false step

noun — 2 senses

false step

noun

1

A misstep; a stumble.

A false step, and once in the water, that would be the end, with no possible chance of escape.1909, John Claude White, Sikhim and Bhutan, page 61:

2

Figuratively An erroneous action or decision.

There have been several false steps made on the campaign trail, none tragic.

Entry derived from the Wiktionary, under licence CC BY-SA 4.0 — list of authors.