Meanings
present singular third person hurts a fly · participle present hurting a fly
- idiomaticTo hurt or damage something even a little.
1 more example
Talking of being eaten by dogs, there's a dachshund at Brinkley who when you first meet him will give you the impression that he plans to convert you into a light snack between his regular meals. Pay no attention. It's all eyewash. […] He wouldn't hurt a fly, but he has to put up a front because his name's Poppet. One can readily appreciate that when a dog hears himself addressed day in and day out as Poppet, he feels he must throw his weight about. His self-respect demands it.
1960, P. G. Wodehouse, chapter XI, in Jeeves in the OffingSynonyms: harm a fly
Synonyms & antonyms
verbTo hurt or damage something even a little.
Translations
Bulgarian на мра́вката път пра́вя
- на мра́вката път пра́вя (na mrávkata păt právja)idiomatic: be of very gentle nature
Czech ani mouše by neublížil
- ani mouše by neublížilidiomatic: be of very gentle nature
Danish ikke gøre en flue fortræd
- ikke gøre en flue fortrædidiomatic: be of very gentle nature
Finnish ei tekisi pahaa kärpäsellekään
- ei tekisi pahaa kärpäsellekäänidiomatic: be of very gentle nature
French ne pas faire de mal à une mouche
- ne pas faire de mal à une moucheidiomatic: be of very gentle nature
German einer Fliege etwas zuleide tun, kein Wässerchen trüben können
- einer Fliege etwas zuleide tunidiomatic: be of very gentle nature
- kein Wässerchen trüben könnenidiomatic: be of very gentle nature
Greek μερμήγκι δεν πατάει
- μερμήγκι δεν πατάει (mermígki den patáei)idiomatic: be of very gentle nature
Hungarian légynek sem árt
- légynek sem ártidiomatic: be of very gentle nature
Italian non fare male a una mosca
- non fare male a una moscaidiomatic: be of very gentle nature
Russian му́хи не оби́дит
- му́хи не оби́дит (múxi ne obídit)idiomatic: be of very gentle nature
Swedish inte göra en fluga illa, inte göra en fluga förnär
- inte göra en fluga illaidiomatic: be of very gentle nature
- inte göra en fluga förnäridiomatic: be of very gentle nature
Cite this entry
hurt a fly. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hurt%20a%20fly
“hurt a fly.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hurt%20a%20fly. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “hurt a fly,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hurt%20a%20fly.
Source: hurt a fly on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.