keeper

I'm not responsible for the actions, behavior, or whereabouts of my close relative or friend (not necessarily a brother). Often used to express frustration that such responsibility is assumed. How should I know where Mary is? Am I my brother's keeper?

To be responsible for the actions, behavior, or whereabouts of one's close relative or friend (not necessarily a brother). Often used in the negative to express frustration that such responsibility is assumed. Of course I'm disappointed that Travis got arrested again, but I'm not my brother's keeper. When I'm babysitting him, I'm my brother's keeper.

To be the custodian or guardian of something. Who's the keeper of the bathroom key around here? Some say the tribe who inhabited this jungle were keepers of a dark and terrible magic. We trust you more than any of our other agents, Luanne, so we want you to be keeper of the microfilm.

If someone finds something, they are entitled to keep it (even if it belongs to someone else). This phrase is part of the children's rhyme "finders keepers, losers weepers." Jake yelled "finders keepers" as he dashed toward the house with the sparkling ring he had discovered. A: "Hey, that's my favorite toy!" B: "But I found it out on the playground. Finders keepers, losers weepers!"

A children's rhyme meaning that if someone finds something, they are entitled to keep it (even if it belongs to someone else). Jake yelled "finders keepers" as he dashed toward the house with the sparkling ring he had discovered. A: "Hey, that's my favorite toy!" B: "But I found it out on the playground. Finders keepers, losers weepers!"

I'm not responsible for the actions, behavior, or whereabouts of my close relative or friend (not necessarily a brother). Often used to express frustration that such responsibility is assumed. Of course I'm disappointed that Travis got arrested again, but I'm not my brother's keeper. How should I know where Mary is? I'm not my brother's keeper.

Not responsible for the actions, behavior, or whereabouts of one's close relative or friend (not necessarily a brother). Often used to express frustration that such responsibility is assumed. Of course I'm disappointed that Travis got arrested again, but I'm not my brother's keeper. How should I know where Mary is? I'm not my brother's keeper.

Not responsible for one's actions, behavior, or whereabouts. Often used to express frustration that such responsibility is assumed. Of course I'm disappointed that Travis got arrested again, but I'm not his keeper. How should I know where Mary is? I'm not her keeper.

to be responsible for someone else. (Used of others besides just real brothers.) I can't force these kids to go to school and get an education so they can get jobs. I am not my brother's keeper. You can't expect me to be my brother's keeper. Each of us should be responsible for himself! be one's own man and be one's own master to be someone who is not controlled by other people; to be an independent person. Bert longed to be his own master, but at the same time feared losing the security he had as the employee of a large company. When I go away to college, I'll be my own man. My parents won't be able to tell me what to do anymore.

Prov. If you find something, you are entitled to keep it. (This is a children's rhyme and sounds childish when used by adults.) Bill: Hey! How come you're using my fountain pen? Fred: It's mine now. I found it on the floor—finders keepers, losers weepers. Child: That's my hat. You can't have it. Playmate: I found it. Finders keepers.

Prov. You are not responsible for another person's doings or whereabouts. (Biblical.) Fred: Where's Robert? Jane: Am I my brother's keeper? Jill: How could you let Jane run off like that? Alan: I'm not my brother's keeper.

A phrase meaning that whoever finds something is entitled to keep it. For example, Someone left a dollar bill in this rented car-finders, keepers. This expression alludes to an ancient Roman law to that effect and has been stated in numerous different ways over the centuries. The modern version, often stated as Finders keepers, losers weepers, dates from the mid-1800s and is no longer a legal precept.

If someone, especially a child, says finders keepers, they mean that they have a right to keep something they have found. My umbrella has not been returned. Obviously, someone picked it up and has made no effort to find the owner. Finders, keepers.

If you are asked where someone is and you answer that you are not their keeper, you are saying in quite a rude way that you do not know where they are and you cannot be expected to know. `I've no idea where he is,' Hughes replied, `I'm not his keeper.'

You can say that you are not your brother's keeper to indicate that you do not accept responsibility for other people in any way. Part of me wants to help him, but part of me realizes I can't be my brother's keeper. Note: These expressions come from a story in the Bible. Cain has killed his brother, Abel, but tries to deny it. `And the Lord said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother's keeper?' (Genesis 4:9)

Those who obtain something simply by discovering it are entitled to keep it. There are several versions of this expression, all of them referring to the law that a person who finds something, even if it is someone else’s property, may keep it for himself or herself. The earliest references are in writings of the Roman playwright Plautus and date from approximately 200 b.c. Two millennia later, D. M. Moir (Mansie Wauch, 1824) referred to “the auld Scotch proverb of ‘he that finds, keeps, and he that loses seeks.’” Charles Reade also called it a proverb: “Losers seekers, finders keepers” (It Is Never Too Late to Mend, 1856). The modern schoolyard version is “Finders keepers, losers weepers.” Legal implications aside, the poetic rhythm of this expression no doubt helps account for its long life.