Fox Guarding the Henhouse

Foxes often break into henhouses and not because they want to give their good wishes to the hens. The allusion in this proverbial idiom is quite clear. To have a fox guarding the henhouse is as foolish as setting a wolf to guard the sheep.

Meaning Of Idiom ‘Fox Guarding the Henhouse’

When a fox is guarding the henhouse, a person is placed in a position where they will use it for personal gain, to harm people, or to act out personal vendettas. Therefore, the innocent are placed in harm’s way.

This idiom can take many forms such as “Don’t let the fox guard the henhouse.”

Several variations are sometimes heard such as ‘fox watching the henhouse’ and ‘fox in the henhouse.’

See the related idiom, wolf in sheep’s clothing.

Sentence Examples

“Electing him again is letting the fox guard the henhouse.”

“Clearly, this new CEO is like the fox guarding the henhouse. He seems to be purposely sinking the organization.”

“They let prisoners look after other prisoners? Isn’t that like the fox guarding the henhouse?”

“The real estate business is basically self-policing. The fox guarding the henhouse.” — Close to Home: Land of Opportunity (2006)

“He can get pass codes, find out where the cameras are. Slip in and out without ever being detected. The fox guarding the henhouse.” — Night Stalker: Into Night (2006)

“I asked Major Sheppard to keep an eye on her.” “Which is like asking the fox to guard the hen-house.” — Stargate: Atlantis: Sanctuary (2004)

Origin

This idiom first appeared in print in the French work Le contre ligue (1589), translated into English by John Wolfe, and first appeared in America in 1924 in Arther Guiterman’s A Poet’s Proverbs. It alludes to the fact that it would be foolish to trust a fox to guard hens, since the hens are the fox’s chosen prey.

There is a similar Latin expression, ovem lupo commitere, meaning ‘to let a wolf guard sheep.’ 1St. Clair, Stanley J. Most Comprehensive Origins of Cliches, Proverbs and Figurative Expressions. St. Clair Publications, 2013.