bad apple
English · Thesaurus
AI In plain words
Writing a short explanation…
Written by a house AI from the entry below, in your language. The entry itself is the source.
bad apple
Where it comes from
From the proverb “one bad apple can spoil the whole bunch” (or a variant thereof).
noun bad apples
-
A person who is not wholesome, honest, or trustworthy, especially one who has an adverse influence on others.
Near-synonym: bad egg
Similar: rotten apple, bad seed, bad egg
Translations
Every language
noun person who is not wholesome
| Español | manzana podrida, mal elemento, oveja negra, garbanzo negro |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | 癌 gan |
| 中文 | 害群之馬 /害群之马 hàiqúnzhīmǎ, 老鼠屎 lǎoshǔshǐ |
| हिन्दी | गंदी मछली gandī machlī |
| Português | maçã podre |
| Français | mauvaise graine |
| Deutsch | schwarzes Schaf, Unheilstifter, fauler Apfel, faules Ei |
| Italiano | mela marcia |
| Română | poamă rea |
| Русский | парши́вая овца́ paršívaja ovcá |
Talk about this word "bad apple." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/bad%20apple. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. bad apple. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/bad%20apple "bad apple." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/bad%20apple.Cite this
@misc{bad_apple_2026,
title = {bad apple},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/bad%20apple},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
