Question

Cry Wolf to give a false alarm of danger; to warn of a peril that you know is not real

Accepted Answer

Don't worry if my little brother starts screaming that there's a ghost in his room. He always cries wolf. One of Aesop's most famous fables tells of a bored shepherd boy who falsely cried that a wolf was killing his sheep. When people came and found out there was no wolf threatening the sheep, they were annoyed. The shepherd did this once too often; one day when a real wolf came, no one came when he called out, and the wolf ate the sheep.

Idiom	Cry Wolf
Example	Don't worry if my little brother starts screaming that there's a ghost in his room. He always cries wolf.
Meaning	to give a false alarm of danger; to warn of a peril that you know is not real
Origin	One of Aesop's most famous fables tells of a bored shepherd boy who falsely cried that a wolf was killing his sheep. When people came and found out there was no wolf threatening the sheep, they were annoyed. The shepherd did this once too often; one day when a real wolf came, no one came when he called out, and the wolf ate the sheep.

Wolf Real Shepherd Sheep Cry Worry Brother Starts