Meanings
- One bad person or element can have a harmful influence on many others.
"One of our kittens started chewing on the chair the other day and now they're all doing it! Just goes to show that one bad apple can spoil the barrel."
Synonyms: one bad apple can spoil the whole bunch
Synonyms & antonyms
proverbOne bad person or element can have a harmful influence on many others.
Origin
From the observation that rot of a single fruit can spread to many fruit nearby.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Hindi एक गंदी मछली पूरे तालाब को गंदा कर देती है
- एक गंदी मछली पूरे तालाब को गंदा कर देती है (ek gandī machlī pūre tālāb ko gandā kar detī hai)one bad person or element can have a harmful influence on many others
Latin pomum compunctum cito corrumpit sibi iunctum
- pomum compunctum cito corrumpit sibi iunctumone bad person or element can have a harmful influence on many others
Malay sebab nila setitik, rosak susu sebelanga
- sebab nila setitik, rosak susu sebelangaone bad person or element can have a harmful influence on many others
Urdu ایک گندی مچھلی پورے تالاب کو گندہ کر دیتی ہے
- ایک گندی مچھلی پورے تالاب کو گندہ کر دیتی ہےone bad person or element can have a harmful influence on many others
Vietnamese con sâu làm rầu nồi canh
- con sâu làm rầu nồi canhone bad person or element can have a harmful influence on many others
Cite this entry
one bad apple can spoil the barrel. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/one%20bad%20apple%20can%20spoil%20the%20barrel
“one bad apple can spoil the barrel.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/one%20bad%20apple%20can%20spoil%20the%20barrel. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “one bad apple can spoil the barrel,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/one%20bad%20apple%20can%20spoil%20the%20barrel.
Source: one bad apple can spoil the barrel on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.