give a bad name to, to
give a bad name to
Also, give someone or something a bad name . Spoil the reputation of, as in Late deliveries are giving the company a bad name. The use of bad name (sometimes put as ill name) dates from about 1400, and the proverb "He that hath a ill name is half hanged" was included in numerous collections from 1546 on.
See also: bad, give, name
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
give a bad name to, to
To speak ill of someone or something in order to give it a bad reputation. This term comes from the proverb, “Give a dog an ill name and hang him,” quoted in James Kelly’s collection of Scottish proverbs (1721). It has been a cliché since about 1800.
See also: bad, give, name
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer
- have a bad opinion of (someone or something)
- have a good, bad, high, low, etc. opinion of somebody/something
- (it's/that's the) story of my life
- it's the story of my life
- story of my life, the
- in (someone's) bad books
- in someone's bad books
- bad company
- give bad marks to
- give bad marks to (someone or something)