crocodile tears

crocodile tears
{n.} Pretended grief; a show of sorrow that is not really felt. * /When his rich uncle died, leaving him his money, John shed crocodile tears./ (From the old legend that crocodiles make weeping sounds to attract victims and then shed tears while eating them.)

Dictionary of American idioms. 2013.

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  • Crocodile tears — Crocodile Croc o*dile (kr[o^]k [ o]*d[imac]l; 277), n. [L. crocodilus, Gr. kroko deilos: cf. F. crocodile. Cf. {Cookatrice}.] 1. (Zo[ o]l.) A large reptile of the genus {Crocodilus}, of several species. They grow to the length of sixteen or… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Crocodile Tears — Auteur Anthony Horowitz Genre Aventure, Espionnage Pays d origine Royaume Uni Traducteur Annick Le Goyat Éditeur Livre de Poche Jeunesse Date de parution …   Wikipédia en Français

  • crocodile tears — If someone cries crocodile tears, they pretend to be upset or affected by something …   The small dictionary of idiomes

  • crocodile tears — n. insincere tears or a hypocritical show of grief: from an old belief that crocodiles shed tears while eating their prey …   English World dictionary

  • crocodile tears — ► PLURAL NOUN ▪ insincere tears or expressions of sorrow. ORIGIN said to be so named from a belief that crocodiles wept while devouring or luring their prey …   English terms dictionary

  • Crocodile tears — For other uses, see Crocodile tears (disambiguation). Crocodile tears (or superficial sympathy) are a false or insincere display of emotion such as a hypocrite crying fake tears of grief. The phrase gives its name to crocodile tears syndrome, an… …   Wikipedia

  • crocodile tears — noun a hypocritical display of sorrow; false or insincere weeping the secretaries wept crocodile tears over the manager s dilemma politicians shed crocodile tears over the plight of the unemployed • Hypernyms: ↑hypocrisy, ↑lip service * * * noun… …   Useful english dictionary

  • Crocodile Tears — For other uses, see Crocodile tears (disambiguation). Crocodile Tears   …   Wikipedia

  • crocodile tears —    If someone cries crocodile tears, they pretend to be upset or affected by something.   (Dorking School Dictionary)    ***    To shed crocodile tears means to shed false tears or show insincere grief.     Caroline pretended to be sad but we all …   English Idioms & idiomatic expressions

  • crocodile tears — N PLURAL If someone is crying crocodile tears, their tears and sadness are not genuine or sincere. The sight of George shedding crocodile tears made me sick …   English dictionary

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