fly off the handle

== English == === Etymology === From the image of an axe head becoming loose and suddenly flying free of its handle, a vivid metaphor for losing control. The phrase is an early 19th-century American idiom, with printed examples first appearing c. the 1810s–1830s. === Pronunciation === === Verb === fly off the handle (third-person singular simple present flies off the handle, present participle flying off the handle, simple past flew off the handle, past participle flown off the handle) (colloquial, idiomatic) To become very angry or enraged; to throw a fit or go crazy. ==== Translations ==== ==== See also ====