PEOPLE WHO LIVE IN GLASS HOUSES SHOULDN’T THROW STONES

This is a proverb rather than an idiom, but it’s regularly used. It means that people who have faults of their own shouldn’t criticise others.

 Examples

 “It added: ‘Ms Dinenage is reminded that people who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones.’”

 “As the saying goes, people who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones. And all our houses have parts made of glass.”


 This proverb is believed to originate from a line in Chaucer’s “Troilus & Criseyde”, which dates back to 1385. [1]


 [1] “Those who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones” in Oxford Dictionary of Proverbs, edited by Speake, Jennifer. Oxford University Press, 2015.

 Photo credit: Julie (Creative Commons)

OUT OF THE FRYING PAN INTO THE FIRE

The phrase “out of the frying pan into the fire” is used to describe moving from a bad situation to a worse one.

 Examples:

 “Out of the frying pan and into the fire. That was the fate of a man who, after being arrested for one offence, tried to wriggle his way out by bribing a member of the arresting team, which then got him arrested again.”

 “The simplest way to avoid most Google products is to switch to the Microsoft or Apple equivalents, in whole or in part. Some would see this as jumping out of the frying pan into the fire.”

 “There’s a sense of out of the frying pan and into the fire for Bristol Rovers who, having been alarmingly beaten 4-1 at Doncaster Rovers, now take on League One leaders Luton Town who are in startling form.”


 This phrase also features as the title for Chapter VI of J R R Tolkien’s book, “The Hobbit,” [1] which describes how the central character escapes from goblins only to be caught by wolves.


 [1] The Hobbit (p. 99). J R R Tolkien. HarperCollins Publishers. Kindle Edition. 

 Photo credit: erik langner (Creative Commons)