what does "the pot calling the kettle black" mean?

Answer 1

To say something about someone else which is actually true of you yourself ... (usually a flaw)

In the scenario you must assume both the kettle and the pot are black (consider this is an old saying and both used to be put over the fire).

Answer 2

The pot and kettle are one in the same--if a person (the pot) talks about another person (the kettle) badly, or judges them, and the person is actually talking about someone who does the same things like him/herself. It's like telling people you have some character flaw without knowing you are doing it. That's why we must always think before we speak. I overheard a lady the other day complaining about her neighbor who had "too many men guests" at night. Well, the first lady has as many men at her house as her neighbor has. That's like "the pot calling the kettle black.'

Answer 3

In the old days, pots and kettles were both heated over fires, leading them to be black. Therefore, a pot calling a kettle black is like someone known for being untruthful calling someone a habitual liar.

Answer 4

You are the pot calling the kettle black when you point to another person and accuse that person of doing something that you are guilty of doing yourself. Example: "You are accusing me of being lazy? Ha! That's the pot calling the kettle black!"

Answer 5

It's an expression meaning that someone acuses someone else for doing something they themself do.

The pot is black too. Yet it's calling the kettle black as an insault.
Sorta like a TOTALLY rude person calling another rude person rude.

Answer 6

Traditionally...cast iron pots and kettles are black in color....pots are much smaller than a kettle....so what it refers to is ....a person with a problem, bringing out the same problem in someone else

Answer 7

The pot and the kettle are BOTH black.

It means, "The person, that was insulting your integrity, has no right to, since you BOTH, have the same bad qualities.

Answer 8

Here is one common example.

Say someone is a big sot - a drunk. They see someone else who may be afflicted as well, and lets others know they think so-and-so has a "drinking problem."

Usually, this is used as a tactic to divert the attention away from their OWN character flaws!

Answer 9

It's an African-American term. It means they got som bad pot and they want their money back.

Answer 10

It means you shouldn't make fun of someone for doing something, because you do the exact same thing.

Example: My mom says this to me when I yell at my brother to stop yelling, as I yell just as much as he does. I shouldn't be complaining about him being too loud, because I'm just as loud as him.