naughty step

Meanings

1. A place, such as a particular step on a staircase or a stool, where a child is sent to sit in silence as a punishment.
2. A state of disgrace, exclusion from a group, or punishment as a result of a misdemeanour.

Etymology

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, sense 2 (“state of disgrace, exclusion from a group, or punishment”) is attested earlier than sense 1 (“place where a child is sent to sit as a punishment”), though logically sense 2 follows from sense 1. The term was popularized by the professional nanny and author Jo Frost (born 1970) in the British television show Supernanny (first broadcast in 2004).