A: What do you think of the market today?

    B: We’re not ready to start buying yet. We’ll keep our powder dry until we think prices are as low as they’ll go.

    Note: This idiom means to “be ready to take action if necessary,” “be alert” or “take care.” In the old days soldiers keep a bag of powder as ammunition. They had to make sure that their powder didn’t get wet, because wet powder wouldn’t explode. The idiom reputedly originated with Oliver Cromwell during his campaign in Ireland. In “Ballads of Ireland,” 1856, Edward Hayes wrote: There is a well-authenticated anecdote of Cromwell. On a certain occasion, when his troops were about crossing a river to attack the enemy, he concluded an address with these words — “put your trust in God; but mind to keep your powder dry.”