Where does “出鼻を折る” come from?

出鼻を折る (Japanese) comes from Japanese を, from Proto-Japonic wo — accusative marker; away from, off.

出鼻を折る (Japanese): to spoil someone's start; to kill someone's enthusiasm; to take the wind out of someone's sails

Definitions

  1. to spoil someone's start; to kill someone's enthusiasm; to take the wind out of someone's sails

Ancestry of “出鼻を折る”, step by step

出鼻を折る traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Japanese を

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1JapaneseをA case particle; A conjunctive particle, usually...
2Proto-Japonicwoaccusative marker; away from, off

via Japanese 折る

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese折るto bend, to fold; Alternative spelling of へずる
Every word from Proto-Japonic wo →Every word from Japanese を →