jump the gun

Definitions

1. To begin a race too soon, before the starting gun goes off.
2. To act or begin too soon or without due caution.
   idiomatic
3. To trade securities based on information that is not yet public; to trade on inside information.
   idiomatic

Equivalents

Examples

“Unperturbed when an overanxious opponent jumped the gun in the women's 60-yd. dash, willowy Wilma Rudolph exploded perfectly from the starting blocks.”

“Taking advantage of advance press⟳ releases, gabby Walter Winchell jumped the gun a full two weeks by announcing in his radio period and tabloid column that the 1933-34 prizewinner was Men in White by Sidney Kingsley.”

“General reading readiness is assessed by tests and is also estimated by teachers who are often skillful at discerning just when a pupil is ready to learn⟳ to read⟳. The important thing to remember⟳ is that jumping the gun is usually self-defeating.”

“The former prime minister appears to be jumping the gun, pre-empting the legal process⟳ that is just beginning to dig⟳ deeper.”

CEFR level