The idiom “you can’t get blood out of a turnip” means that it is impossible to produce a desired result from an object or situation that cannot provide it. It may have evolved from similar phrases and is often used as an allegory for financial gain. Its origin is unclear, but it has survived and is included in popular dictionaries of idioms.
The phrase “you can’t get blood out of a turnip” is one of the most colorful idioms in the English language. The meaning of the saying is that it is impossible to produce a desired object or result from an object or situation which could not, in any case, provide it. In other words, this phrase is used to show that where potential does not exist, none can be realised.
Some speech historians say the phrase “you can’t get blood out of a turnip” evolved from similar phrases ever. One example is the use of the idiom “you can’t get honey from a rock,” where the rock is a classic example of something that produces neither honey, nor any other desirable food substance. In some of these cases, the phrase appears to have been constructed in part to address ideas of alchemy, witchcraft, or other magic, where unnatural potential might be thought to exist. More commonly, though, the phrase is an affirmation of common sense, universally recognized limitations in the physical world.
In modern usages the phrase “drawing blood from a turnip” is often used as an allegory for financial gain. Someone could use it to suggest that regardless of aggressive tactics, a business or other party may be unable to obtain payment of a bill from someone who is in poverty or lacks the discretionary capital to pay off the debt. This is an important use of the phrase as popular slang in English-speaking communities.
The origin of this phrase is not entirely clear. Some speculate that it dates back to the historical Old Testament, where two sons, Cain and Abel, each provided a sacrifice to the Judeo-Christian God. One of these was in the form of an animal product and the other was in a plant form. The difference between these two has led to a significant antithesis that has yielded much comment over the centuries. Some believe that the phrase “you can’t get blood from a turnip” may refer to the lesser capacity of unwanted plant sacrifice in history.
More recently, “you can’t get blood out of a turnip,” has been included in popular dictionaries of idioms, sayings, and clichés from the complete lexicon of the English language. Some people still use it in various ways. Interestingly, the phrase has survived, even though the turnip is not an important part of popular culinary culture in many English-speaking societies.
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