know someone from Adam

English

Alternative forms

• know someone from Adam's off ox

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Verb

know someone from Adam

1. (idiomatic) To know or recognise someone at all.
   • 1938, Graham Greene, Brighton Rock

     'Who is she, anyway? Interfering . . . pestering . . . you must know.' 'I don't know her from Adam,' the Boy said.

   • 1963, Audrey Lillian Barker, The joy-ride and after:

     "Well," he said, "do you know me from Adam?"

Usage notes

Almost always used in the negative.

Synonyms

• know from a bar of soap
• know someone from a can of paint
• know someone from a hole in the ground
• know someone from a hole in the wall

Translations

Translations

• Finnish: olla kuullut (+ elative), tuntea (fi) (with lainkaan, ollenkaan, etc.)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• French: ne connaître ni d’Ève ni d’Adam (fr)