Meanings
plural apples of someone's eye
- idiomaticThe object of somebody's affections; a person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers; a favorite, a loved one.
Sara was never the same after losing her daughter, the apple of her eye.
5 more examples
Kepe me as the apple of an eye, defende me vnder the ſhadowe of thy wynges.
1535 October 14 (Gregorian calendar), Myles Coverdale, transl., Biblia: The Byble, […] (Coverdale Bible), [Cologne or Marburg]: [Eucharius Cervicornus and Johannes Soter?], →OCLC, Psalm xvj:[8], folio xiiij, recto, column 2If you touche him [Philip II of Spain] in the Indies, you touche the apple of his eye; for take away his treasure, which is neruus belli [the sinews of war], and which he hath almoste oute of his West Indies, his olde bandes of souldiers will soone be dissolved, his purposes defeated, his power and strengthe diminished, his pride abated, and his tyranie utterly suppressed.
1584 (date written), Richard Hakluyt, “What Speciall Meanes may Bringe Kinge Phillippe from His Highe Throne, and Make Him Equall to the Princes His Neighboures; wherewithall is Shewed His Weaknes in the West Indies”, in A Particuler Discourse Concerning the Greate Necessitie and Manifolde Comodyties that are Like to Growe to this Realme of Englande by the Westerne Discoueries Lately Attempted, […]; published in Charles Deane, editor, A Discourse on Western Planting, […] (Collections of the Maine Historical Society, Second Series; II), Cambridge, Mass.: […] John Wilson and Son [for the Maine Historical Society], 1877, →OCLC, page 59For the Lords portion is his people: Jacob is the lot of his inheritance. He found him in a deſert land, and in the wasſe howling wilderneſſe: Hee ledde him about, he inſtructed him, hee kept him as the apple of his eye.
1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Deuteronomy 32:9–10, column 1[P]oor Richard was to me as an eldest son, the apple of my eye, and my destined heir; but he died in his duty, and I—I— […] I live to avenge him.
1816, Jedadiah Cleishbotham [pseudonym; Walter Scott], chapter VII, in Tales of My Landlord, […], volume III (Old Mortality), Edinburgh: […] [James Ballantyne and Co.] for William Blackwood, […]; London: John Murray, […], →OCLC, page 139It lost, moreover, on its very first evening, one of the very apples of its eye in the removal of Mr. Brown's grand heifer, who was the gold medallist of her sex. She was seized with distemper, and at once removed to an adjacent stall.
1858 December 11, “The Smithfield Club Show”, in The Illustrated London News, volume XXXIII, number 949, London: George C. Leighton […], →OCLC, page 557, column 1
Origin
- Old Englishæppel on the ēagan
- Middle Englishappel of the eie“pupil of the eye; cornea; (figurative) something highly valued”
- Englishapple of someone's eye
PIE word *h₂ébōl From Middle English appel of the eie (“pupil of the eye; cornea; (figurative) something highly valued”), from Old English æppel on the ēagan, used in biblical texts (Deuteronomy 32:10, Psalm 17:8; Proverbs 7:2, Lamentations 2:18, and Zechariah 2:8; compare the quotations) to designate the pupil of the eye as something precious to be protected. The use of "apple" in English is apparently due to the pupil or cornea being thought of as a solid, globular object.
More words from Middle English, Old English
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Afrikaans oogappeltjie, oogappel
- oogappeltjieobject of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
- oogappelobject of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
Arabic قُرَّةُ عَيْن
- قُرَّةُ عَيْن (qurratu ʕayn)object of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
Catalan la nina dels ulls ft
- la nina dels ulls ftobject of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
Chinese Mandarin 心肝寶貝 /心肝宝贝
- 心肝寶貝 /心肝宝贝 (xīngān bǎobèi)object of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
Danish øjesten
- øjestenobject of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
Dutch oogappel
- oogappelobject of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
Esperanto pupilo de sia okulo
- pupilo de sia okuloobject of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
Finnish silmäterä
- silmäteräobject of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
French prunelle de ses yeux
- prunelle de ses yeuxobject of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
German Augapfel
- Augapfelobject of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
Greek κόρη οφθαλμού
- κόρη οφθαλμού (kóri ofthalmoú)object of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
Hebrew בָּבַת עַיִן
- בָּבַת עַיִן (bavát 'áyin)object of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
Hindi आँख का तारा
- आँख का तारा (ā̃kh kā tārā)object of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
Hungarian szeme fénye
- szeme fényeobject of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
Japanese 目に入れても痛くないもの
- 目に入れても痛くないもの (me ni iretemo itakunai mono)object of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
Norwegian Bokmål øyensten, ens øyensten
- øyenstenobject of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
- ens øyenstenobject of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
- noens øyenstenobject of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
Polish oczko w głowie
- oczko w głowieobject of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
Portuguese menina dos olhos
- menina dos olhosobject of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
Romanian lumina ochilor
- lumina ochilorobject of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
Russian свет оче́й, зени́ца о́ка
- свет оче́й (svet očéj)object of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
- зени́ца о́ка (zeníca óka)object of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
Scottish Gaelic dearc na sùla
- dearc na sùlaobject of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
Spanish el ojito derecho de alguien, la niña de sus ojos
- el ojito derecho de alguienobject of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
- la niña de sus ojosobject of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
Swedish ögonsten
- ögonstenobject of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
Tamil கண்மணி
- கண்மணி (kaṇmaṇi)object of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
Turkish gözbebeği
- gözbebeğiobject of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
Ukrainian світло моїх очей
- світло моїх очей (svitlo mojix očej)object of somebody’s affections; person (or sometimes a thing) that someone strongly prefers
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with apple of someone's eye
All rhymes →Cite this entry
apple of someone's eye. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/apple%20of%20someone's%20eye
“apple of someone's eye.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/apple%20of%20someone's%20eye. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “apple of someone's eye,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/apple%20of%20someone's%20eye.
Source: apple of someone's eye on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.