wet behind the ears
Meaning
Inexperienced; just beginning; immature (especially in judgment).
Opposite of
dry behind the ears
Synonyms
smelling of milk
to be half-baked
Translations
inexpert
nach Milch reichend
sans expérience
alle prime armi muovere i primi passi essere un novellino
nat achter de orenEtymology
First use appears c. 1850 in Pennsylvania, a calque of German feucht hinter den Ohren. From the drying of amniotic fluid of a baby after birth, specifically a newborn farm animal, whose ears are the last to dry, partly because it is licked dry by its mother everywhere else. Alternative forms also derive from German.
Notes
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