Rate this phrase:5.0 / 1 vote

eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth

To take retribution or give penalty similar to the original offense or fault

Etymology:

  • This idiom is mentioned in the Old Testament of the Bible (Exodus 21:23). It is often practiced to summarize its severe policy. This idiom demonstrates that every offense or harm should be chastised or remunerated back with the same exchange of unkind dealings.
72 Views
“

Anna took Sara's new watch because Sara took Anna's new sunglasses. That’s what we call an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.

Collection   Edit    

Submitted on February 25, 2019

Modified by TriplePurple on April 11, 2024

Translation

Find a translation for the eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth phrase in other languages:

occhio per occhio e dente per dente

Select another language:

  • - Select -
  • 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
  • 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
  • Español (Spanish)
  • Esperanto (Esperanto)
  • 日本語 (Japanese)
  • Português (Portuguese)
  • Deutsch (German)
  • العربية (Arabic)
  • Français (French)
  • Русский (Russian)
  • ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
  • 한국어 (Korean)
  • עברית (Hebrew)
  • Gaeilge (Irish)
  • Українська (Ukrainian)
  • اردو (Urdu)
  • Magyar (Hungarian)
  • मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
  • Indonesia (Indonesian)
  • Italiano (Italian)
  • தமிழ் (Tamil)
  • Türkçe (Turkish)
  • తెలుగు (Telugu)
  • ภาษาไทย (Thai)
  • Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
  • Čeština (Czech)
  • Polski (Polish)
  • Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
  • Românește (Romanian)
  • Nederlands (Dutch)
  • Ελληνικά (Greek)
  • Latinum (Latin)
  • Svenska (Swedish)
  • Dansk (Danish)
  • Suomi (Finnish)
  • فارسی (Persian)
  • ייִדיש (Yiddish)
  • հայերեն (Armenian)
  • Norsk (Norwegian)
  • English (English)

Nearby phrases

Some more phrases from our dictionary similar to eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth

everybody and their dogeye of a tigereverything and the kitchen sinkeye for an eye, a tooth for a tootheye candyeye & smile at same timeeye-openereveryone and his motherfair and squarefar and awayfair and squareeye of the beholdereye sexeverybody and his mother

How to pronounce this phrase?

Discuss this eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth phrase with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth definition to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth." Phrases.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 22 Dec. 2024. <https://www.phrases.com/phrase/eye-for-an-eye-and-a-tooth-for-a-tooth_44646>.

    Powered by CITE.ME Cite.Me

    We need you!

    Help us build the largest human-edited phrases collection on the web!

    Quiz

    Are you a phrases master?

    »
    Never give _______. You can do it!
    A in
    B away
    C out
    D up

    Browse Phrases.com

    #ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