skeleton in the closet

plural skeletons in the closet · plural skeletons in the closets · alternative skeleton in one's closet

1. USidiomaticA shameful secret.

   I think it’s safe to say that the skeletons in the closets of some lawmakers corrupted the process, making an even stronger case for why a politician’s character is so important.

   2016, Phil Valentine, “Compromising Position”, in The Conservative’s Handbook: Defining the Right Position on Issues from A to Z, Naperville, Ill.: Cumberland House, →ISBN, chapter 3 (Character is the single most important attribute in a leader), page 35

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   "Humph!" she vouchsafed. Then, showing her old-time interest, she went on: "But, say, it is queer, his speakin' to you, honestly, Miss Pollyanna. He don't speak ter no one; and he lives all alone in a great big lovely house all full of jest grand things, they say. Some says he's crazy, and some jest cross; and some says he's got a skeleton in his closet."

   1913, Eleanor H. Porter, chapter 9, in Pollyanna, L.C. Page, →OCLC

   Synonyms: skeleton in the cupboard, skeleton in the house