no sitting Democratic senator has ever lost before. It may happen this time, but “I” am not saying it will happen. In other words, to make a definite prediction would be like dangling oneself out on a limb – that would be too risky. “Out on a limb” is a typical American idiom, and a great one. The limb, as you may have guessed out by now, is the far out branch of a tree. Why would anyone go up there? Well, because there’s still a hanging fruit there. This idiom, no doubt, was derived from observing fruit gatherers at work. Gathering apples for instance, you go first for the low-hanging fruit, which is an idiom in its own right meaning the ones that are hanging low and therefore within easy reach. When the low-hanging fruits are all plucked, you move further up and out on the outstretching branches (limbs). The far-reaching branches are, as you can imagine, long and thin and therefore are easy to break as you climb closer to the fruit. | 
