sour grapes

Meaning

1. (plural, plural-only) Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see sour, grapes.
2. (idiomatic, plural, plural-only) Things that somebody pretends to despise because they cannot obtain or have them.
3. (idiomatic, plural, plural-only) A putting down or expression of disdain about something that one desires but cannot have.

Synonyms

make excuses

poor loser

unwilling to admit defeat

Translations

حصرم

αγουρίδες

mauvais joueur

mauvais perdant

ressentimento

uvas verdes

uvas verdes

Etymology

From Aesop's fable The Fox and the Grapes, in which a fox, unable to reach grapes it is seeking, convinces itself that they must have been unripe (therefore, sour) all along and so not worth trying for in the first place.