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woodwork
*out of the woodwork
Fig. out into the open from other places or a place of concealment. (*Typically: bring someone or something ~; come ~; creep ~.) When the cake appeared, all the office people suddenly came out of the woodwork.
come out of the woodwork
also crawl out of the woodwork to appear suddenly and unexpectedly
If you try to lose weight, people will come out of the woodwork to offer advice. Usage notes: usually said about someone who was not invited or wanted
Etymology: based on the idea of insects that suddenly come out from under boards in a house where they have been hidden
come/crawl out of the woodwork
to appear after being hidden or not active for a long time, especially in order to do something unpleasant After you've been in a relationship for a long while, all sorts of little secrets start to come out of the woodwork. Racists and extreme nationalists are crawling out of the woodwork to protest at the sudden increase in the number of immigrants.
out of the woodwork
Emerging from obscurity or a place of seclusion. It often is put as come (or crawl) out of the woodwork, as in The candidates for this job were coming out of the woodwork. The expression alludes to insects crawling out of the interior wooden fittings of a house, such as baseboards and moldings. [Colloquial; mid-1900s]
out of the woodwork
Out of obscurity or a place of seclusion: People were coming out of the woodwork to apply for the desirable job.