Definition
To act on an opportunity promptly while favorable conditions exist; to avoid waiting.
Origins
The adage originates from the common craft of blacksmithing. It appears in Chaucer's The Tale of Melibee, "right so as whil that iren is hoot men sholden smyte". (Harvard) It gained additional meaning when used as a motto by Joseph Paisley - a blacksmith at Gretna Green who married eloping couples at his anvil. (History in the Margins)
In Context
- "We should strike while the iron is hot and order some immediately, before they change the offer."
- "The Gap thus stopp'd, with her Army she marcheth to the Cage that kept those Birds, whose Wings she would be clipping. She knew if she struck not while the Iron was hot, the heat of a popular Faction would quickly sink and lessen."