Crocodile tears
Crocodile tears means false or insincere sorrow, especially when someone pretends to care about suffering they have caused. The phrase comes from the story of crocodiles weeping while eating their victims, an old belief repeated in The Travels of Sir John Mandeville.
Where it comes from
The old animal story
The phrase comes from an old belief that crocodiles weep while devouring people. The supposed tears suggested sorrow, even as the animal continued to feed.
In The Travels of Sir John Mandeville, the account of crocodiles describes them killing people and eating them while weeping. This is part of the book's description of strange creatures in distant lands.
In The Travels of Sir John Mandeville by John Mandeville
A charge of false sorrow
Writers use the crocodile image to question whether tears are sincere. Today, calling someone's tears crocodile tears accuses them of pretending to feel sorrow or sympathy.
In Othello, Othello treats Desdemona's tears as deceitful and compares their power to the breeding of crocodiles. His accusation shows how badly jealousy has distorted his judgment of her.
In Othello by William Shakespeare
How to use Crocodile tears
- Use it for sorrow or sympathy you believe is false.
- Show the gap between the person's tears and their actions.
- Avoid treating tears alone as proof of dishonesty.
Does crocodile tears mean any kind of crying?
No, crocodile tears means insincere sorrow, not crying in general. Someone may cry openly and still be entirely sincere. The phrase fits when there is reason to think the display of sadness hides indifference, selfishness, or satisfaction.
Did Shakespeare invent crocodile tears?
No, the crocodile story is older than Shakespeare. It appears in The Travels of Sir John Mandeville, which predates his plays. Shakespeare draws on the same belief in Othello, where the image helps show Othello's mistaken distrust of Desdemona.
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