threw the baby out with the bathwater

A form of throw the baby out with the bathwater — To discard, inadvertently or through overzealousness, something valuable or essential ("the baby") in the process of removing or rejecting something unwanted or undesirable ("the bathwater").

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Meanings

verb
  1. pastsimple past of throw the baby out with the bathwater
Cite this entry
APA

threw the baby out with the bathwater. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/threw%20the%20baby%20out%20with%20the%20bathwater

MLA

“threw the baby out with the bathwater.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/threw%20the%20baby%20out%20with%20the%20bathwater. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “threw the baby out with the bathwater,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/threw%20the%20baby%20out%20with%20the%20bathwater.

Source: threw the baby out with the bathwater on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.