Meaning of ‘Crocodile Tears’
The idiom ‘crocodile tears’ means someone who is expressing sadness in a fake or insincere way. It often refers to situations where a person pretends to be genuinely sorry, but they’re really not.
Example: After dinner was ruined by being overcooked, Tom shed a few crocodile tears to his wife, and then he immediately pulled out his phone to order takeout.
Similar Phrases: fake tears, feigned sorrow, playing the victim, putting on an act, putting on a show
Related Idioms:
There’s no need to be so sad when there’s a lot more common idioms to discover! Check out our Popular Idioms and Phrases Starting With C page for a list of them.
What is the Origin of ‘Crocodile Tears’?
The phrase ‘crocodile tears’ originates from the fact that crocodiles shed tears when eating their prey. Yes, it was once considered a myth that crocodiles ‘wept’ as they ate, but now there have been studies indicating that ‘crocodile tears‘ are a real thing.
These large reptiles actually shed tears while they feed, but why is that? Is it because they are feeling emotions like remorse or grief as they chomp down on their prey? No, that’s not believed to be the case. The actual reason for why their eyes water while eating is not fully understood.
The point is, any water droplets the crocodile produces while eating would be ones of insincerity. That is, the ‘crying’ would not be from genuine sadness. So the phrase draws a comparison: when someone pretends to be sad, their tears are likened to that of a crocodile. As a result, they are said to be shedding ‘crocodile tears.’
There is a reference to these ‘weeping’ reptiles that goes back to the 14th century. It’s in a book called The Travels of Sir John Mandeville (the author is unclear), around the year 1375, and there is a part from it that reads:
“These serpents slay men, and they eat them weeping.”
Okay, but when did this phrase start to be used as an idiom? The earliest it appears in print in the form of an expression (as far as I know) with the meaning of ‘insincerity’ is from a work by John Strype called Life and Acts of Edmund Grindal, 1710:
“I begin to fear, lest his humility in words be a counterfeit humility, and his tears, crocodile tears.”
Did You Know? Certain crocodiles can live up to 70 – 100 years. They can be pretty big too. The saltwater crocodile, for example, are the largest of the reptiles. They can grow to be 17 ft. long and weigh around 2,000 lbs.
Examples of ‘Crocodile Tears’ In Sentences
Let’s go over some usage cases for this everyday expression to see what we can learn.
Examples:
1. When our living room TV broke, I shed some crocodile tears, but truth be told, I’ve been wanting to upgrade for a while.
2. She gave him crocodile tears after accidentally breaking one of his expensive toys, but she didn’t really care.
Examples That Use Similar Idioms:
1. He started feigning sorrow when he was caught lying, but we all knew he wasn’t sorry.
2. Those fake tears she’s pretending to wipe away with a tissue won’t fool me this time!
3. I could tell he was putting on an act to make it seem like he was completely innocent in this situation.