pot calling the kettle black

WOTD – 8 April 2007    

English

Etymology

There are two interpretations of this phrase, though other sources give only the first interpretation.

In the first interpretation, it refers to the fact that both cast-iron pots' and kettles' bottoms turn equally black when hung over a fire, and thus the pot is accusing the kettle of a fault it shares.

In the second, subtler interpretation, the pot is sooty (being placed on a fire), while the kettle is clean and shiny (being placed on coals only), and hence when the pot accuses the kettle of being black, it is the pot’s own sooty reflection that it sees: the pot accuses the kettle of a fault that only the pot has.

Pronunciation

• (RP) IPA: /ˈpɒt ˌkɔːliŋ ðə ˌkɛtəl ˌblæk/
• (US) IPA: /ˈpɑːt ˌkɑːliŋ ðə ˌkɛtəl ˌblæk/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Noun

pot calling the kettle black

1. (idiomatic) A situation in which somebody comments on or accuses someone else of a fault which the accuser shares.

   I think it's a case of the pot calling the kettle black when she says he is obsessive.

Translations

situation in which somebody accuses someone else of a fault shared by the accuser

• Basque: zozoak beleari, ipurbeltz (eu)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 自身毛病多，勿挑他人錯 (cmn), 自身毛病多，勿挑他人错 (cmn) (zìshēn máobìng duō, wù tiāo tārén cuò)

• Dutch: de pot verwijt de ketel dat hij zwart ziet (nl)
• Finnish: pata kattilaa soimaa (fi)
• French: la pelle se moque du fourgon (fr) (the shovel laughs at the poker), l'hôpital qui se moque de la charité (fr) (the hospital laughing at charity), la paille et la poutre (fr) (the mote and the beam)
• Georgian: ყვავმა ყვავს უთხრა შე შავოო (ka) (qvavma qvavs ut’xra še šavoo)
• German: ein Esel schimpft den anderen Langohr (de)
• Greek: είπε ο γάιδαρος τον πετεινό κεφάλα (el) (the donkey called the rooster bullheaded) 
• Hungarian: bagoly mondja verébnek, hogy nagyfejű (hu)
• Japanese: 目糞鼻糞を笑う (ja) (めくそはなくそをわらう, mekuso hanakuso o warau) (the sleep in one's eyes laughs at the snot in one's nose)
• Persian: دیگ به دیگ می‌گه روت سیاه (fa) (dig be dig mige rut siyâh)
• Polish: przyganiał kocioł garnkowi (pl)
• Portuguese: atirar pedra em teto de vidro (pt) (to throw stones in roof of glass)
• Russian: в чужом глазу соринку заметно, в своём — бревна не видать (ru) (v čužóm glazú sorínku zametno, v svojóm - brevná ne vidátʹ)  (in other's eye one can notice a mote, in one's own - can't see a log), чья бы корова мычала, а твоя б молчала (ru) (čʹjá by koróva myčála, a tvojá b molčála)  (other's cow could moo, but yours should better be silent)

• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: ругала се шерпа лонцу широка му уста (sh), ругала се руга па јој била друга (sh)

  Roman: rugala se šerpa loncu široka mu usta (sh), rugala se ruga pa joj bila druga (sh)

• Spanish: le dijo la sartén al cazo (es), le dijo la sartén al cazo: ¡aparta que me tiznas! (es)
• Swedish: kasta sten i glashus (sv), se grandet i grannens öga men inte bjälken i sitt eget (sv)
• Turkish: hem suçlu hem güçlü (tr) (lit. "to be guilty but strong as well" - To be guilty oneself, yet act innocent and not hesitate to impugn others.)
• Ukrainian:
  • дорікав горщик чавунові, що чорний (uk) (dorikav horščyk čavunovi, ščo čornyj) (the pot reproached the kettle for being black)
  • насміхалась верша з болота (uk) (nasmixalasʹ verša z bolota) (the fishing basket ridiculed the swamp)
  • не баче сова, яка сама (uk) (ne bače sova, jaka sama) (the owl doesn't see itself)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.

