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Get away with murder

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Get away with murder is an English idiom, used to describe escaping the consequences of an action. While literally it refers to someone committing a murder and not being punished, it can be used figuratively of someone who is seen not to suffer the consequences of their actions: "I hate to see a mother who lets her children get away with murder".[1][2][3][4]

It's unknown where and when the idiom originated from exactly, but is theorized to be from the United Kingdom sometime between 1200 and 1500.[5]

References

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  1. ^ Spitzack, Carole (5 July 1990). Confessing Excess: Women and the Politics of Body Reduction. SUNY Press. p. 91. ISBN 978-0-7914-0272-6.
  2. ^ Ammer, Christine (2013). The American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms: American English Idiomatic Expressions & Phrases (Second ed.). Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. p. 164. ISBN 978-0-547-67658-6.
  3. ^ Brown, Deaver (2018). 1500 American Idioms, Phrases & Slang: Best Test Prep. Simply Media. ISBN 978-1-61496-465-0.
  4. ^ Manser, Martin H. (2006). Dictionary of Idioms. Wordsworth Editions. p. 111. ISBN 978-1-84022-491-7.
  5. ^ "GET AWAY WITH MURDER (phrase) American English definition and synonyms | Macmillan Dictionary". www.macmillandictionary.com. Retrieved 2021-09-27.