Meanings
alternative the burnt child dreads the fire · alternative the burnt child fears the fire
- datedA person harmed by something becomes more cautious about it.
I didn’t mean to interfere, dear. I never will again. You can rely on me. A burnt child dreads the fire. Once bitten—
1923, George S. Kaufman, Marc Connelly, Dulcy: A Comedy in Three Acts, page 1264 more examples
The Continental insurance company has instructed its agents not to use Rubber Stamps to affix their signatures to policies, renewals, etc., because “Rubber Stamps are easily duplicated, at small expense, even in the case of fac-similes of signatures, and forgery and fraud are facilitated by their use.” […] A burnt child dreads the fire and the Continental has had a painful experience.
1886 December 23, “The Week”, in The Chronicle: A Weekly Insurance Journal, volume 38, number 26, page 309A.—They struck. A combination of the Knights of Labor caused them to strike. / […] / Q.—Did you refuse to give them work again? A.—I did. / Q.—What was the reason? A.—Because a “burnt child dreads the fire,” and we did not want them again.
1888 May 4, Sam Heakes, Joseph Gray, “[Questioning]”, in Report of the Royal Commission on the Relations of Capital and Labor in Canada: Evidence—Ontario, published 1889, page 1092[…] I doubt very much whether such funds will soon be placed in the channels of trade, because “a burnt child dreads the fire.” These depositors will not entrust their earnings any time soon to another banking institution unless they have some assurance or guarantee that such deposits will be protected.
1932 January 14, Butler B. Hare, “Reconstruction Finance Corporation”, in Proceedings and Debates of the First Session of the Seventy-Second Congress of the United States of America, volume 75, part 2, published 1932, page 1968They are the living antithesis of the saying, “A burnt child dreads the fire,” since they repeat the same fiascos time and again in an impressively self-destructive fashion.
1945 April 26, Phyllis Greenacre, Conscience in the Psychopath; republished as J. Reid Meloy, editor, The Mark of Cain: Psychoanalytic Insight and the Psychopath, 2001, →ISBNSynonyms: once bitten, twice shy
Synonyms & antonyms
proverbA person harmed by something becomes more cautious about it.
Translations
Bengali ঘর পোড়া গরু সিঁদুরে মেঘ দেখে ডরায়
- ঘর পোড়া গরু সিঁদুরে মেঘ দেখে ডরায় (ghor pōṛa goru śĩdure megh dekhe ḍoraẏ)a person harmed by something becomes more cautious about it — see also once bitten, twice shy
Chinese Mandarin 一朝被蛇咬，十年怕井繩 /一朝被蛇咬, 十年怕井绳
- 一朝被蛇咬，十年怕井繩 /一朝被蛇咬a person harmed by something becomes more cautious about it — see also once bitten, twice shy
- 十年怕井绳 (yī zhāo bèi shé yǎo, shí nián pà jǐng shéng)a person harmed by something becomes more cautious about it — see also once bitten, twice shy
Danish brændt barn skyr ilden
- brændt barn skyr ildena person harmed by something becomes more cautious about it — see also once bitten, twice shy
Finnish palanut lapsi karttaa tulta
- palanut lapsi karttaa tultaa person harmed by something becomes more cautious about it — see also once bitten, twice shy
French chat échaudé craint l'eau froide
- chat échaudé craint l'eau froidea person harmed by something becomes more cautious about it — see also once bitten, twice shy
German ein gebranntes Kind scheut das Feuer
- ein gebranntes Kind scheut das Feuera person harmed by something becomes more cautious about it — see also once bitten, twice shy
Greek όποιος καεί στο χυλό φυσάει και το γιαούρτι
- όποιος καεί στο χυλό φυσάει και το γιαούρτι (ópoios kaeí sto chyló fysáei kai to giaoúrti)a person harmed by something becomes more cautious about it — see also once bitten, twice shy
Hindi दूध का जला छाछ भी फूँक फूँक कर पीता है
- दूध का जला छाछ भी फूँक फूँक कर पीता है (dūdh kā jalā chāch bhī phū̃k phū̃k kar pītā hai)a person harmed by something becomes more cautious about it — see also once bitten, twice shy
Icelandic brennt barn forðast eldinn
- brennt barn forðast eldinna person harmed by something becomes more cautious about it — see also once bitten, twice shy
Indonesian sekali tersengat selalu beringat
- sekali tersengat selalu beringata person harmed by something becomes more cautious about it — see also once bitten, twice shy
Norwegian Bokmål brent barn skyr ilden
- brent barn skyr ildena person harmed by something becomes more cautious about it — see also once bitten, twice shy
Polish kto raz się sparzył, ten na zimne dmucha
- kto raz się sparzył, ten na zimne dmuchaa person harmed by something becomes more cautious about it — see also once bitten, twice shy
Russian обжёгшись на молоке́, ду́ешь и на во́ду, обжёгшись на молоке́, ду́ют на во́ду
- обжёгшись на молоке́, ду́ешь и на во́ду (obžógšisʹ na moloké, dúješʹ i na vódu)a person harmed by something becomes more cautious about it — see also once bitten, twice shy
- обжёгшись на молоке́, ду́ют на во́ду (obžógšisʹ na moloké, dújut na vódu)a person harmed by something becomes more cautious about it — see also once bitten, twice shy
- пуганая ворона куста боится (puganaja vorona kusta boitsja)a person harmed by something becomes more cautious about it — see also once bitten, twice shy
Swedish bränt barn skyr elden
- bränt barn skyr eldena person harmed by something becomes more cautious about it — see also once bitten, twice shy
Cite this entry
a burnt child dreads the fire. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/a%20burnt%20child%20dreads%20the%20fire
“a burnt child dreads the fire.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/a%20burnt%20child%20dreads%20the%20fire. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “a burnt child dreads the fire,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/a%20burnt%20child%20dreads%20the%20fire.
Source: a burnt child dreads the fire on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.