Translations to be checked

• Albanian: I mjeri shan të përmjerrin. (The miserable reproaches the one who urinated on himself.)
• Arabic: "ان كان بيتك من زجاج فلا ترم الناس بالحجارة" (If your house is of glass, don't throw rocks at others.)
• Assamese: Hkhaale Hkhingik haanhe (The Shaal fish laughs at the Shingifish)
• Basque: Xoxoak beleari: Ipurbeltz!. (The blackbird to the crow: Black tail!)
• Bengali: Chaluni bole chhuch re tor Pichhe kano Chheda!. (The Sieve tells the needle to mind the hole in its back!)
• Czech: Konvice nazývá kotlík černým (The pot called the kettle black) Hrnec hrnci káže, oba černí jako saze – Čelakovský (Pot preaches to pot, both as black as soot.)
• Mandarin
  • 烏鴉笑豬黑，自己不覺得 (cmn) (The crow mocks the blackness of the pig, ignoring its own blackness. (an idiom from Sichuan)
  • 龜笑鱉無尾 (cmn) (The turtle makes fun of the trionychidaes that they are of short tails. (an idiom from Zhangzhou, Fujian)
• Serbo-Croatian: Rugala se sova sjenici da ima velike oči (sh) (The owl mocked the tit for having large eyes)
• Danish: Man skal ikke kaste med sten hvis man selv bor i et glashus (da) (You shouldn't throw rocks if you live in a house of glass)
• Dutch: De pot verwijt de ketel dat hij zwart ziet (nl) (The pot reproaches the kettle for looking black)
• Estonian: Pada sõimab katelt, ühed mustad mõlemad (et) (The pot reproaches the kettle – but they are both black)
• French: La pelle se moque du fourgon (fr) (The shovel mocks the poker)
• German: Ein Esel schimpft den anderen Langohr (de) (One donkey calls the other one longears),
  • rechter Pantoffel schimpft über linken Pantoffel (de)
  • Wer im Glashaus sitzt, soll nicht mit Steinen werfen (de) (Who sits in the glass house, shouldn't throw stones)
• Greek: Είπε ο γάιδαρος τον πετεινό κεφάλα (el) (Ipe o gaidaros ton petino kefala)  (The donkey said to the rooster "Your head is too big")
• Hebrew: כל הפוסל במומו פסול (he) (Kol HaPossel, B'mumo Possel) (All who disqualify [another due to a fault], disqualifies him due to his own fault)
• Indonesian:
  • Maling teriak maling (id) (Like a thief calling out another thief)
  • Maling teriak rampok (id) (The thief shouting robber)
• Italian: Il bue che dice cornuto all'asino (it)
• Irish: Sin an túlán ag tabhairt tóin dubh ar an phota! (That is the pot calling the kettle black!)
• Japanese: 目糞鼻糞 (ja) from 目糞が鼻糞を笑う (ja) (Eye wax and snot" shortened from "Eye wax laughing at the snot)
• Korean: "똥 묻은 개가 겨 묻은 개 나무란다" (ko) (The dung-stained dog reproaches the chaff-stained dog.), 겨 묻은 개가 똥 묻은 개를 흉본다 (ko) (The chaff-stained dog disparages the dung-stained dog.)
• Lithuanian: "Juokiasi puodas, kad katilas juodas" (lt) (The pot laughing at a black kettle)
• Malay
  • "Periuk mengumpat belanga" (ms) (The metal pot tattling about the clay pot.)
• Norwegian: Å kaste sten i glasshus (no) (To throw stones in a glass house)
• Marathi: Chorachya ultya bomba (A thief becomes accuser)
• Persian
  • دیگ به دیگ می گه روت سیاه (fa) (The pot calls the kettle black)
  • دیگ به دیگ میگه روت سیاه (fa) (The pot tells the other pot your face is black)
• Portuguese
  • Olha pra teu nariz (pt) (Look at your nose, implying they also have dirt on their nose.)
  • O sujo falando do mal lavado (pt) (The dirty is talking about the half clean)
  • O porco falando do toucinho (pt) (The pig talking about the bacon)
  • Quem tem telhados de vidro não atira pedras (pt) (People with glass roofs don't throw stones)
• Romanian: Râde ciob de oală spartă (ro) (Potsherd laughs at the cracked pot)
• Serbo-Croatian: Rugala se šerpa loncu, a i ona garava (The casserole laughs at the pot, and they are both sooty)
• Spanish: Apártate que me tiznas, dijo la sartén al cazo (es) (Move away, you are blackening me, said the pan to the pot) El burro hablando de orejas (es) (The donkey talking about ears)
  • México: El comál le dijo a la olla (es) (The grill said to the pot)
  • Venezuela: Cachicamo diciéndole a morrocoy conchúo (es) (An armadillo telling a turtle it is too hard shelled)
  • Colombia: Un burro hablando de orejas (es) (A donkey talking about ears)
  • Perú: La olla le dice a la sartén (es) (The pot said to the frying pan)
• Swedish
  • Kasta inte sten i glashus (sv) (Don't throw stones in glass houses)
• Thai: ว่าแต่เขา อิเหนาเป็นเอง (th) (wâa dtàe kăo ì-năo bpen eng)) (Enau accuses others, but he himself is guilty)
• Turkish: "Tencere! Dibin kara." "Seninki benimkinden de kara". (One pot saying to another: "Pot, your bottom is black." – other pot replying back: "Yours is blacker than mine!")
• Vietnamese: Chó chê mèo lắm lông (vi) (Dog ridicules cat for being hairy)

See also

• hypocrisy
• people who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones
• methinks the lady doth protest too much