Also: Catch Red-Handed
Meaning of Idiom ‘Caught Red-Handed’
To be caught red-handed means to be caught while doing something wrong or illegal; to be caught committing a crime with all the evidence available.
Want to see more videos from Idioms.Online? Subscribe to our YouTube channel!
Examples of Use
“She was caught red-handed while shoplifting.”
“I tried to cheat on an important exam once, but I was caught red-handed by my teacher.”
“The mayor was caught red-handed misappropriating funds.”
“There is no point arresting him now,” said the detective. “We have to catch him red-handed.”
Origin
Used since at least the 1880’s.
This idiom originally alluded to blood found on a murderer’s hands but was later generalized to refer to any crime or wrongdoing. 1Pare, May. Body Idioms and More: For Learners of English. United States?: Mayuree Pare, 2005.,2Ammer, Christine. American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013.
25 Body Parts Idioms | Idioms Online Video
Want to see more videos from Idioms.Online? Subscribe to our YouTube channel!
More Idioms Starting with C
More Body Part Idioms
- Long in the Tooth
- Shoe is On the Other Foot, the
- Heart Skips a Beat
- Heavy Heart
- Lump In Your Throat
- Armed to the Teeth
More Caught/Catch Idioms
- Caught With Your Pants Down
- Caught with Your Hand In The Cookie Jar
- Caught In The Crossfire
- Catch Your Death (You’ll)
- Catch Some Rays
More Color Idioms
More Hand Idioms
- Secondhand (Second-hand, second hand)
- Firsthand (first-hand, first hand)
- Old Hand, an
- Have Someone in the Palm of One’s Hand
- At Hand
More Red Idioms
This page contains one or more affiliate links. See full affiliate disclosure.
YouTube and Facebook Group
Sources
| 1. | ↲ | Pare, May. Body Idioms and More: For Learners of English. United States?: Mayuree Pare, 2005. |
| 2. | ↲ | Ammer, Christine. American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013. |