
IdiomBody & Senses
English
turn the other cheek
Meaning: Not to retaliate; not to pay back bad behavior with more bad behavior.
Example: “When the rival fans jeered, the captain told his team to turn the other cheek.”
Origin: From the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:39): "whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also." Jesus teaches his followers not to take revenge, and the phrase has meant refusing to retaliate ever since.
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