Bite the hand that feeds you means treating badly someone who helps you, pays you or gives you a chance: Do not bite the hand that feeds you by mocking the person helping you. The help can be a salary, a sponsor or a mentor's time. The phrase is about ingratitude, and it often sounds like a warning.
When would you say bite the hand that feeds you?
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bite the hand that feeds me / you / him / her / us / them
- He accused the club of biting the hand that feeds it after it insulted its main sponsor.
- Do not bite the hand that feeds you by mocking the person helping you.
- She felt that publicly humiliating their mentor would be biting the hand that feeds them.
What changed
First versionYou are biting the hand that feed you.
RevisionYou are biting the hand that feeds you.
You stands right next to the verb, so it seems the verb should agree with it: feed you. But it's the hand that feeds, the hand is third person singular, so feeds. Add the s.
Burn bridges means ruining a relationship so there's no way back. Bite the hand that feeds you means harming exactly the person who supported you: He accused the club of biting the hand that feeds it. Throw someone under the bus means blaming another person to save yourself.
Your turn
Complete the idiom: Don't bite the hand that ___ you.
Show the answer
feeds — The hand does the feeding, and it's third person, so feeds. You is the object here, not the subject.
Describe a situation where someone treated badly the person who had helped them. Use bite the hand that feeds you.
By insulting the volunteers who kept the club open, the committee was biting the hand that feeds it.
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