Learn English – the meaning of expression “won’t stand the light of day”

expressions

What is the meaning of expression "won't stand the light of day"?

Can I say my solution to this problem won't stand the light of day… meaning that I just ducktaped my way out of some problem and the fix is understood to be temporary ?

Best Answer

Your understanding is correct.

The phrase is often expressed as [this thing] won't stand up to scrutiny in the cold light of day. It means, more or less, that while [this thing] may appear at the moment to be good or sufficient, once it is examined properly in a critical fashion, it will be found to be unsatisfactory.

An example of the phrase used in a reputable publication can be found here in Gramophone Magazine, discussing a recording of a live musical performance:

Of course, a greatly stirring live performance does not necessarily survive the transfer to CD and many things here don’t stand up to close scrutiny in the cold light of day.

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