What does ‘the pot calling the kettle black’ mean?
To “the pot calling the kettle black” means to accusing someone of a fault you have yourself. Brewer's records this as an old English proverb, and a version appears in Cervantes' Don Quixote.
Origin
- Brewer's records this as an old English proverb, and a version appears in Cervantes' Don Quixote.
How to use it
- Common accusation of hypocrisy.
- Example: Him calling me lazy is the pot calling the kettle black.
Source:
Last verified: 2026-07-18
- Definitions and origins are drawn from public-domain reference works, primarily Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898), with modern usage notes clearly marked.