bite the hand that feeds one

English

Pronunciation

Audio (AU) (file)

Verb

bite the hand that feeds one

(idiomatic) to cause harm to a benefactor (especially one that one is dependent on, thus with the idea that this behaviour is self-damaging)
- 2004, Jay Newton-Small, "The Dems' Tax (and Spend) Dilemma," Time, 15 Nov.:
  And the reality is, for all the talk about lobbying reform, Congress has never been known to bite the hand that feeds it.

Translations

cause harm to a benefactor

Chinese:
Mandarin: 狗咬呂洞賓 (zh), 狗咬吕洞宾 (zh) (gǒu yǎo Lǚ Dòngbīn), 忘恩負義 (zh), 忘恩负义 (zh) (wàng ēn fù yì)
Finnish: purra ruokkivaa kättä
French: mordre la main qui nourrit (fr), mordre la main nourricière (fr)

German: in die Hand beißen, die einen füttert; (commoner, but broader in meaning) den Ast absägen, auf dem man sitzt (literally “saw off the branch on which one is sitting”)
Italian: mordere la mano che ti nutre
Russian: куса́ть ру́ку, кото́рая ко́рмит (kusátʹ rúku, kotóraja kórmit), руби́ть сук, на кото́ром сиди́шь (rubítʹ suk, na kotórom sidíšʹ)
Spanish: morder la mano que te da de comer (es)

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