let George do it

proverb

Let someone else incur the cost of achieving the shared benefit.

OriginFrench laissez faire à Georges →
First used early 20th c.
Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

proverb
  1. USdatedLet someone else incur the cost of achieving the shared benefit.First known use early 20th c.

Origin

  1. Frenchlaissez faire à Georges
  2. Englishlet George do it

Sometimes explained as derived from French laissez faire à Georges, a satirical reference to the multiform activities of Cardinal Georges d'Amboise (1460–1510), but this is unlikely. Alternatively explained as a reference to Pullman porters, who were generically known as George.

More words from French

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

let George do it. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/let%20George%20do%20it

MLA

“let George do it.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/let%20George%20do%20it. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “let George do it,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/let%20George%20do%20it.

Source: let George do it on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.