English Explanatory Dictionary

poacher turned gamekeeper

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. A person now charged with protecting what they formerly preyed upon.
  2. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see poacher, turned, gamekeeper.

Pronunciation

En-au-poacher turned gamekeeper.ogg

Word forms

poacher turned gamekeeper poachers turned gamekeepers

Etymology

The figurative sense is by self-evident metaphor from the literal sense. The thought of poachers turned gamekeepers goes back centuries; for example, William Tinsley said in his memoirs that "There is an old saying that the most expert poachers make the best gamekeepers. I do not think the saying is true as a rule […] "

Synonyms

wolf guarding the sheep

Related words

fox guarding the henhouse fox in the henhouse it takes one to know one lunatics have taken over the asylum set a thief to catch a thief wolf guarding the sheep
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