B2idiomfoodIELTS-friendly
a bad apple
USUK
one bad person who has a bad effect on the rest of a group
From 'one bad apple spoils the barrel'. Very close to Vietnamese 'con sâu làm rầu nồi canh'. Also 'a rotten apple'.
In context
Most of the police officers are honest; it only takes one bad apple to ruin their reputation.
The teacher moved the bad apple to another table, and the group calmed down.
More idioms about food
- a couch potatoa person who spends a lot of time sitting and watching TV instead of being active
- a different kettle of fisha completely different situation from the one just mentioned
- a finger in every pieinvolved in many different activities, often to get power
- a meal ticketa person or thing that someone uses as a source of money or support
- a melting pota place where people of many cultures live and mix together