Idiom
An eye for an eye
An eye for an eye is the idea that someone who causes harm should be punished with the same harm in return.
How people use it
People use this phrase in talk about justice, punishment and revenge. It can describe a belief in matched punishment, or it can criticize revenge: "An eye for an eye won't fix anything." It is often heard with a longer line, "An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind." The tone is neutral and fairly serious, though people also use it lightly about small paybacks between friends or siblings. Note that it is not literal today; no one means real eyes.
Also said: eye for an eye.
Examples
- When his sister ate his cookies, Leo wanted an eye for an eye and hid her chips.
- The coach said an eye for an eye is no way to answer a rough tackle.
- Our club rules aren't about an eye for an eye, but about fixing problems fairly.
Where it comes from
The principle is very old. A rule of matching punishment appears in the Code of Hammurabi, a Babylonian law code from about 1750 BC, and the phrase "eye for eye" appears in the Hebrew Bible. It was originally meant to limit revenge, so the punishment could be no greater than the harm. The longer saying about the whole world going blind is often credited to Gandhi, but there is no solid record that he said it.
Check yourself
1. What idea does an eye for an eye express?
Answer: Paying back harm with the same harm. The phrase is about matched punishment or revenge.
2. Which statement about the longer saying is accurate?
Answer: There is no solid record that Gandhi said it. The line is often credited to Gandhi, but the records do not confirm it.
Similar idioms
Word game fan? See every word hiding in EYE.