General Knowledge · 2
The idiom "caught red-handed" originally referred to a person caught with what on their hands?
Answer
Fresh blood from a poached deer
The phrase dates to medieval Scotland, where being caught with blood on one's hands from an illegally killed deer was direct evidence of poaching and could be prosecuted in court.
💡 Did you know?
"Caught red-handed" doesn't refer to blood—it meant catching a poacher with fresh deer blood on their hands, a prosecutable offense in medieval Scotland.
Other options people guess
- Red dye from smuggled cloth
- Ink from a forged document
- Paint from a vandalized building
Topics
- idioms
- etymology
- language
- history
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